Parochial vs. Public Schools

            Sending your kid to a parochial school or public school is an important question many parents have to ask themselves as their kids grow up.  As a junior in high school, I have a unique perspective in that I have attended both.  In elementary school and 6^th grade, I went to the local public school available for each grade; however, in 7^th grade I switched and began to go to a small parochial school across town.  In high school I returned to public schools which is where I have stayed and plan on staying.  However, both schools had their pros and cons.

 

            First thing is first, public school is a lot cheaper than paying the tuition to have your children attend a private school.  However, because parochial schools receive no state funding, the more the tuition is, the better the facilities most likely are.  This also means, the teachers at the school are probably getting paid a little less than public school teachers (depending on the school) and therefore, are probably there because they really want to be and are dedicated to their job.

            I don’t know if this is true of all parochial schools, but the food in our cafeteria was terrible.  I hear kids complaining at the school I go to now about the food all the time, all I can think about is if only they had gone where I went in 7^th and 8^th grade.  This could also go back to the tuition section to though; because the school couldn’t afford new kitchen appliances so what they were using was very old and out of date which would cause temperatures to fluctuate and therefore hot dogs burnt on the outside to a crisp but just perfect on the inside.

            The parochial school I went to began to implement the use of uniforms my 8^th grade year.  As a parent, you may or may not like that.  Most likely, an older student would not like that.  However, I have heard of some public schools in recent years requiring uniforms.  The idea of uniforms may be something that all schools are trying to move towards but I don’t know.

            Class sizes are a lot smaller at some parochial schools.  Whenever I have been in public schools, my class size has been around 25 to 30 students.  At the parochial school I attended, my graduating 8^th grade class had 16 kids, but my math class had even fewer kids, only 5.  Most people view that the smaller the class size, the more attention each student gets, and therefore they do better.

            Sports began in 5^th grade at the parochial school I attended, rather than 7^th grade as in public schools.  This allowed kids to find out what they enjoyed at a young age and many of them were much healthier and athletic.  Band also began in 4^th grade rather than 6^th grade so students are that much better when they get into high school and begin marching band and All-State Competitions.

 

            These are just some of the pros and cons of each school.  Every school is going to be a little different so I would recommend taking tours and talking with parents, teachers, and students from each type of school in your area.  The decision should ultimately be made based on what would be best for the student.

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