State, Private Or Home Schooling?

[MrsGlitz]

Slightly unrelated but I saw people talking on fb the other day with a conversation basically like this:

"Have to start going to church so we can get the baby christened so he can go to a good school"

It happens all the time in our area.

All the decent schools are church schools.

Same here.

Interestingly (although currently irrelevant given Harry is only 9 months) the school that is a two minute walk, on the same road that I live on is a Church school. I am not in the catchment area. Yet the rubbish non-Church school in the area (just come out of Special Measures a couple of months ago) is the one for my catchment, I would have to walk past the Church school and even "as the crow flies" the Church school is the closest!

Now I do consider myself Christian but DH doesn't and I don't currently attend Church regularly (used to). Hence, Harry isn't Christened/Baptised. Now, if we still live in the same area in 12-18 months time, I would be highly tempted to start attending that Church with the view to eventually getting Harry Christened, even though I don't actually believing in Christening babies (I took full immersion baptism, as an adult, as per the Bible).

 

[xnmd1]

just public (state) school for jarrett. but OH and i do want to maje sure we move before he's school age so he goes to the same school we went too.
i'm not to fond of the schools in our area atm .. someone recently got charged actually for dealing crack in an elementary school parking lot (thats grades 1 - 3 if its called something different in the UK)

 

[Janidog]

I agree with a lot of what you say in your post apart from this bit:

State schools wouldnt lose the best teachers to private

In my experience, private schools do not have the best teachers. I have worked with some fantastic teachers in the state sector and I know of plenty of terrible teachers in the private sector.

I think that any school, state or private will have its mix of good and bad teachers. The difference is that teachers in private schools are teaching much smaller classes and do not have to deal with the same problems that state sector teachers do which enables them to focus more on their teaching.

Agreed. Private does not mean the best teachers. In my experience, the best teachers choose to work in the State Sector because they enjoy the challenge.

What does that tell you???????

 

[billy2mm]

i dont really have a choice here there is one high school in the town and the nearest private school is over an hour and a half away at rush hour. and i have no job so there is no way i can afford to put my kids to private school.

the private schools in the next city i am not at all impressed with. the kids and parents have no sense of reality at all from what i have seen. they do live in the "bubble".

other private/boarding schools however the kids were so well grounded and knew how the world worked. this might be because the parents of these kids were all in the forces so the kids kind of had to grow up fast iykwim.

if i could afford it i would put my kids to a private school but not the ones in my area. i would have to move to get a decent one imo.

 

[indy and lara]

I agree with a lot of what you say in your post apart from this bit:

State schools wouldnt lose the best teachers to private

In my experience, private schools do not have the best teachers. I have worked with some fantastic teachers in the state sector and I know of plenty of terrible teachers in the private sector.

I think that any school, state or private will have its mix of good and bad teachers. The difference is that teachers in private schools are teaching much smaller classes and do not have to deal with the same problems that state sector teachers do which enables them to focus more on their teaching.

Agreed. Private does not mean the best teachers. In my experience, the best teachers choose to work in the State Sector because they enjoy the challenge.

What does that tell you???????

As a state school teacher for the last 12 years, it tells me that I have worked with some of the most talented and dedicated staff that you could ever wish to meet.

Challenge is not a bad thing. Very many private schools do not accept children with Additional Support Needs so the challenges of state school teaching come in many shapes and sizes.

 

[amygwen]

Definitely, by far, without a doubt a PUBLIC school!
I'd never ever consider private schooling or homeschooling.

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

Yeah, my friend is a teacher and just left an 'excellent' school for one in special measures, challenge is a good thing!

 

[babyblog]

I personally do not see any benefit in private schooling. I went to a state school, as did my brother and we did really well (not in a bragging way, but we got nothing lower than a B in our GCSE's).My boyf at the time went to a private school and came out with all Es and Fs (which i found amusing at the time as his mum rarely let him see me as she thought I was a bad influence on HIM!). My bro and i also went on to do degress and get good jobs etc.

I strongly believe that if a child is brought up in an environment that encourages learning and supports the school discipline fully, then they will do well wherever they are. For me, private schooling is a waste of money and not an environment i want my children in. I'd rather they mix in a state school with everyone

 

[indy and lara]

Emma will be going to state school. We both passionately believe in state education and we're both products of not particularly outstanding state schools. We worked hard, applied ourselves, had supportive parents, kept our heads down with things at school were hairy- good lessons for life as a whole as far as I am concerned. We both went to good universities and are educated to postgraduate level.

Jealousy is not a factor in this decision for us. We are in the fortunate position that we could afford to send Em to one of Edinburgh's many private schools but choose not to.

I have taught in the State Sector for 12 years. I believe in the job I do and the value I add to the lives of children. I know how dedicated I am and I know how dedicated my colleagues are. In any profession there are a minority of poorer workers- teaching is no different. But it is worth remembering that they are the minority.

