Reply to The Social Class Ladders—Labor, Gentry, and Elite

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]While we are on the topic of social class and educational institutions, communal values, and social mobility:

Let's say you know an L family or a lower-rung G family who value education. Financially, there are some constraints on their choices, and culturally they are not "elite" G or E. They can't decide if they should send their child to an independent school or move into a well-regarded public school. They have money for tuition or better real estate, but not both choices.

Absent any other factor (such as nickles-and-dimes cost comparison), what do you tell them to do? Why?

DH and I debate this question off and on, focusing a lot on "fitting in"/inclusion as well as the value of learning social rules outside of the ones your family knows.

[/quote]

We have confronted this question as well, albeit from a slightly different place- we are G2/E3, and chose a great house in a very close-in suburb zoned for a well-regarded elementary school.  We could have spent the same money on independent schools for our kids instead of a real estate upgrade, but we aren't currently in a position to do both.  Our thinking was that 1) we and our kids get the benefit of a neighborhood with G2/E friends/neighbors; 2) our real estate will likely appreciate and our kids will ultimately benefit from that; 3) we might be able to afford independent schools for middle/high school even if we can't now- but the zoned schools are good enough that we won't have to do that; 5) in public school our kids aren't as likely to feel envious of others in radically more fortunate circumstances, and we'd like to keep them grounded.[/quote]

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