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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I went to private, can afford private, and send my kids (one now, one still too young) to public.  DH went to public and many in his family are public school teachers.  I also work in education (at a nonprofit).

For me it is about a few things:

1) ROI.  My kids are still young (one in 1st grade, one in PreK) but barring special needs, or even in the case of them sometimes, the difference between private and public isn't that large.  A lot depends on your specific teachers and your specific kid.  People seem to think - and I probably would too, had I drunk the KoolAid - that private is universally better.  It depends why you think so.  I, for one, don't think a tiny Kindergarten class is ideal.  I want my lower elementary kids to be part of a team, to learn collaboration, to learn self-reliance, etc.  It would take a LOT - and we are rich, compared to a lot of people - for our public to be bad enough / private to be good enough to spend 80k  year for the next 14 years (2 kids).

2) College.  I guess if your goal is to get a non-spectacular kid (ie, not the kid who will get into Harvard regardless of where he goes) into a somewhat better college, private may help.  But to what end?  I agree wholeheartedly with the recruiter above - success is largely defined, and will get even more so in the future - by grit, personality, effort, EQ, etc.  Of course intelligence is relevant, but a smart kid from a close family is going to be ok regardless, in most circumstances.  My husband certainly is.

3) Neighbors/ parents.  I missed being part of the neighborhood school crew SO MUCH as a kid.  Having a close group of neighbors whose kids all go to school together is a blast.  Bouncing ideas off each other, running over to double-check assignments, etc - it's really a great way to be part of a community.  In addition, as a longtime part of the DC private school "scene," there is definitely a culture of celebrity and "new money" that pervades it these days.  It's really unpleasant and competitive and not what my family strives for.  Full disclosure, we live in a fancy public district (and are surrounded by highly educated - and some less educated but still successful - parents who choose public) and people may say the same competitiveness exists there, but frankly a) we didn't pay for it and b) with a larger school community, it's easier to avoid. [/quote]

#3) Meant a lot to us too.

We live in a neighborhood where the kids all go out and play with each other after school. We have one family that is private schooled and they're just completely shut out because of bus schedules and  familiarity. This wasn't always the case, we all used to play together. I recently asked one of the kids if they liked their new school and they said something to the extent of how they miss their friends.

Having friends outside of school is so valuable to a social security in school-- it is something money cannot buy but reaps huge rewards in confidence and maturity later on in life.[/quote]

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