I don't believe that it is the job of a school to provide all of my child's extra- curricular actvities. People often say that at private school there are more extra- curricular opportunities but that is not always the case. In my school of 180 kids we offer basketball, football, choir, yoga, residential experiences, music tution, diving, dancing, cheerleading and Scripture Union. If there are things she wants to try that her not offered by her school then we will happily take Emma ourselves.

Emma is OH and my daughter. It is our job to ensure that she is a well balanced and rounded child. We have the largest input into Emma's life and will have the most impact on what kind of adult she becomes. I don't believe that she needs to be privately educated in order to become a happy, confident, successful and fulfilled adult.

 

[hellohefalump]

If I could afford it, which I can't, I would definately send the kids to private school.

My sister who lives with us is privately educated and I find the standards they set are so much higher. She also has so many opportunities that you just wouldn't get in a state school.

 

[babyblog]

Emma will be going to state school. We both passionately believe in state education and we're both products of not particularly outstanding state schools. We worked hard, applied ourselves, had supportive parents, kept our heads down with things at school were hairy- good lessons for life as a whole as far as I am concerned. We both went to good universities and are educated to postgraduate level.

Jealousy is not a factor in this decision for us. We are in the fortunate position that we could afford to send Em to one of Edinburgh's many private schools but choose not to.

I have taught in the State Sector for 12 years. I believe in the job I do and the value I add to the lives of children. I know how dedicated I am and I know how dedicated my colleagues are. In any profession there are a minority of poorer workers- teaching is no different. But it is worth remembering that they are the minority.

I don't believe that it is the job of a school to provide all of my child's extra- curricular actvities. People often say that at private school there are more extra- curricular opportunities but that is not always the case. In my school of 180 kids we offer basketball, football, choir, yoga, residential experiences, music tution, diving, dancing, cheerleading and Scripture Union. If there are things she wants to try that her not offered by her school then we will happily take Emma ourselves.

Emma is OH and my daughter. It is our job to ensure that she is a well balanced and rounded child. We have the largest input into Emma's life and will have the most impact on what kind of adult she becomes. I don't believe that she needs to be privately educated in order to become a happy, confident, successful and fulfilled adult.

I like your post, and completely agree with your sentiments

 

[Nic1107]

For me it really depends on where we are living when Carmen starts school. Assuming we are still in the Twin Cities, we have five choices:

*Public school- like state school; free to attend; no competition for admittance; run by the city's educational department; the most common choice

*Private school- doesn't answer to the city's board; competitive admittance (usually), tuition costs; considered 'top-notch' for academics and extra-curricular activities

*Parochial school- attached to a church; no competition; tuition costs; uniforms; religious classes; educational quality varies a lot based on location and cost (mostly)

*Charter school- low-tuition 'private school'; usually urban; with a strong emphasis on
helping ESL and underprivileged kids succeed; sometimes religious; uniforms; educational
quality is supposed to be excellent

*Homeschooling

Homeschooling is out, since I suck at math and I really want Carmen to experience school with other children. Charter school is out; my SIL and nieces and nephews all go
to the same one and I don't like some of the stories I hear from them. I also see how
much my little SIL doesn't know and it freaks me out that they haven't caught how much
she isn't learning, whether or not it's her fault for not studying. It's supposed to be a
really good school, but just not a good fit for what I'm looking for for Carmen.

Ideally I would love to send her to public school, at least for elementary school. That's
where I went and it was excellent, but I grew up in a different city (and state). I would
love to send Carmen to my old school more than anything, but I'll probably end up
having to see what is around the Twin Cities instead. If I don't like the schools, then
we'll look into grants and financial aid for parochial schools, depending on what I find out
about their reputations here. If it's looking desperate, I will work two jobs to send her
to private school; I know of one that has a $5000/year tuition for day students (non-boarding) and I can probably work that out with financial aid if my husband gets a bloody job. So. I've put a lot of thought into this, as Carmen's future education is
at the front of my mind even though she's only 1.

 

[Lellow]

Does anyone know what the average cost of private education is?

 

[Marzipan_girl]

Does anyone know what the average cost of private education is?

I think the one OH went to is somewhere around £15,000 a year?

 

[Marzipan_girl]

I agree with a lot of what you say in your post apart from this bit:

State schools wouldnt lose the best teachers to private

In my experience, private schools do not have the best teachers. I have worked with some fantastic teachers in the state sector and I know of plenty of terrible teachers in the private sector.

I think that any school, state or private will have its mix of good and bad teachers. The difference is that teachers in private schools are teaching much smaller classes and do not have to deal with the same problems that state sector teachers do which enables them to focus more on their teaching.

