Thank you for sharing the research on these choices. It is definitely difficult research to wade through due to all of the potential bias. I appreciate your clear analysis to help parents make the right choice for their student and family.
I appreciate your research and sharing clear information in this and other articles. I’m concerned this leaves out really important information for families with students with disabilities - private schools have no legal obligation to provide the supports, services and parent involvement that is required of public schools (traditional and charter) under the IDEA and state laws. Obviously this makes a big difference in how students perform academically. Additionally, private schools are allowed to discriminate and refuse to enroll students with disabilities and others like LGBTQ students. Please consider learning more about this and adding this critical information to your publication.
Thank you for lifting up these differences as well. I agree that they are important things for parents to consider. It is interesting that the research on private schools does not touch on any of these and is limited on these factors.
I think another related issue is other factors that matter when choosing a school - you’ve focused on academic performance but we also considered diversity and community involvement. I’d be very interested if you’re able to share research about the impact of white students attending a school with more students of color and vice versa- I believe the impact is really positive across academic and social factors. Also, low income students perform better when they are in schools with higher funding. Do higher income students maintain good performance if in a lower funded public school? Presumably due to their parents income and education advantages. I think they do, and we know they bring their parent resources to benefit the greater school community.
I think this is one of those things which definitely comes down to your priorities as a family and how the individual is best served. What I really appreciated about this slice of research is that it, perhaps more than other topics, highlights how education decisions are never a one-size-fits-all.
I appreciate your research and the breakdown of information here. This is a topic that comes up in my home often and something we’re currently trying to figure out for our family.
I definitely dug deep into the research on this when I was looking at schooling options for my kids. Ultimately we chose homeschooling, acknowledging that for us, academic outcome wasn't the only factor (although knowing that my kids weren't likely to be disadvantaged academically by homeschooling was definitely reassuring). We also factored in the ways the homeschooling would allow more family time, more nature time, exploring interests, preserving curiosity, supporting free play, etc.
There really is no "right" decision - it's very values based and what is right for one family won't be right for another.
Loved this article! I also agree that it is a matter of individual choice. I hope that with more time, the research can become a bit more clear! I feel as though there is some stigma regarding certain types of schooling, so I would love to see a clearer picture that could hopefully provide us with some helpful information!
Thank you for sharing the research on these choices. It is definitely difficult research to wade through due to all of the potential bias. I appreciate your clear analysis to help parents make the right choice for their student and family.
It is definitely something I spent a great deal of time analyzing as I made decisions with my family!
Wow. Such a vast amount of information on the types of schooling you have “translated” here. Great job!
Thank you. It is so important for me to share the research with parents.
I appreciate your research and sharing clear information in this and other articles. I’m concerned this leaves out really important information for families with students with disabilities - private schools have no legal obligation to provide the supports, services and parent involvement that is required of public schools (traditional and charter) under the IDEA and state laws. Obviously this makes a big difference in how students perform academically. Additionally, private schools are allowed to discriminate and refuse to enroll students with disabilities and others like LGBTQ students. Please consider learning more about this and adding this critical information to your publication.
Thank you for lifting up these differences as well. I agree that they are important things for parents to consider. It is interesting that the research on private schools does not touch on any of these and is limited on these factors.
I think another related issue is other factors that matter when choosing a school - you’ve focused on academic performance but we also considered diversity and community involvement. I’d be very interested if you’re able to share research about the impact of white students attending a school with more students of color and vice versa- I believe the impact is really positive across academic and social factors. Also, low income students perform better when they are in schools with higher funding. Do higher income students maintain good performance if in a lower funded public school? Presumably due to their parents income and education advantages. I think they do, and we know they bring their parent resources to benefit the greater school community.
I think this is one of those things which definitely comes down to your priorities as a family and how the individual is best served. What I really appreciated about this slice of research is that it, perhaps more than other topics, highlights how education decisions are never a one-size-fits-all.
That is the perfect summary of the newsletter--education decisions are not one size fits all. Follow the research then listen to your family.
I appreciate your research and the breakdown of information here. This is a topic that comes up in my home often and something we’re currently trying to figure out for our family.
I definitely dug deep into the research on this when I was looking at schooling options for my kids. Ultimately we chose homeschooling, acknowledging that for us, academic outcome wasn't the only factor (although knowing that my kids weren't likely to be disadvantaged academically by homeschooling was definitely reassuring). We also factored in the ways the homeschooling would allow more family time, more nature time, exploring interests, preserving curiosity, supporting free play, etc.
There really is no "right" decision - it's very values based and what is right for one family won't be right for another.
Loved this article! I also agree that it is a matter of individual choice. I hope that with more time, the research can become a bit more clear! I feel as though there is some stigma regarding certain types of schooling, so I would love to see a clearer picture that could hopefully provide us with some helpful information!