Reply to Unhooked kids - Why is private HS worth the diminished chances for top college admissions?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]We do it for the 13 years of consistent education, the experience and connections made during those years and the community. Our public is too big, too anonymous, too many behavior problems and checked out parents. This is a gift to our children. The best education we could provide them and the environment to support a better childhood. I'm saying the quiet part out loud here- people are buying a prettier, calmer, more focused experience. It's not about college at all[/quote]

If you could have a kid who is happy, well mannered, good stats..etc. in a public, would you still go with private? I am curious about "it's not about college at all" comment. [/quote]

I am not the poster you are replying to but I will offer my experience.  We had that situation with our older son and did not go private.  He thrived in public school - loves the noise and hustle.  Loved having large groups of friends who all lived within a reasonable distance from school and had a very active social life. High stats, good relationships with several teachers, very involved in EC and now at a highly selective NESCAC where he tutors many kids from well-known privates as a tutor for his college's resource center.  Our other son wanted a smaller environment and less noise and stimuli.  He likes his school and his teachers and we think it has been worth the money.  He missed having friends close by and that has created some challenges in his social life (which I believe is a very important part of well-being and development).  Each kids is different so generalizations don't help much, in my opinion.  And for those posters saying that if you haven't experienced an independent school, they shouldn't be commenting here, the same could be said for those same people commenting on the public school experience.  I've had the experience with both and I can say that both experiences can be good.  When I went to college, the kids that I saw go crazy and flounder were the private school kids.  My college-aged son says the same.  My friends who are professors and deans at various colleges love public school students - they have learned to navigate heterogenous groups, deal with large classes, are more adaptable, keep themselves on track, etc.  Yes, there is some generalizing here but it is their experience shared with me.  It doesn't mean private school is bad at all just that it isn't a panacea or a guarantee of a good school experience.  I live 2 blocks from our neighborhood elementary school and have three friends who teach there.  Trust me, there is plenty of joy there.  I hear the kids outside throughout the day, I know what my friends are doing in the classroom, I see all the families gather outside on the playground after school for hours playing and talking.  People need to pick what is right for their family but don't bash others for their choice (if they even had one) and certainly don't diminish the hard work of public school students who do well in some challenging environments.  [/quote]

Stop the bashing of public school students while I go on about how dumb private schools kids are. [/quote]

That isn't what I did - that's just what you took from it.  As you can see what I wrote, i have a private school kid who is having a good experience and we think it is worth the money.  You just chose to focus on the some of the experiences that I pointed out that addressed my point that a private school education isn't a panacea. I think this board frequently bashes public schools/students unfairly while deluding themselves that private schools are always better than public.  If you can't see that point, that is your problem not mine.  [/quote]

I’m not PP, but I don’t think that’s accurate. There have been multiple threads over the past month or so on this forum about how crappy the college prospects are for private school kids, how private schools got rid of APs because their kids would do badly on the exams, etc.[/quote]

No one says that's why private schools eliminated APs. Even at schools where the classes are gone, kids continue to do well on the exams.[/quote]

I think private schools are getting rid of APs because public school APs diluted the brand. 
I suspect private schools want to advance the idea that their course work is more rigorus and expansive than the public school offerings, which may or may not be true, depending on the school.

There are kids in public and kids in private who do well on AP tests. I actually think that AP test scores, more than HS grades or even the SAT/ACT, are a true reflection of a student's capacity to do well in college level courses. [/quote]

[b]Not sure about that.  Yes, if a student struggles with an AP exam, they are probably not prepared for college level course work.  But a top grade on an AP is no guarantee that the they will not be very challenged by college level work at a high level academic college[/b] [/quote]

I mostly agree.  As a parent of a kid that took a lot of APs (13), I agree that they are not a guarantee that a student won't be challenged by actual college level courses.  APs are often about test preparation and breadth not depth.  They can show some mastery of material  and the ability to managed a larger workload but not much more than that in many cases.  That's why many schools will still require students to retake the coursework at college or make them take their own placement assessment.  The College Board wanted to claim that my son was "bilingual" but his college made him take a placement test for a foreign language and that college placement test was harder than the AP exam.   Where I don't agree with the PP is that if a student struggles with an AP exam, they are probably not ready for actual college level courses.  AP exams are a one shot deal - many kids don't do well on that sort of exam.  Most college courses aren't like that and your final grade is based on more than one test.  [/quote]

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