Sending Your Child to the Best School
Going to school for an education is among the most important factors of a child and teenager’s development, so it represents a major investment for parents. Knowing what school is best for their kids, and why, can have a lifelong impact on that child’s development and how they turn out as an adult. A variety of school types exist with different costs and features, and parents can easily scope out local schools to find out which is best for their kids, and even kids themselves can provide substantial feedback to help parents determine which school is best and which is not. Knowing what to look for in the best day schools can make all the difference for parents.
Public Vs Private
Finding the best day schools often involves a particular dichotomy: public education versus private schools, whether private elementary schools or private high schools. Sending a child to public school is a common route to take, and it can offer plenty of perks for kids at a very low cost, if any, to the parents, since they are publicly funded. However, while private schools certainly cost more and are not as easy to find, statistics back up the claim that private schools are better for a child’s education, whether in elementary or high school, and this can also affect college readiness among high school seniors. For example, among public school teachers, 21% say that apathy is a problem that they find among their students, but only 4% of private school teachers reported the same problem among their students. Similarly, 24% of public schools teachers have said that a lack of parental involvement is a problem among their students, as opposed to only 3% of private school teachers reporting the same problem. Finally, college prep counseling is more common at private schools than public ones, with private school counselors offering this service 55% of the time compared to 22% for public school counselors.
Finding the Right School
It is clear that price and the contrasting nature of private versus public school is something for parents to consider for their kids’ education, and once parents have made up their mind on which type of school is best for their kids, the best day schools for a child in a certain region will have the right activities, amenities, teacher quality, social environment, and level of academic challenge. When parents’ kids become old enough to start elementary school, or when a family moves into a new city or state, finding the right school for their kids is among the top priorities.
Sometimes, a child or teenager’s special interests, skills, or future educational plans will factor into the parents’ decision making process. A teenager who plays a musical instrument like a trumpet or the snare drum, for example, would probably prefer the best day schools with a band program or a drum line corps, and would be much happier there. A more artistically inclined child or teenager may feel most at home at an art school, or a public or private school with a strong and well-funded art program to nurture the student’s interests, especially if the student plans to pursue higher education or a career in this field. For sports, too, a similar strategy can be followed to find the best day schools.
Technology and supplies may be another area for parents to consider when visiting school. Some schools offer digital textbooks or even computer tablets for students in recent years, which may include interactive, educational games for younger students as a way to captivate them in their education. Computer labs, well stocked libraries, and art supplies are other areas to look into.
Finally, the student’s own input can make a big difference. A child or teenager should feel socially welcomed and included in the student body, and that student should be academically challenged and tested well, but not overwhelmed or under-stimulated. The student should also not feel undue stress, anxiety, sadness, or anger as a result of their interactions with other students and the classes themselves, and the student should feel at least reasonably happy or comfortable about their time at school when coming home. A child who is bullied, excluded, stressed, or over or under-challenged academically will have a poor education.
