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Pastimes : Don't Ask Rambi -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: greenspirit who wrote (16446)	1/13/1999 1:59:00 AM
From: Dayuhan	Respond to of 71178

Michael, I don't think the real difference between a small private school and a large public one is mainly one of the cost per student. Although I have to say that the parents at the private school seem to participate a lot more actively, which may or may not be a function of the money they are laying out. I suspect that large schools and school systems naturally incline toward mass-production methods, and the larger bureaucracy that large school systems require is more vulnerable to bureaucratic inertia. It would be interesting to compare schools in small towns with those in larger ones - in general, I think smaller communities are much better at providing positive learning environments in and out of school than larger ones. Probably due not only to a reverse economy of scale, but also due to the lower stress level faced by parents in small towns. Parental involvement really does make all the difference. My cousins grew up in a community in western NY; the largest employers were a major university and the IBM r&d facility. It was a very well educated community that placed a high priority on education, and that really showed in the quality of the schools. It's not just that teachers need parents to bludgeon them into doing their jobs. I'm sure that a group of parents that is active, interested, and encouraging the class to reach its highest potential gives a teacher a much greater degree of motivation than a bible-belting mob demanding that creation be taught instead of evolution, or a group of parents that can't even take the time to speak to their children's teachers. Knotty problem any way you slice it. In the immediate and personal sense, the only solution I can see is to go with the private school or to choose a town to live in that has a quality school system. If I ever move back to the US that will be the single greatest factor in choosing a location. Probably be difficult to find a place with both decent work opportunities and decent schools... trying to work out a way to work exclusively over the net. I doubt I'm the only one. Steve