Agreed. Private does not mean the best teachers. In my experience, the best teachers choose to work in the State Sector because they enjoy the challenge.

What does that tell you???????

As a state school teacher for the last 12 years, it tells me that I have worked with some of the most talented and dedicated staff that you could ever wish to meet.

Challenge is not a bad thing. Very many private schools do not accept children with Additional Support Needs so the challenges of state school teaching come in many shapes and sizes.

EXACTLY. Yes, maybe they are fab teachers but they have left to go to schools in SPECIAL MEASURES for a challange! I went to a secondary school before being homeschooled which was in special measures and it was horrible! Yes, some of the teachers were amazing, but the other pupils were disgusting! They spat on me, punched me, mocked my accent because I can actually speak properly...threatened to come and "chop my horses tail off then stab him" because I wouldn't let half my class come and ride him when none of them had ever been on a horse in their lives Apparently I was being a spoilt little rich girl who wouldn't share my things....FFS.
I wasn't even that RICH just not like THEM. My mum worked hard! I have severe anxiety issues because of those students! They made fun of my weight, said I looked like a scarecrow just because I was skinny. I actually got even skinner because of all the anxiety and developed a massive eating disorder which I still have today.
I will NEVER send my son to a school like that!
My mum couldn't send me to a better school because we had just come back from Australia and I would have been on a year long waiting list for all the good schools around. It was dire. I don't remember a single decent child....

 

[Tacey]

Alice will be home educated until she's at least 7. I'm a strong believer in self directed education, and think that will be best for our family. Children learn so much before they go to school, in my mind, there's no reason it shouldn't continue after the age of 5. I know it isn't for everyone though.

 

[Wriggley]

i went to state school myself and had a really crap experience - i also did work placement experience in a few state schools and was shocked to see what was going on - the lack of decent education scares me. dont get me wrong i do realise there are some lovely teachers out there that work in state school that value their jobs etc.. but i cant garantee Zacoiya will get a good teacher.

Im a bit stuck as of what we going to do - i have no experience with public or private schools so i dont know if the teachers at these are any different (just because you pay for them dont mean they any better in my opinion)

however private schooling is something i plan to look into very seriosuly to see how i feel about them and i will put Zacoiya where i feel is best for him.

I would LOVE to home school him but again theres pros and cons with this too.

We are going to an open day at a private school next month so i can get a feel for it.

I have had this convosation with a few people and all of them look as if im being stuck up for even looking into private schools - at end of day me and OH have worked very hard for our educations and if we can afford private school and we feel that its right for our LO then he will be going to one regardless of what people think.

its a tricky subject for us as theres pros and cons to all forms of schooling

 

[ouchwithNo.2]

I went to a public/private school and it didn't make me a genius...!
I'm not thick but I'm not exactly a heart surgeon
We have a very bright 6yr old boy, he has always been bright, more mentally able than pysical, even now he would rather read a book than climb a tree but he goes to a very good state school and we wouldn't have it any other way.
In this day and age I honestly don't think there is much in it - you find a good state school and there are plenty around although we had to fight to get him in it because we weren't in the catchment area.
We could afford public/private schooling but he is doing more than fine where he is.
Same for his sister, she will follow through if the schools hold up the rep in 5yrs.
As for home schooling no way, not for us.
He's already better at Geography than me, not sure who would be schooling who

 

[NG09]

Emma will be going to state school. We both passionately believe in state education and we're both products of not particularly outstanding state schools. We worked hard, applied ourselves, had supportive parents, kept our heads down with things at school were hairy- good lessons for life as a whole as far as I am concerned. We both went to good universities and are educated to postgraduate level.

Jealousy is not a factor in this decision for us. We are in the fortunate position that we could afford to send Em to one of Edinburgh's many private schools but choose not to.

I have taught in the State Sector for 12 years. I believe in the job I do and the value I add to the lives of children. I know how dedicated I am and I know how dedicated my colleagues are. In any profession there are a minority of poorer workers- teaching is no different. But it is worth remembering that they are the minority.

I don't believe that it is the job of a school to provide all of my child's extra- curricular actvities. People often say that at private school there are more extra- curricular opportunities but that is not always the case. In my school of 180 kids we offer basketball, football, choir, yoga, residential experiences, music tution, diving, dancing, cheerleading and Scripture Union. If there are things she wants to try that her not offered by her school then we will happily take Emma ourselves.

Emma is OH and my daughter. It is our job to ensure that she is a well balanced and rounded child. We have the largest input into Emma's life and will have the most impact on what kind of adult she becomes. I don't believe that she needs to be privately educated in order to become a happy, confident, successful and fulfilled adult.

I agree with you 100%

 

[ouchwithNo.2]

but, regardless of what schooling we must remember how lucky we are to have good quality FREE state schooling for our children