Private Schools Versus Public Schools

Recently, a friend of mine fell on hard times and had to withdraw his children from private school. For him this was deeply troubling. I really couldn't understand why this was such a hard decision for him so I asked him to explain. My friend went on to explain that he made the decision to put his children in private school because he not only wanted his children to have an advantage academically but he felt private school would offer an advantage when it comes to things like morality and character. Though the temptation might be to assume that this was a religious decision, it wasn't. Neither of the two schools his girls are in have religious affiliations. He's merely a father who values education and character. He felt the best place for his children to get those two things were private school. His belief is that public school can expose children to too much too fast and can corrupt an otherwise innocent child. I can definitely see how he could feel that way.

Though I can see my friend's point of view, I myself have a 12 year old and a 17 year old. I have always preferred that they attend pubic school. I too have concerns about morality and character and I know that childhood is the time to start building on that, which is why I chose pubic school. While most parents are concerned about sheltering their children from harm there are two distinct schools of thought on how to do that. My friend believes that reducing the amount of undesirable behavior that his child witnesses will help mold morality and character. I feel that I need to prepare my child for the world's harsh realities without throwing them out into the wilderness, so to speak. Public school is a great place for that. Many of the personalities and issues that arise in public school are no doubt going to pop-up in my children's adult life. By exposing my children to those things now, I can help mold how they respond to those types of things and they will carry those lessons into the world with them as adults. Now some might say "what about the kids that go down the wrong path as a result of this exposure?". My response to that is, if I'm in my children's life the way that they deserve for me to be in their lives then even if they step off of the path for a moment, I will be there to point them back in the right direction. Kids who go to private school often head down the wrong path as well so that issue is obviously not exclusive to public school students.

It looks to me like you are either going to deal with the ugliness of life one way or the other. I would just rather get it out of the way while my child is still malleable rather than sending them out into the world unprepared as adults. Then on the other hand, private school does take some of the burden off of the parent. The teachers are more attentive to the children and private school does offer certain advantages where education is concerned. It's all about preference and what you think is best for your particular child. I say live and let live.