Christian Parents Dilemma: Private Vs. Public?

I hope that by now you have been given some excellent information about the public schools. On the outside chance that you haven't...they are not all bad. Not even close. I am a strong christian woman who happens to work in the schools on a pretty regular basis and have been very pleased in most of them. I guess you need to look at a specific district.

Good luck. Remember, the foundation that you are giving your kids in your faith will go with them where ever they go!

S.

I am a mom of adult children; my kids started school in a small private Lutheran school way back in 1985; my first oldest, daughter, went there for Kindergarten through 2nd grade, my youngest daughter, went there for Kindergarten and my son never went there; we then decided to homeschool (during the dark ages when nobody was doing it!!) and that was the best decision for us at the time. I would not trade those years for anything, esp now that they are adults! We had such fun learning and making memories together. Very fond times. We homeschooled them through eighth grade. My daughters then transitioned for grades 9-12 to an all girls Catholic school and both got full rides to college. My son went to a small Christian school for 8th grade because we felt he needed a year to get used to the rigors of "traditional school" before entering an all boys Catholic school - he too did very well and was successful. They are now 27, 26 and 22 years old. So you can see, we did a mix of education.

I also now have many friends with kids in the public schools and they have had very good experiences. They are not all the devils den as some people make them out to be. I do not believer that God desires for us to make "fear based" decisions.

I encourage you to remain in prayer and start walking in a direction that you think God is leading you. I call it "getting out of the boat"....if you keep your eyes on Jesus, He will be faithful to lead you in the direction you are going, or He will lead you down an alternative path that He desires you to be on.

There are no wrong decisions when He leads:) God bless you.

Hi There!
I don't know if there is a lot of difference between public and private. I have one son who is going to public kindergarten next year. I am also a non-denominational Christian. The bullying even starts before kindergarten! My son was in a Christian Preschool. There was one child who always picked on the others and said nasty things!
I think sometimes the way to go is just to homeschool. From all the homework I hear kids get these days, maybe for some people it would be easier just to homeschool.
As far as sheltering kids, I wouldn't worry about that. You are just trying to protect them. I think a stable and loving home life is the most important.

I have a 4 year old too (yesterday was his birthday) but we decided to homeschool him for preschool and see about K when it comes. You ask another question about your son and if you feel he is ready then put him in. My son is NOT ready -- he will not sit still and for school that is a must. I have helped in my sons Sunday School Class where he is the youngest with 5 year olds and a boy that is almost 6 -- there is a lot of differences between those ages. Again you know YOUR son better than ANYONE else. Your involvement in his education and school is the key - don't just leave it up to the school, Christian or not.

Hi F. - My son is 20 and went all through the Troy public schools. It was a wonderful, caring, supportive, encouraging educational environment for him. Being involved at the school is a crucial piece of the puzzle, I think. It gives you a chance to see your child interact with their peers, lets the staff know you are interested and involved in your child's education and life, and it is really, really fun. I know there are some wonderful public and private schools, and there are some bad ones of both. You need to really know what's available.
I have a good friend whose 2 oldest went to Catholic schools their entire school life. She also has a much younger child who is enrolled in our neighborhood school now. The daughter is happy as a clam to be going to school with the pals she's had her whole life. The mom is thrilled to be two minutes from school, able to participate in carpools, and not taking her daughter to play at a pals house that is 30 - 45 minutes away, but just up the street. With a wonderful neighborhood school this has been a wonderful thing for all of them.
Good luck with this big decision, monetarily and personally.

I imagine that kid will be kids, no matter what school they are in. There is sex everywhere. There are drugs everywhere. The best thing you can do is educate your children about all things they'll encounter in their lives and raise your children with a strong sense of confidence and self esteem so they'll have the strength and willpower to abstain from activities that may be harmful to them (and not succumb to peer pressure). I went to a pretty rough high school but I was still much more innocent in my personal behavior than my college friends who went to parochial schools.

I went to Catholic school my whole life, my husband went to public. I had a "thought" about public schools. I was completely against my kids going anywhere else but Catholic schools. Especially since with in the past ten years there seems to be even more changes with the "God tolerance". WE started two of our three in Catholic and found ourselves in a financial situation. I cried and cried I was so upset. WE went to a few schools checked meap scores and ect...I did like the public school nearest our house so we went down a bit. Well we love it. We all agree here its better. They have more funding than most private schools and they have a lot more hands on projects in the class. My oldest has learned more this year than he did at the other school in 4 years. Its amazing.Now could it be the old school we had them in wasn't that good. Could be or it could be this is just a really great school. And by the way. NO they do not do bible based studies there but they do talk about God. They also discuss many religions during the holidays and explain where everyone comes from. I liked that. Its not at all the "thought" I had as I previously said. My advice to you. Set up appointments at a few schools do walk throughs meet the teachers at both Christian and Public and you never know. But realistically we as parents have to do what we have to do and make the best of every situation. We can't always afford everything we want. Good Luck Keep us Posted I am curious to know what you decide.

I am the product of public schools myself and can attest that a strong home environment is more cruicial than anything. Looking back, I'm glad I had such a diverse experience that I may not have gotten through a private school. Not to say private schools are bad - my husband attended a very elite private school and it was a wonderful experience for him and gave hime amazing study habits and a good foundation to succeed in college. Neither of our experiences was better than the other's - they were just different. But if finances are giong to be a problem, perhaps (like another poster mentioned), you could find a solid public school and then make sure that God is in your home. I was active in my church's youth group growing up and that experience has influenced me greatly (for the good). Like you said, we can't shield our children from every bad thing out there so as long as you keep an open dialogue with your children, you are doing so much more for them than any private school could ever do. This way, they can experience the "bad" things by watching their peers but you can teach them to make positive decisions - a skill that will come in handy for the rest of their lives! I hope I'm not coming across as anti-private school - that's not the case at all. But if it's something you can't afford, then it may be better for your family to maintain financial security while finding a solid public school. Best of luck!

