How do you get past superficial differences and find out which private school will give your child the best foundation for a pleased, full life? Most parents–including us–really don’t know what questions to question the private schools to choose which is best for them. When we chose a private school in Boulder County, Colorado, we were lucky. Even though we weren’t aware of many vital differences between private schools, we have been thrilled with our choice. From our experience and from conversations with other parents and teachers, we’ve gained a better understanding of how private schools are different, and how parents can find out those differences before making their choice.

1. Does your school teach academics to the exclusion of vital areas like the arts, physical development and foreign language classes? Most parents would agree that academic achievement is crucial for success in life. But, for many of us, a complete education includes music, art, drama, physical education, and language learning. Does a school have to limit their subjects to the “Three R’s” to support academic success? Fortunately, you don’t have to settle for a limited academics-only program to produce excellent college entrance exam scores. Really, some well-rounded approaches can show evidence of yielding superior results measured by future academic achievement.

2. How well do graduates of your private school perform in higher education and in the world? Do they keep learning their whole life? In some ways, the skills held by the graduates of a school say more about that school’s approach than any claim by school administrators. For us, it’s more vital for a school to teach for a lifetime of learning than for next week’s test scores.

3. How pleased are this school’s graduates with their education? It can take some time for students to know how their schooling prepared them for life. One key question is: How many of your graduates would send their own child to the same type of school?

4. What disciplinary approaches are employed? What behaviors and attitudes are acceptable in your school? A school’s approach to discipline and student conduct will effect every single child in the school, directly or indirectly. A policy that is overly lenient will permit negative behaviors that distract those students who want to learn. A policy that is overly restrictive will stop children from expressing themselves in normal ways. Does the school deal with negative behaviors judgmentally, or with respect and support for the individual?

5. How do you assess how well students are learning? This is an vital aspect of education. Does the school focus on testing, or on other types of observation? Does the school only evaluate academic skills such as reading and math, or does it also take into account abilities such as social and artistic skills? You may also be interested in the ways in which the school communicates these assessments with parents.

6. Does this school’s curriculum and approach fit with a child’s developmental stages? Because of the importance of learning to read, many educators are pushing the envelope with introducing reading skills at younger and younger ages, with the assumption that younger is always better. But what if that assumption is fake? A young child does not have the same mind that an older child or an adult has. A fantastic deal is known today about the developmental stages children go through. To us, it is vital for a school’s philosophy to take these developmental stages into account, rather than simply pushing academics earlier and earlier.

7. How does this school approach spirituality? Whether you prefer a school to have a spiritual grounding or not, it can be vital to know you’re comfortable with the school’s approach to spirituality in the classroom.

8. What does this school expect from parents? The parents of the other children in class will have a strong influence on your child’s school experience. For your child to learn the best, it could be to your advantage if your school has some guidelines for parenting in ways that are most conducive to children’s behavior and attitudes in school.

As an example, the average American household watches TV 8.2 hours a day. Even one hour or more of TV per day has been linked to poor attitudes toward school and poor achievement in 14 year olds. Three hours or more is associated with learning and attention difficulties. Kids who have distress paying attention end up distracting the whole classroom. Do you reckon your child would learn the best if most children in the classroom were watching three or more hours of TV a day, or if most were watching less than 1 hour a day? If you are willing to make the effort to limit your child’s TV viewing, then it’s greatly to your benefit for a school to require this of all parents. I would not be surprised if TV viewing played a significant role in the poor performance of so many schools today.

9. How does the private school support emotional and social development? Meaningful, healthy relationships are an vital component of a truly pleased life. Does the school emphasize cooperation and relating well with others? Does the school support healthy emotional development?

10. What types of play do young children engage in at your private school? Research shows the benefits of physically active play and imaginative games for young children. Yet in many schools, the time available for these vital childhood activities is dwindling. Often, in their place are computer labs, flash cards and reading lessons in preschool and kindergarten.

11. How much time is spent on rote learning as opposed to gaining cognitive abilities? Unfortunately, many children are taught what to reckon instead of how to reckon. Memorizing facts is vital. But, creativity and reasoning skills are also vital. Those at the forefront of any field are able to reckon beyond what they are taught.

12. What else do I need to know that makes your school unique? A school may have some unique approach that would never occur to you to question about it. So it’s excellent to question an open-finished question, to give the school administrator an opportunity to highlight their areas of uniqueness.

As you consider the 12 questions I have posed, there may also be additional questions that you want to add to your list. The more complete your list of questions, the better your chances of getting the information you need to be truly satisfied with your choice of private schools.

Before you choose a private school, be sure to question the private schools all the vital questions! Besides these 12 in-depth questions, check out this list of 10 basic questions parents question private schools. For more information about choosing among the private schools in Boulder CO or anyplace else, visit www.PrivateSchoolsBoulder.com.

categories: private schools, boulder private schools, boulder colorado private school, boulder private schools, boulder county private education, boulder private schools, private education, private school, schools, education, learning, children, kids, family

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