Recently, I did a presentation on why private schools are better than public schools. However, after attending a public school for my entire thirteen years of education, I stared blankly at the question for five minutes thinking how on earth I was going to answer positive to a question I felt really negatively about.
Maybe it's because I gained an education I wouldn't trade - that in my opinion private schools will never give me.
The decision to send me to the local primary school instead of private school was easy. Because it was cheaper. My parents didn't feel like it was necessary to send me to a private school and buy school uniforms triple the amount.
When I enrolled for high school, it was a decision between a scholarship to a Catholic school or a selective school. We chose the latter. One of the major factors was money.
I have clearly demonstrated my stance of my answer to private vs public with the major answer being money. However, other than this, my parents and I strongly felt that we would still receive an equally good education at a public school as we would at a private school.
However other than my firm belief in public schools, I know there are others who feel the same but towards private schools.
In a recent article titled "Public primary school numbers up but it tends to get private after that," Geoff Newcombe, executive director of the Association of Independent Schools NSW begs some questions with his statement: "There's got to be a pretty strong reason for you to pay for something you can get for free." (Tovey, 2013)
The report in the article found that parents were already fielding questions as to where they should send their children while they were still in their nappies which demonstrates the amount of importance education is placed on society. The report also found that "the proportion of parents forsaking the local comprehensive school and choosing the non-government system, especially for high school, has continued to grow." (Tovey, 2013)
The statistics demonstrated that "in 1981, 77 per cent of students in NSW went to a public school. But just under 66 per cent did in 2012, the lowest percentage since federation. The report from the NSW Department of Education and Communities' Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation shows the decline in the proportion of public school pupils began about three decades ago and has been falling ever since."
So why the move to private schools even though my research to prove why private schools were better than primary schools was extremely difficult.
A report from the article "Public school vs private: what you need to know" outlined the reasons why parents sent their children to private schools:
It's an atmosphere of achievement and maximising kids' potential whether it be in arts or science or sports - whatever the kid's strength or interest, then the school's got a real attitude of maximising achievement within that area. They do treat the kids, not as a clump, but as an individual. The school has kids at a school with all different socio-economic groups. They don't just associate with one crowd." (Calderwood, 2013)
After all the reasons listed, I began to open up to the idea of a private school education. I actually initially felt so strongly towards the belief that public school education would be able to deliver quality education equally if not better than private schools which mainly came out of my own experiences. But my research found that the education parents that sent their children to private schools sought was not the learning, but everything including the extra-curriculum activities, sports and the connections built between students of similar background amongst others.
So private vs public? My feet are still firmly placed on the public side but private education really is a worthy opponent vying for my attention.
References
Tovey, J. (2013, August 24). Public primary school numbers up but it tends to get private after that Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/public-primary-school-numbers-up-but-it-tends-to-get-private-after-that-20130823-2sh7r.html#ixzz2hI3uhBOg. Sydney Morning Herald, Retrieved from http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/public-primary-school-numbers-up-but-it-tends-to-get-private-after-that-20130823-2sh7r.html.
Calderwood, K. (2013, January 9). Public school vs private: what you need to know. The Observer, Retrieved from http://www.gladstoneobserver.com.au/news/public-school-vs-private-what-you-need-know/1710821/.
Hi Shirley!
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you added your personal opinions into your blog post and I also found your quotes insightful. What I am curious is what drove your personal opinions on public schools being 'better' than private schools? What experiences that made you think of private schooling as negative?
I think it's also important to include in your post that private schools can be a means of increasing or expressing social status. The type of school a child goes to can reflect upon their parent's jobs hence their socio- economic status. Private schools do have better facilities and they can create certain environments due restrictions such as sex or religion which can segregate students from different cultures or genders. As Kennedy (2013), describes "Private schools are generally safe places. Access to campuses and buildings is carefully monitored and controlled", parents will have more trust for their child's security. Perhaps, students are also competitive and have a more seriousness towards studies because of their parent expectation. Higher achieving students also means higher ATARs due to the scaling system, which is what parents pay for their child to obtain.
I think there are positives and negatives for both types of schools. In the end, it depends on the individual and how they utilise their schooling facilities to achieve a good education outcome. I suggest a reason to why you favour public schooling may be the multicultural factor of the school environment. Ho (2011, p. 613) states that "Schools and public schools in particular are crucial sites for the facilitation of intercultural exchange, and indeed, may well be the most important sites for such encounters in the lives of young people.". It does not suggest that private schools are not diverse but I think it's important that students are able to socialise with those who are disadvantaged, which is something most private schools cannot provide unless under special circumstances. Conflicting beliefs or behaviours within a multicultural public school can provide students a wider perspective in cultural differences and promote supportive attitudes which will highly benefit their relations with various people in future.
Reference
• Ho, C. (2011). Respecting the presence of others: School micropublics and everyday multiculturalism. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 32(6), 603-619.
• Kennedy, R. (2013). Comparison of Private and Public Schools. [online] Retrieved from: http://privateschool.about.com/od/choosingaschool/qt/comparison.htm [Accessed: 22 Oct 2013].
Hey Shirley, great blog as per usual! I strongly agree with your opening statement of how you couldn't think of any positive things a private school offered. I too attended a public school and had an education I wouldn't trade for the world, so many performing arts and dance opportunities and amazing teachers who have so positively influenced my life. I actually am doing teaching because I really look up to one of my teachers from high school and I want to change people's lives like she did to me. I somewhat disagree, though, with the quote you posted exclaiming "The school has kids at a school with all different socio-economic groups", as private schools discriminate financially and academically, if a selective institute. I understand some parents want their kids to be surrounded by a more encouraging, positive atmosphere, but essentially if you think about it, majority of students gain an education to further them to a degree. Where do they end up? At a university that has students from both private and public schools. I agree students need to socialise with more disadvantaged students and be accepting, which as you said, public schools offer. Essentially, though, I understand it's an individual's prerogative, and I feel very strongly for this subject, which is why I really found this blog post interesting and enjoyable. Thanks Shirey :) check out this article from Sydney Morning Herald on the subject of private school expenses and whether it's worthy of the funds.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.smh.com.au/comment/private-schools-and-the-art-of-ripping-off-parents-20130903-2t357.html