Well my children attend Macomb Christian Schools. We love it. Small Class size, Teachers care. My son Has held a 4.0 from 4th grade through 6th grade and just received the Presidential Award. I can not say enough about the school. If you would like more information you can call Kent Darcie at ###-###-####. If you have any questions for me drop me a note. If you speak to Mr. Darcie, let him know that I talked to you a little bit about MCS. I would appreciate that.
In His service,
B.

I'm not sure which school district you are in, but in the lakes area anyway, the public schools are quite excellent. If you are in doubt, do yourself a favor and visit during school hours and see the wonderful things that go one there. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

Good Morning,

I am a former teacher that taught at a charter school. My experience there has lead my husband and I to send our first born daughter to our church school. (We are lutheran.) I have never attended a private school nor has my husband. In my opinion, if you can afford to send your child/children to a private school that would be great for them because of the smaller class sizes, more one on one attention, etc. You have to weigh your pros and cons. I am not sure if things are different in other schools like the one that I taught at but now having to send my daughter off to school in the fall, I guess I just want to protect her and help guide her in the right directions the best way I can.

Good Luck!!

My son is in public school through the intermediate school district...
Your public school is only as good as you <as a parent> are involved and participate.
My suggestion is that you shouldn't listen to what others say about what is going on. Go to your local elementary that your children would be attending and drop in. check it out for yourself, talk to the principal. Do your research like that. Alot of districts are school of choice now, so if you don't like this one and its out of control. Check out others.. There are also charter schools too.

J.

We have 3 children that went through the public school system from K-8. You are right, the public schools are a scarey place and do not offer the environment you might want to coincide with a Christian upbringing. Our girls are now 29, 26 and 24. We moved them to a Christian high school for all the reasons you talk about and it was the best decision we ever made! At the time we were not avid churchgoers and had minimal spirituality in our home. All that changed though when we started them at Lutheran High Northwest. The caring, dicipline and education they got there was lifechanging for all of us. That's not to say there aren't drugs, troubled teens or anything else that is typical in a high school. The difference is the staff, the Christian approach, individual attention, the fact that the staff knows YOU by name as well as your children. They actually care about your child! I also felt I was not equipped to teach and guide them into anything even close to a good relationship with God. It was financially difficult as the tuition was close to $1000 a month. We sometimes had 2 in at once. At one point we had 2 at Northwest and 1 at Concordia in Ann Arbor. WHEW! There were scholarships available and some kids were subsdized by their church. We didn't do any of that, but it is there for those who need it. I have friends who thought I was wasting my money. Their children all went to public school and did fine. Mine happened to do better in a smaller environment with a different approach.
We have never regretted our decision. It was well worth the money. Like I said, we were not, at that time, involved in a church at all, but I felt they needed more than I could offer myself. We attend Kensington in Troy now. They have small groups for kids of all ages, all geared to learn the "word" have fun doing it, and be with people socially who have the same values you do. Had I know about all this way back when and been more in tune with my spiritual journey, would I have done it differently??? Maybe, I don't know. Anyway, it was the best choice for us at the time and I have never looked back.

I am a Christian also and I am the single parent of a 9 year old boy. My son curreently attends a Christian school and has since kindergarten. I really wanted him to have a strong foundation from his youth. I love that the bible is integrated into the curriculum. On the other hand, several friends of mine are leaving the school because of the cost of sending their children to private school. If its something that you can not afford at the time, perhaps you could make sure that you incorporate biblical lessons at home and also attend a church that has a good youth ministry. Even though he attends a Christian school, I still cover him in prayer and Prayers that Avail much, has a some very specific prayers for your children and their school experience. Pray and expect the best. Its as easy to expect a good outcome as it is a bad one. I don't plan on keeping him at the school forever, as a matter of fact I have been considering Cranbrook but your faith in God will provide the supernatural protection, provision and grace you need if thats what you truly believe. My son and I incorporate Psalms 91 into our prayers. I hope this helps.

I did not grow up with a big religious background. But I went to public schools and I still went to church with my aunt a lot. But because my parents and my close family were such a good influence on me when things came up at school or at home I could talk to them about and ask questions. I got enough help being in public schools. The teachers were wonderful and loved their jobs and there was always someone to talk to if i needed the help. And because of the schools I got to express myself in many different ways too, yes including through clothing. My best friend went to private school and public school and she says she liked them both but her friendships that she made in public schools have stayed longer. Her private school she liked too though. But I really had no problems with being in public school...

I am also a strong catholic and had the same issue / concerns. I eventually decided to put my son (now in K) in West Bloomfield Schools - Gretchko elementary. It is a K-1 building only and it is amazing. I am 100% confident we made the right decision. I also work in the high school in the district my children attend and the its all "sex and drugs and bullies" is not true. The high school is very high achieving and full of some great kids. Of course you are going to have a few kids that like to cause troublke but if your school is strong on discipline it is not a problem. If I were you I would vist the schools and talk to the principal. It will help you make your decision.

Good Luck - I vote public and put your children in sunday school at church.