Reply to When parents are only applying to Maret, GDS and Sidwell...

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Could this seriously be an educational decision for elementary school or is it just pure social climbing strategy?[/quote]

Not sure why it's any business of yours.  We only applied to GDS, Sidwell, and STA.  Those were the only schools where we felt it was worth $50,000/year tuition.  We have no need to climb socially, but are people who want good educational value for the money. [/quote]

And wouldn't your best bet be to just go to a highly regarded public school for elementary?  That'd be free.  So yes, you want to be able to put that magnet on the BMW so folks can see it at the Chevy Chase Club.[/quote]

FWIW - we're a family that has had our children in private from the start.  We have never put a school magnet on our car, don't belong to country clubs, and don't think privates are better than our highly regarded public.  But we did feel the private our children attended for LS was a better match than our public for each of our children and same with the Big 3 high schools they chose.  Have had to get used the the price tag and the stigma from public parents - but it's been a good path for our children.  College placement never played a factor. Try not to paint everyone with the same brush.[/quote]

I am giving an eyeroll to "a better match".  That is some serious code speak.  Match in what sense, exactly?  And how much do you actually know about your highly regarded public, versus what you presume or carried with you based on your own biases?  A Better Match... because you want a cute controlled environment where you pay and therefore feel entitled?   Where you don't have to accommodate disabilities and diversity?  Where you know "the kind of people" your dear children will associate?  Please do tell. [/quote]

Hey eyeroll. Why so fighty today?

My dear child was a better match at NWDC private lower school vs JKLM for curricular reasons. He read, wrote and spoke publicly so much more than my neighbors’ kids at DCPS. So much more writing every week. We care a lot about writing and speaking in front of groups. DCPS accelerated faster in math. We care less about completing Calc BC by junior year. We wanted foreign language multiple times a week beginning in K.  We wanted more studio art classes and instrumental music instruction during the 9-3 school day than the DCPS curriculum offers.

1:12 ratio vs 1:22.  Three outdoor recesses daily vs one.  Both factors more optimal for our dear children. Maybe for other kids, having twice as many kids per  teacher would be a better match.

Before I posted this, I looked up the reported percentages of races at our assigned DCPS compared to the private. Private has same % of white kids, many more hispanic, more black and fewer asians.  The FARMS rate at assigned DCPS is surprisingly consistent with the percentage of kids at this private who receive full financial aid.

The one area where our school isn’t diverse at all is that there are few to no kids with severe behavioral challenges.  Or learning disability that turns into behavioral manifestation.  I freely admit that and, you got it, that seems like it would be a better match for my dear children than the alternative. I base this guess on our kids’ limited experience with consistently disruptive kids in extracurricular settings.

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