Private or Public?

[Leez]

Saw a thing on A Current Affair last night about how some parents are sacrificing holidays and stuff to afford the fees for their kids to go to private schools.

I went to a pretty rough public school, then transferred to a private school for years 11 & 12. Aside from meeting one of my closest friends there, looking back I don't think it really improved my life to any great extent - after I left I still made the same choices that I probably would have had I been in a public school.

Do others think its worth sacrificing holidays etc. so your child can have a private education? Do you think a private school sets your child on a better course in life or will they still make the same life choices if they're in a public school?

Lisa

[jessgray]

i really dont think public schools are that bad. there are many public schools who are just as good as a private school. i went to public primary schools and 2 public high schools, 1 being the only public girls high school in vic.

i dont think i was disadvantaged in any way for going to a public school.its really up to the parents, i mean how will they feel if their child fails year 12 and they spent thousands on thier kids education? i turned down several private schools when i was looking for a new school for vce (ended up staying where i was lol)all the ones i looked at seemed alright till you looked at the curriclum and the actual way a class was run.

i felt that public was right for me then, i was in the ALP program (accelerated learning) and none of the private schools could offer me that. i think when parents choose a school they should look at the school and then think does my child fit the school's mould? would the school offer your child extra support if needed?

[bigglet]

I went to 2 public primary schools and thought that was ok.
From Year 7 - 9 I went to a private girls school and thought nothing of it until my parents couldn't afford it anymore and pulled me out and then I went to a public high school from Year 10 -12 and it was awful!! I hated it, there was a lot more bullying, a lot more kids from broken homes (I say this as a general statement) - don't get me wrong - it's just that I found that a lot of parents of these kids were so wrapped up with their own problems that they didn't give two hoots about their kids.

I loved the private school system - at the time I didn't but looking back the teachers were a lot more caring and committed (I guess they had a reputation to uphold), there was a sense of school spirit, and a LOT more extra cirricular activities (for a price of course!)

I have yet to make up my mind about public vs private but it also depends on the child and the school. Each school is different be they public or private - my experience was the experience I had in that particular school and time. I have had friends who went to a public high school and they thought it was ok and went on to become doctors so it couldn't have been that bad!
To me everything has an influence on a child be it school, family, friends, where they live, who they meet etc.

[shed]

We will probably go public in primary and then private in secondary but that's mainly because I don't like the public high schools around here.

Also, my cousin has a baby boy the same age and the family is very close, but her husband is a complete snob and will make my boy feel inferior if he doesn't go to some snobby school as well, and that will really p*ss me off. Keeping up with the Jones's.

If we lived in a nicer area we would more than likely go public all the way. I did, DP did and we turned out fantastically :D

I don't want to send him to a school where he is the poorest kid in the class though, that will probably do more harm than good.

Long way off anyway...

[Areca]

I think it depends on where you live. We have great public schools around here and the only non catholic private school is awful (IMO) and I would never send my kids there. Public all the way for us, but I do believe it depends on the area that you live as to what is better.

[SamanthaJane]

I went to a public primary school

Then went to a private catholic high school

My public school for primary was great! It was the nicest "public" school in our area. There were 2 private ones, but in my opinion, they are more interested in treating kids like adults, rather than kids... the other 2 public schools were full of feral kids, feral trachers, i dont even know how their buildings were classified as being "okay". The kids at those schools were the type you didn't really want to go near, or want your children going near... they would swear at you when you walked past, spit on you etc etc... very disgusting! So my parents, and a lot of other parents, sent their children to my primary school, because it was a great "in the middle" type school... not too extreme, not to feral... lol.

My private catholic high school was great! I loved it! yes they are strict on rules, yes it was more expensive but it was worth it. I was treated with respect. Yes my skirt had to be at my knees (no shorter), no i could not wear nailpolish, no excessive jewellery, body piercing or hair colours of any extreme... but i didn't mind it, i was in a positive environment where the focus was all on kids and making sure they get top grades.

