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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]There is a huge difference in math curriculum for public and private schools so in many respects this set of posts is comparing apples to oranges.  I teach accelerated math (honors, TAG and super-TAG) in a Northern Virginia middle school.  I also have taught high school math in a private school frequently mentioned in these forums.

In general, the Algebra I taught in private high schools for most 9th grade students encompasses the Alg I plus Alg II that is taught in public schools.  A good rule of thumb is that the amount of material covered in a public school in a year is about 1/3 to 1/2 of what is covered in a good or acceptable private school.

Message to OP: many children entering private high schools, whether from private or public, are routed into Alg I after the results of their placement tests.  If your child takes Alg I in 8th grade in public school, s/he still probably will end up taking it again in 9th grade at the private school.  And chances are your son/daughter will see that many of the students in Alg I at the private also are re-taking the course, even if they took Alg I in 8th grade at a private.  It won't hurt.  It never hurts to have strong Algebra skills.

Also, don't panic at the breathless cries and hysterics of others that your child will be behind taking Alg I in 9th grade in a private school.  Your child won't be behind and and those people don't know enough about the schools and curriculum to be able say much that could be helpful.  As I said in my first paragraph, it is apples and oranges.

My DS and I have had 3 children progress through private elementary and secondary schools frequently mentioned in these forums.  Over the years, for 9th grade, one was placed in Honors Algebra I, one in Honors Alg I/Geo, and one in Honors Geometry, based on the results of the schools' own placement tests.  It all worked out.  2 of our children are now in Ivy schools and the third will be in the fall.  For admissions, no one even blinked at the kid who was in Alg I in 9th grade.

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I teach high school math at what is regarded as one of the best non-TJ public high schools in Northern Virginia, have children in private, and wholeheartedly agree. [b]Apples and oranges.[/b] And don't worry for a second about spending the time to firm up those Algebra skills in 8th or 9th grade. [/quote]

Can you explain? I have seen this "apples and oranges" comment a lot but I don't really get it. How is private school math and public school math different? If a public kid and a private kid both get 800 on SAT, is private kid's score somehow better?? [/quote]

Of course the public school student earning an 800 score on the math SAT is just as strong as the private 800 student. My comment applies to the overall program. The typical course in the public school (at least the pyramid I'm familiar with) is focused on following a particular strategy. For instance, when learning about subtraction regrouping, they learn exactly how to do it and can execute it very well. The approach in my children's private is much deeper. They can all perform the subtraction problem using several different strategies, can choose which strategy makes the most sense for the problem, and can explain the math behind the strategy. The exceptional math student--public or private--typically pulls out those nuances on her own. In high school, we explore the "why" a bit more in honors/AP classes, but not so much in the regular classes.[/quote]

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