School supplies.
The two words that can bring both fear and joy to both parents and students across the country. Just weeks, and in some cases days, after school ended for the Spring Semester of 2018, retailers throughout the country are already making shelf space for school supplies for students from elementary schools to high schools. Some parents dread the thought of spending all that money again, while some students dread the thought of having to head back to school when their break has just started. On the flip side, some parents are thrilled that there is indeed an end in sight to what can seem like a very long summer, while some students are excited about the thought of getting to pick out all of the new mechanical pencils, notebooks, and the latest kinds of book covers that match the pencils and the notebooks.
Education Is Important No Matter What Your Age
From digital textbooks to day schools and from prep schools to Precalculus, education is the one thing that we all have in common. And while some of us are a long ways from the days that we spent in elementary schools, many of us are parents who are staring the while process again as we find just the right school for our children. Even though education has changed a lot since many of today’s parents were in the classroom, there are some important aspects of selecting a school that have not changed at all. Powerful teachers, independent and challenging learning, and classroom size, for instance, all continue to be important factors in every successful educational experience.
Powerful teachers. No matter what our age, if we have been in school we likely know the name of our favorite teacher and what made him or her so good. From the elementary schools across the country to the public and private high school classrooms, there are throngs of teachers who make a difference. They challenge their students to be their very best, the help reset expectations when things do not go as planned, and the know how to enable students to be responsible for their own motivation and interest. These professionals continue to fight for what is best for their students, even when the financial rewards are minimal.
Independent and challenging learning. Every learner deserves to be challenged. Finding the school for your child that will offer the academic rigor that your child needs is important if you want to make sure that he or she reaches the highest potential. Although you cannot always make a judgement according to end results, it is impressive to know that as many as 95% of non-parochial private high school grads go on to four-year postsecondary institutions. This number compares to the fact that for public school graduates the number is closer to 49%. Whether you make the decision to go the public school or the private school route, it is important to understand the curriculum that is offered. What, for instance, is the highest math class offered at the high school your child will attend? Academic rigor is an essential part of a successful education.
Classroom size. No matter how great the teacher is and how strong the curriculum is, it is difficult for your child to get the help that they need in a classroom that is filled with too many students. And while there are many advantages to public elementary schools. the fact of the matter is private school student to teacher ratios are lower. Finding a public school classroom that is 18 to 20 students in size, for instance is often a major challenge in school districts where budgets continue to get cut. For this reason, a growing number of parents are looking at private school education as their best choice. In fact, some 25% of all U.S. schools are private schools.
During the month of June you may not be quite ready to start thinking about school supplies and the Back to School nights that are just around the corner. The fact of the matter is, however, education is an important topic that is a priority to the parents of all children, of all ages.
