Am a World Bank staffer without the education benefits. Among those of us internationals in the professional staff without the benefits, many (esp. two professional income families) could afford private if they liked. Interestingly, I find the Europeans less likely to choose privates (perhaps Brits excepted, and those who choose Lycee, German school etc.). Many from other nationalities (Asian, African, Latin American etc.) seem more likely to opt for privates.

I think it speaks to the educational environment people emerged from- in many European countries (esp Scandinavia and on the contrary Britain notably excepted), public schools are the route for most even those in the "elites". In most developing or middle-income countries, a small cluster of private institutions is still largely where elites are cultivated.

Affluent, Born Abroad and Choosing New York’s Public Schools

"Miriam and Christian Rengier, a German couple moving to New York, visited some private elementary schools in Manhattan last spring in search of a place for their son. They immediately noticed the absence of ethnic diversity, and the chauffeurs ferrying children to the door. And then, at one school, their guide showed them the cafeteria. “The kids were able to choose between seven different lunches: sushi and macrobiotics and whatever,” Ms. Rengier recalled. “And I said, ‘What if I don’t want my son to choose from seven different lunches?’ And she looked at me like I was an idiot.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/15/nyregion/foreign-parents-in-new-york-prefer-public-schools.html?pagewanted=all

There is also this

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203960804577245221715596672.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: The quality of schools in other countries varies tremendously. I'd imagine that a family from a country with superior schools (Finland, Korea) would have pretty high standards that many public schools in the DC metro area would not meet, but that some of the very best of the private schools in the area would.

We have relatives from South Korea who prefer their local MoCo school to their schools back home. It's true that when their high schooler began the school year, she was initially placed in a math class that was too easy, but the school changed her placement, and she's been fine. The parents say that the work their kids get here is more interesting and thought-provoking, but what they value most seems to be the community feeling. They said their ES-aged kids were surprised when classmates helped them because back home the competition was so severe that no one would think of helping someone else. Overall the kids are apparently happier here.

Just an anecdote to suggest that it's not just or always about "high standards," defined as "our kids learn algebra earlier than your kids."

I have lived in Asia for 6 years now. THE SCHOOLS HERE ARE NOT BETTER THAN THE SCHOOLS IN THE US. Most expat parents I know complain about the low quality of the schools here. If you are unwilling to send your kids to kumon type instructions, your kids will learn very little in school. Do you not wonder why they all flocks to US schools. All the learning is taught by private tutors at kumons with high tuitions. The schools here do a good job teaching kids english, but other than that, the kids double their learning time by spending an ungodly amount of time at kumons, commonly 5-6 hours a day after regular school ends. Saturdays they are at Kumons all day, sometimes even Sundays. The schools are NOT better but the parents/cultural commitment to education, and parents willingness to sacrifice everything so that their kids can get an education is what is remarkable. I can go on and on about the realities here.

Anonymous wrote:I see a lot of foreign born parents at Kumon, Asian, European, and African. So although they might be using the US educational system they are not trusting the system. I surprised by the fact that the vast majority of the whites or blacks have fairly thick accents.

In Asia in particular, weekend cram schools are the norm, not a sign of desperation. Some of the kids may also need the extra help with English or the different US curriculum.

Anonymous wrote:Meaning that you can tell they were not born here. Visibility I can not tell where any of the folks are from but once I have conversation with them or hear them having a conversation it is clear that they were not born here. There accent makes it apparent that they are a more recent immigrant/expat.

Can you tell by looking at them whether their kids go to public or private school?

Anonymous wrote:I would like to know why "foreign" is lumped into one category. The quality of schools in other countries varies tremendously. I'd imagine that a family from a country with superior schools (Finland, Korea) would have pretty high standards that many public schools in the DC metro area would not meet, but that some of the very best of the private schools in the area would. OTOH, if you come from a country with poor schools generally, the public schools in part of NoVA and MontCo would seem very good.

Too little nuancing in the article.

Funny you should mention Finland. We know a very well-educated Scandinavian family that is thrilled with their VA public high school and doesn't want to pull their kids out by returning home. (Sorry for another anecdote, but I guess if others in this thread are pulling out anecdotes about their schools, I can too.)

I guess I agree that the presence of a few dozen foreign families whose tuition is paid for them at "diversity-seeking" area privates doesn't prove much to me.

Some foreign parents and US born parents send their kids to Russian and Chinese language schools. At these schools the kids learn their language and usually take academic courses in math as well.

Anonymous wrote: The quality of schools in other countries varies tremendously. I'd imagine that a family from a country with superior schools (Finland, Korea) would have pretty high standards that many public schools in the DC metro area would not meet, but that some of the very best of the private schools in the area would.

We have relatives from South Korea who prefer their local MoCo school to their schools back home. It's true that when their high schooler began the school year, she was initially placed in a math class that was too easy, but the school changed her placement, and she's been fine. The parents say that the work their kids get here is more interesting and thought-provoking, but what they value most seems to be the community feeling. They said their ES-aged kids were surprised when classmates helped them because back home the competition was so severe that no one would think of helping someone else. Overall the kids are apparently happier here.

Just an anecdote to suggest that it's not just or always about "high standards," defined as "our kids learn algebra earlier than your kids."

I've just noticed that the European parents at our local public elementary do not join in when the American parents complain and worry about the quality of the high school our neighborhood goes to, what its scores are, etc.