In elementary, community was the most important to us, so we chose public.

In middle and high school, STEM and music were the most important to our kid, so we chose public.

Anonymous wrote:I would 100% choose private if we could afford it. MCPS is just so dysfunctional.

Well, it's more of a reflection of a student's home life than anything. Families that prioritize school and support their children typically do very well, but parents who want the county to raise their kids for them not so much.

Depends on the kid and the school and the program.

My very smart, resilient STEM kid has done well in DCC STEM program in high school and a countywide STEM magnet in high school.

My smart but not quite as quick to learn kid taking IB and AP classes in another DCC school - it was not a good fit. Would have loved a smaller, more nurturing private school for him.

Can't afford so moot point.

In a heartbeat. Private is better all around. I have graduates from both public and private.

I would send the kids to private in a heartbeat, but DH would still need some convincing.

Anonymous wrote:Depends what you need. For the sciences, the publics are better than most privates. For special needs and kids who need a smaller classroom environment, private school would likely be more nurturing than MCPS. But beware of the restrictions many private schools have...needing to have As to take AP classes which knocks out perfectly decent B+ kids and restrictions on where and how many colleges a kid can apply to. I wouldn't pay a ton of money to have a school restrict my kids' choices.

Private better for sciences.

I grew up in MD with "good schools", but we went to private K-12. I now live in VA with good schools, and my kids have gone to public, but seriously considering private for HS.

I would 100% choose private if we could afford it. MCPS is just so dysfunctional.

I have seriously considered private but concluded my child is better off in public where there's a better range of classes and electives and options starting in MS, more differentiation in math, and just a larger class size in general has allowed for more opportunities to make friends. I thought the privates would be socially stifling and academically limiting. Plus we have a wonderful neighborhood and community. That said, my kid is independent and navigates a big school well without much help.

Maybe. Our child has ASD, and my understanding is that many mainstream privates are hesitant to enroll children with this diagnosis. A specialized SN school would not be appropriate for her either. Also, I know privates don't offer IEPs. Our child doesn't have an IEP in MCPS at this time but might need one in the future.

So while our child might benefit from smaller class sizes, I'm not sure private would be the best option for her or even possible.

Depends what you need. For the sciences, the publics are better than most privates. For special needs and kids who need a smaller classroom environment, private school would likely be more nurturing than MCPS. But beware of the restrictions many private schools have...needing to have As to take AP classes which knocks out perfectly decent B+ kids and restrictions on where and how many colleges a kid can apply to. I wouldn't pay a ton of money to have a school restrict my kids' choices.

My son is in MCPS and my daughter is in private. Both kids are attending the schools that best meet their needs.

My daughter is a B average student. She's the kid that get lost in the big classes. She's not a high flyer and she doesn't need support. She could shirk into the background. She attends an all girls school with smaller classes. She is forced to participate in class. Her teachers know her well and work with her to both challenge and support her.

My son is thriving in MCPS but he's a high flyer. He gets the benefit of the magnet programs.

No tolls 🙄. Do you even know where you are? Asking about private on a public school page. Get out of here.

Might have better luck asking on the private school forum.

If private school were an option for your family, would you consider it? Trying to understand the landscape of this area with good public and private schools. No trolls please, just looking to learn from your experiences/thoughts. Thanks