Public vs. parochial school

If you had this debate, what did you choose for your child(ren) and why? I was a product of public school, my husband catholic school. We chose a house specifically in a good school district (the same district where I went), even though we could have gotten more for our $$ one or two districts over. Now, DH is bringing up Catholic school again. Dd is enrolled in Catholic nursery (and will continue there for pk), which will allow us a taste of it. Just wanted to hear views of others. I should also add that while we can technically swing the tuition, it would never allow us to make home improvements, go on vacation, start a savings fund, etc. Tia.

Re: Public vs. parochial school

If you are in a good school district, I see no reason for it.
You will have plenty of time to shell out tons of money for school when they go to college.
IMO you are paying extremely high taxes on LI for the use of the schools. And you bought a house in a good district with that in mind, even though you could have gotten more for your money elsewhere.
So to me, that would mean we are using the public schools that we are paying for.

I can't see shelling out so much money for Catholic school when your district is good. Especially if it will prevent you from doing home improvements, saving money, going on vacations. Life is short. You shoudl be able to take travel, have money for extras, etc.
They will get just as good an education in the public school IMO

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The way I see it, you have chosen public (good school district usually means higher taxes & less house for your $).
You can always go private if you have issues.

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Message edited 8/19/2016 9:13:07 AM.

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And in addition to my comment above, I feel when it comes to school, SO much of it is what the students put into it.
You can be in the worst district and get a ton out of school, or in the best district or private school and fail out, not apply yourself, get nothing out of it.

So much is dependent on the child and the parent as well.

Public vs. parochial school

You have a good public school district, I don't see why you'd consider catholic school. My wife and I had this discussion recently really wondering why people do this from good districts.

I am a product of public school. My view on private schools, you can count on 1-2 hands the number of private schools on LI that are notably better than a good public school. There are many more that are decent educations, but realistically, I don't see the point unless you have a top tier student who Chaminade trying to get into ivy league and the money to pay for it.

If you want religious education, there is sunday school

Message edited 8/19/2016 9:47:14 AM.

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Try public first, you can always transfer to private if you are not happy. We may consider private high school. As wonderful as our public highschool is, it's huge and apparently has had kids bringing drugs into the school and using during the day.

Message edited 8/19/2016 11:05:52 AM.

Re: Public vs. parochial school

Public vs. parochial school

I went to Catholic school because I grew up in Queens and that's just what everyone did (though really, my zoned public school was perfectly fine). I've always been happy that I went to Catholic school and would send DD in a heartbeat. Not sure how it is in the 'burbs, but I definitely felt a difference between the public and Catholic school kids growing up. We were a bit more sheltered (which is good or bad depending on how you look at it).

Now for DD, we moved where we did because the school district is good. If we still live here when she's ready to for school I won't hesitate to send her to public school. The issue I'm having is that she's a December baby and assuming she's up to snuff I refuse to hold her back because of this arbitrary Dec. 1 cutoff date most of LI has. So, really, though the public school is fine she likely won't be going to it.

ETA: If you're in a good district I wouldn't think twice about public school, especially if Catholic school would keep you from doing things around the house. Really, I wouldn't even put Catholic school on the table in that scenario.

Message edited 8/19/2016 11:50:51 AM.

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Thank everyone. These are a lot of my same thoughts, but the community and events at the Catholic school seem so wonderful that I was interested to see what the draw is (other than these events) for families to decide on parochial schools. The funny thing is, my husband hated his experience in Catholic schools, and of both of our families (who all went to catholic schools except for me), I actually ended up at the higher ranking college and grad program!

Public vs. parochial school

I live in what is considered to be a good school district. I bought my house when I was single but thought it would be good for resale value should I decide to sell. I have gotten married and had a child, and we send him to Catholic school (I went to Catholic school, DH to public). His public school experience was horrible - felt he didn't learn much at all.

When it came time to send DS to kindergarten, we visited various schools (three Catholic and the public) and even sent DS to the K program the public school runs to get the children acquainted with the school and the teachers. After that, we chose Catholic school. Out of the three Catholic schools we visited, there is one where I would not send DS (although we have a friend whose DS is there and they love it - it just wasn't for us).

Why did we choose Catholic school? Huge difference in the students at the two Catholic shools we liked as opposed to the public school and the one we didn't like. They were much more engaging, would look you in the eye when they speak to you, would say "good morning" when passing you in the hall (one even offered birthday cupcakes she was carrying). They seem much more well rounded. Also, the teachers in the public school that we met seemed more interested in chatting with each other than working with the students. I like that they teach cursive in Catholic school. They gave my DS homework in kindergarten to learn how to tie his shoes. I feel that they do not just focus on math and ELA and passing tests. They try to teach them other life skills and to be a good person. Also, my neighborhood is not diversified at all and my DS's school is very diverse. I wanted him to have that experience.

Fact is, you need to determine what school is right for your child, whether it be public or private. For me, money was not the issue - my DS's education is more important than a vacation. Would I prefer not to send him there and use the money for other things? Sure. But I want to give him what I believe to be the best education for him to hopefully head him in the right direction for his future.

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this.is.coming from two parents who are public school educators, practicing Catholics and products of Catholic schools (Dh K-12 and myself K-6, public 7-12, Catholic college):

I think the most important decision when it.comes to.Catholic schools is:
1. How important is faith formation in the school environment to your family? is.this.something you want your.child exposed to on a daily.basis. Yes, as parents we can do.it at home, but it really.is.different when you're literally surrounded.by it everyday; I believe.it really shapes your faith life and.values. Of course, one can have those.going to public school because.Of home life but it is a different experience when its.school and.home.

2. Does your.child(ren) need special education supports

like you, we bought in a good school.district. we are both public school teachers. we know the quality of LI public schools. yet, we also struggled with this decision. we wanted our kids to have the extra.faith.formation, the experience of their religion being paramount at school, yet also realized the quality and resources available in the public school. Also, with 4 kids, tuition for all would be difficult coupled with property taxes.

eventually, our son made the decision for us. he required services that the catholic.schools.just cannot provide. yes, they are legally required to provide special education services to the best if.their ability, but it is just not as good as in a public school setting.

so I dont know.if I helped, as there are pros.and.cons to both, but for me, the decision would have to be based foremost.on what my.kid needs educationally and how.important religious.instruction is to.you.

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I really think it depends on WHICH catholic school you are thinking about. They are all different. My son attended a catholic school for 3 years (he's going into 2nd). I just withdrew him because they had an enrollment drop and it will only be 1 class of 30 kids in Sept. Way too many kids for me to be paying for. I really wish the manners and morals as you described, greeting someone in the halls, was taught there but sadly none of that was present either.

I looked at the other catholic school in our area which has a better ratio 18:1 in the class but felt the local elementary school could provide the same.

My son is excited for his new adventure. I'm just hoping everything goes as smoothly as possible!

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I think it depends on the Particular schools - u really can't get a general answer to this question. I had one in each and am pulling the one from the catholic school to put in public because the public school is better all around - especially academically. Also everyone at the Catholic school would say how the kids were so much nicer there and had better morals and discipline and, honestly, since I was able to directly compare the two I can tell u the exact opposite was true. Make sure u look beyond the fluff to the substance when u compare the schools.

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I attended Catholic school my entire life, and I truly feel the schools played a tremendously positive role in my life, especially my high school--Holy Trinity Diocesan.

I went to a university with a strong academic reputation, and it was easy. I had already learned everything or the skills to tackle everything when I was in high school. I have incredible bonds with my friends from high school; I've returned to HTHS a few times over the years, and you can just feel a difference when you walk in. I don't know about other Catholic schools, but that is one special place.