Every school is going to be different. A lot depends on the area you live in aswell. I don't think you can class it into "my kids go to a private school, so they'll be smarter" or "my kids go to public school, because private schools are snobby" or something like that.... Choose the school that is in your reasonable budget, and has a decent standard of class. If it means skipping the family holiday, or down grading to a weekend away instead of a two week stay in Fiji, then really... skip the holiday. I think its worth it in the long run. JMO.

[Mum&bubs]

My DP wants to send our kids to a private school. Im not too sure about it though as i see it as its not the school you send your child to, its them as a person that has to make the right decision on whether they want to learn & be successful or not ;)

[tary]

Ours will be going to public, but I will be looking at the school before sending them there. Mabye they will have to go to an 'out of area' public school. DH and I both went to a public high school but it was selective so there was a different environment there. Will have to look at the high schools when the time comes.
I may be a little bias though as I am a public school teacher and do everything I can in order to make a child's education relevant, important and interesting the the child.

[M O P]

Our children will need to be home schooled for primary education then boarding school for secondary. We don't really have much choice, unfortunately. We will struggle to do this so we will be making sacrifices.

[M O P]

Depends on the child and your ability to provide adequate social interaction etc as well though.


Thanks aijent, but the social interaction is probably the major part of it. We live in a remote area. Who knows though, by the time Hugh starts high school fuel prices may have forced us off the land!

[anak]

I certainly agree with the whole depending on what area you live in scenario.
The public schools in my former abode were feral and I would never have subjected my children to them. We went private instead.
Now we live in an absolutely fantastic area and the children all go to public schools(after investigating both public and private in the area).

[Little Gorilla]

I'd never send my kids to a public secondary school - it will be private - he is already down on the waiting list.
I would send him to a public primary school....as long as it was a good one - or else that would be private too.
All depends on where you live i supose, however, after living both in Sydney's eastern suburbs and now SE QLD....I really wouldn't change my opinion.

[Leez]

Hi Aijent - I've always been curious about the home schooling and you can probably answer this one for me - do you have to be a qualified teacher to home school your kids or does someone provide you with a set curriculum that you have to follow?

Lisa

[Hokey Pokey]

It all depends on the area, the type of school, the way it is managed etc, you can have a private with a crappy headmaster and a public with a wonderful and vice versa.
Our daughter goes to private now after starting off public and I am very impressed with the difference all round.:thumbsup:
But you can pay a million dollars in private and it will not guarantee how your child will come out....

[newmum2one]

I went to a public primary school and then onto a public high school. A friend of mine who I was at primary school with went off to the private high school nearby. I was so jealous at the time, but in hindsight I turned out pretty well in comparison to my friend. While I was doing really well in my studies and learning a lot from some of the best teachers ever, my friend was mucking up, ditching class and giving cheek to the teachers - apparently, she told me, just like the rest of the kids in her classes. My teachers at the public high school wouldn't have put up with the **** for two seconds. It wasn't a rough school, we had one of the best reputations in the region.
I had all the opportunities that everyone else in the area, public or private, had, and easily made an OP 4 - equal to that of my friend over at the private school.
Of course there was bullying etc at the public school, but just because you go to a public school doesn't mean that you are a bully or will be bullied. I made heaps of friends I'm still in contact with and I wouldn't change a thing.
My DH went to a public school as well and we have agreed that all our children will attend public schools.

[Ana Gram]

We all strive to give our children what we think is the best education. There are good and bad public and private school. But what it comes down to is the child. They have to be wanting to learn otherwise it is just wasted dollars. Just ask my mother!

[Lilith]

I am a teacher at a public secondary school and would have no hesitation to sending my kids there (or to the other two state high schools I have taught at) for their education. However, I would definitely not send my kids to any of the public schools in the area where I live now as some of the clientele are not the kind I would want my kids to associate with. (Sorry, don't mean to sound snobby, just would be protective of my kids.) I totally think it depends on the area in which you live.

My sister is home schooling her two children as she doesn't like the state schools in her area and they don't live reasonably close to any private schools. They might go to a private school for years 11 and 12 but the kids will get to choose that and they are loving home school.