Public School Debate
I'm obsessing about school right now. I have to decide whether to keep Davis in Montessori school or put him in public kindergarten next year.
The details:
We love his Montessori school. It is everything I want it to be. I love the teacher, and the kids are absolutely flourishing. The work they do there is amazing. The school culture is wonderful. Davis is learning to read real books, do math, learn geography and science, music and Spanish. It's a small historic house with only 32 kids ages 3-7. He goes to school with his brother and I love it. LOVE all of it.
But it's not free. And public school is.
Davis is zoned to go to DeZavala Elementary which is okay. Not a blue ribbon school or anything, but it's not the worst school in the district either. I spoke to the principal last week and visited it today. It's huge. There are K-5th graders there. I checked out the Kindergarten wing today. Some of the work they seem to be doing right now seems right on target for my 3 year old. Other work seems just right for Davis this year and he's 4. They are just starting to read and write in the second semester there. On a plus, they have a Spanish speaking classroom and a dual language classroom and it's possible I could put Davis in those and have him learn Spanish. I have a meeting with the Kindergarten chair on Monday morning, so I can ask a lot of questions. I'm really trying to love it. The library seemed nice, but when I spoke to the librarian there she asked me why I would want to take my son out of Montessori and put him in DeZavala.
??????
The Philosophy:
Those are the details of it all. But there are bigger thoughts here too.
There is a debate between private school and public school. And people care a lot depending on what side of it they are.
There is a belief (and I agree with it) that if we want public schools to work in this country, then we all need to send our children to them. The educated, upper and middle class families have to participate in the public school system as well as the lower classes to bring the level of education up and to make the schools more well rounded.. We (the educated, the middle and upper classes) have the education, time, and money to bring up these kids who would be an asset to public schools. We parents would be an asset as well, with our support of teachers, fundraising and PTO's, but because we don't think the public schools are safe enough or fast-paced enough, or challenging enough, we refuse to put our children in and we pay for private school instead. Because some of these public schools are just not that great. They just aren't. Some of them are bad. Arts are being cut left and right. The focus all year long is on test taking. Teachers are underpaid and the money is not there to support what educators want to do for public school children.
(edited to add) It was brought up to me as well that one of the major bonuses of public education is that children who attend are exposed to all kinds of people that they will have to deal with and be around their whole life long. Being in a public school will give them real life experience and tools to deal with all types of people from all demographics.
From talking to other parents in my situation we all agree with the philosophy behind putting all children in public school. We want public schools to be better and theoretically we want to help them to be better. But when we start talking about our own kids, our babies, we aren't willing to put their future in jeopardy. We want the best for them no matter what.
And that's another funny thing. My children are three and four and I'm already worried about which college they'll be able to get into. I realize it's ridiculous, but my mind starts going down that path. If he's in a public school that doesn't give him a good education, will he be able to score high enough on college exams and look good enough on applications to get into the Ivy League school that will be necessary for him to have to pursue his current dream of being an astronaut/president of the United States?
And it's not just about college. It's about right now. They say that the ages of 3-7 are the most important years for a child, because this when they learn HOW to learn, how to relate to the world, understand concepts. I want my children to have this strong foundation so that they can grow up to be the best they can be. Don't we all? I truly think Montessori is doing this, but I'm not sure De Zavala would.
So I look at private school tuition and I know that we could just maybe afford it but we would have to give up so much. No more travel. No more cultural activities. No more entertainment budget. And of course I'm willing to give up those things if necessary, but is private school necessary??? Really and truly necessary?
That's such a personal call. I don't want to be an elitist. I want to have a life and travel with the kids and be happy, because we all know that if mommy and daddy aren't happy neither are the kids. I want to give all my support to the local public school system and make it better because I believe that is the right thing to do. I think Davis will do great anywhere. He's super social, well adjusted, independent and bright. He would rock public school.
But will it rock him? Am I depriving him of a fantastic education because I'm following my public school philosophy and being selfish with my money? Am I letting him down?
I saw at De Zavala today the kids were counting pencils up to ten and learning their ABC's. When I picked up the kids from Montessori they were learning the life cycle of frogs, counting in the thousands and learning to play the bells.
I just don't know what to do.
Comments
I'm a big public school girl, but I have the luxury of living in an area which has great public schools.
And the first thing I thought was what schools did Amber go to when she was younger and lived in SM? I mean you are bright and creative, and you attended a private college. Were you are a product of public SM schools?
I did go to school here, but the schools were a lot different and the town was smaller. It's a good point though...
Thanks for weighing in.
however, i was and child; and i believe the most important teachers in a child's life are his or her parents and role models. that said, no matter where davis goes to school he will always have brilliant parents and positive role models to teach, inspire and challenge him to be the best person he can be.
On the other hand, we're in a very good public school and Jocelyn's class has been hampered all year by behavior issues in the classroom, which means she is not learning as much as she could. I'm sure they will catch up next year, but it would not be an issue in a smaller classroom, I believe. 23 kids!!
There's an amazing resource that our local advocacy group has used that if you want I can send you the link to.
Hang in there! The reality is each school will have it's negatives and imperfections.
And I will say it so bluntly I'm sure I'll offend- but I never found that the wealthier mothers or kids at our schools really understood the changes that we needed. Things changed when someone from within the community-rose to the challenge. Most of my friends' mothers really resented the hell out of the homework and extra stuff that people tried to shove in for the college bound minority. There are a lot of outlooks on what people want from school. Because if the goal is not higher education, there's an entirely different approach from the start. A lot of the parents probably think the school is just fine. And they're okay with those standards as their goals are NOT the same ones you have for your children. And to a certain extent- you need to respect that is part of what they want- and that you can't come in and decide that because you want something different, that they will see the value of it or that it is better. There are many outlooks on education. The school may be that way because that is what the community wants. And you may, in this case, want something that is in the minority and is a special interest and in that case, you may need to seek what you want elsewhere. It doesn't sound like a bad school- in fact it sounds like a pretty good school. It just sounds like the wrong school for what you want, and that's ok. You may not be even making the choice on "this is better" or "this is worse" but "I want something different that suits my family." The entire part that I really get frustrated with is that we're Catholic. There is one area the public school cannot and does not teach him and that's about all religions and social justice. So I don't see it as me saying, "This school isn't good enough" but "We are a minority special interest group in this instance." For me, religion (not just Catholic but world religions) and community service are a key part of education. So I am going to the part of my community that wants that. If you want Montessori and it works, you are not hurting the public school by making a different choice. You are just a supporter of Montessori and if you want to turn it another way- that's a private business that is probably struggling in this economy and its philosophy of education represents a diversity we badly need in education. Supporting it is okay. Davis will bring a lot into his classroom in two years coming from a Montessori.
Listen, you know what is best. If there is one person I know who has done a lot for the public good in her life, it's you and your family. Do what is best for your family. You do that and then you will be in a strong position to help everyone else. and whatever you decide, I know it will be the BEST decision and I will support it 100%.