abboy

Is it true that a public school in a very rich area( multi million dollar homes) is better than a private school?

I have noticed that the facilities of the public schools in those areas are better than a $20,000 /year private school.

I was told the reason is that the property taxes of those multi million dollar homes help fund the public schools in the area?

Kaffy Mintcake

That may absolutely be true. Unfortunately US schools are often funded by property taxes and there can be great discrepencies from one area to another. If you do some digging online you can likely find out how schools in your area stack up against one another. (Some real estate sites have this sort of search criteria I believe.) I was educated in a very good public school that was much better than some of the private schools in the area. It just depends really.

Elvira

In the US, many private schools are religious schools whose primary remit seems to be to shelter the kids from 'life outside the school'.

Public schools in the US are funded from property taxes and the occasional special bond issue.

So yes, a public school in a good and/or rich neighbourhood can be much better than a private school.

Jerseygirl

Yes property taxes do fund public schools in the US therefore the better schools are in the more expensive areas.

Maybe it differs from state to state...private schools are funded by generations of billionaires/multi-millionaires...the pupils want for nothing.

Edit: I am not including religious schools as private schools.

TouristTrap

Depends on the private school. If it is your prep type school then they're pretty good. But come at a huge cost.

Sally

Why not? There's a big nutty Christian one up the road that does the "silver ring" thing, cost about $23,000 a year. My English friend was ringing round a few private schools and rejected several on the basis of their answer to "do you teach evolution?"

Jerseygirl

I can only speak for NJ schools. We only looked at one religious high school because I don't care for them...the fees were less than half of the private schools.

Sally

Yeah sounds like it's different there. I think some of the Jewish schools cost even more.

penguinsix

Schools are run by districts, which usually incorporate a political subdivision (city or county). They are, by and large, funded by property taxes, which are dependent on the value of the property in the area. So rich neighborhoods tend to have more funds available than poor areas, but if both rich and poor areas are in the same district, the schools are funded through the same entity (and there would be hell to pay if one school in a district got more than another). In addition, areas with large property taxpayers (i.e. a nuclear power plant in a rural area, a oil refinery, or some other large factory in a rural place) can result in small towns with generally low property values having a large surplus of money.

Of course, money isn't everything. One of the high $ expenditure districts in the US (Washington, DC) has some of the worst public schools in the country. And some small rural areas with very little money actually produce exceptional students. There are a lot of factors, from passionate teachers to involved parents.

If you are looking for the rundown of the schools in your area (or somewhere you want to live) check out http://www.greatschools.net/

Tarkak9

... or just go online and look up the actual school districts' websites and review their stats.

Specific questions and concerns should always be addressed directly with the school boards as that is where you will be able to have your specific questions answered (from the horse's mouth). Contact private schools and get their stats and compare and contrast.

Don't assume that since a school is in a "rich" area it automatically makes it better than another; does it also mean the tap water will taste better too?!? I bet those pupils don't have to use an outhouse to take a dump. I've heard that people in rich areas wash their cars with Evian. If you compared "rich" schools to one another in the same school district, you will see differences between them too. Pqn6, good post. In essence, funding is part of the overall local budget and the capital is raised through property tax, along with local sales tax. Overall, its proportionate of how much is raised. Some areas may have a special tax district or school districts may take out state bonds to generate revenue. Every state and region is different though.

dukeynorton

Probably been said before but isnt that the worst idea in history? Nice area = nice schools = rich get richer. Poor area = poor schools = poor get poorer!

I know this is an overly simplistic view but still.............

RaiseTheDead

If you want your children to assimilate- Send them to public schools..Don't be afraid. They are going to have to deal with the "natives" sooner or later..

RaiseTheDead

I had my son Gregory in private school his first year here, but when started started high school we put him in public school.. Sure he got pushed around a little, and made fun of at first but he joined every club and even tried out for the football team, which resulted in a broken collar bone in his first practice but also won him a measure of respect from the other boys..He's doing great now, and even has a few friends..

jumping doris

We pay a ton in property taxes...our schools are excellent.

I live in a small township that has 3 elementary schools feeding into a middle school which does 5th and 6th grade, then another middle school for 7th and 8th grade and then all on to one high school.
We have IB from kindergarten.
The high school spends more on it's astro turf than most small 3rd world nations spend on everything.

The parental involvement at every level is astounding
The amount of community service by the students is also astounding
The students want it ..they get it.

The end result...about 350 very nice, well educated, young people at senior level who all go on to college.

mandpete

Not necessarily so. The government throws an extortionate amount of money into some of the poorest cities and still the children are not getting a decent education.