Day: August 26, 2018

Tips for Choosing a Private School for Your Child

Jean Holland
kids with books

The best of private school you choose for your child may have a significant difference in your child’s academic performance. But the good news is the today we have a lot of choices in education apart from public school. But the bad news is that these many choices leave most parents worried about how they can choose the best private school for their children.
It’s essential for parents to know things to check in a school to make sure that their children get the best education for his or her needs. Ensure you read these tips to choose the best private school.

Check Out Scores

classroomThough test scores might not show everything about the school’s effectiveness, it’s a component you can use to know how well other students at that particular school are performing. You can also check the local school ratings if they are available. And for new high school students, they should also analyze their school based on their success in college and other professional areas.

 

Pay a Visit

After you have found a private school that is good for your child, it’s good that you visit the school and see the classrooms and meet the staff and faculty. And while at the school, you should also visit the school principal, other parents and teachers to know what kind of expectations are for parent involvement in the school, how staff and faculty relate to the students and also how the appearance of the learning environments.

Talk to Students and Parents

Sometimes the staff may pretend during your visit, students and parents at the school will always tell you the truth about the school. You can talk to parents or neighbors you come across while going to the school to know if their children and themselves are comfortable with the school and the quality of education offered. In addition, ask if the staff is responsive to the concerns and needs and if other parents get involved in school operations.

Check Out a PTA Meeting

Additionally, to know more about the upcoming events in the school you want your child to enroll, this is a perfect way to take the phone numbers and the names of the school parents so that you can call them later. PTA meetings are always available to every school parent and the general public, so you are also welcome.

Sit Down with the Principal

classroom Lastly, face to face meeting with the school principal when visiting the school is the right moment to ask all your questions. The school principal must be free to have a meeting with the school parents and should tell them everything about the staff and school. So if you follow these tips, you won’t face any challenges in finding the best private school for your child.

Benefits of Private Schools

Mary Finney

To teach their children the necessary skills for an ever-changing world, many parents are choosing private school education. With options ranging from boarding schools to alternative schools to preschools, there is almost certainly a school to suit each and every child.

Enriched Academic Opportunities

One of the accepted benefits of private schools is that they provide exceptional and challenging educational experiences through extracurricular activities, Advanced Placement courses, the International Baccalaureate programme (and the IB diploma program), and gifted programs, just to name a few. “The IB programme focuses on school work and on developing you as a whole person,” explains Myriam Choma, a Grade 12 student at Ashbury College, “I didn’t find that in any of my other schools.” Private school students constantly score top marks on standardized tests and college entrance exams, and many schools have close to a 100 percent rate of students attending their university of choice.

Smaller Classes

A comprehensive study on class size made by educational researchers Bruce Biddler and David Berliner in 2002 showed that the smaller the class size, the better the average student performs on academic achievement tests. Eric Vosko reflects on his experience as a student at The Rosedale Day School, in Toronto, Ontario. “It was weird for me because the school was so small. It was the right decision for sure, it has been a great school.” And the gains from smaller class sizes are stronger the longer a child is exposed to them. Private schools vary greatly in size, but depending on their teaching style, almost all focus on the importance of small class sizes to individually help students’ weak areas and advance their strengths.

Parental Involvement

Private schools are built around open communication between parents and administration, and they make it a priority to involve parents in the community. From frequent parent-teacher meetings, social events such as parent breakfasts and family camping weekends, and the participation of parent committees in fundraising initiatives, families become an integral part of the child’s education. This common ground also helps strengthen parent-child relationships.

Dedicated Teachers

In a study completed by the Fraser Institute in 2007, 91 per cent of parents surveyed said the dedication of the teachers was their main reason for choosing private school. Instructors are both qualified and passionate about their subjects, often holding advanced degrees in their field. Within the tight-knit school community, students have close relationships with their teachers who commonly act as role models. “That involves most of my life,” says Blake Gage about teaching, coaching basketball and being a house parent to 50 boarders at Brentwood College School, in Mill Bay, British Columbia. In addition, small class sizes make staff members more readily available for extra help or to further challenge individual students.