Something to keep in mind. The junior high I student taught at offered pre-AP Spanish as an elective and Hispanic parents wanted to pull their kids out of band (my subject) to take the class so they could speak to family who didn't know English. The problem with that (besides the fact they could take it in HS and not have to drop band to take it in JH) is that it's not conversational Spanish. It's like an English class where you learn grammar and syntax, but for Spanish. That's the way it was when I was in school too. I had 3 years of Spanish and although I know some words, phrases, and how to conjugate verbs, I can't really have a conversation in Spanish. So if the goal is to actually have him speaking Japanese, make sure that's what the program actually is. Like the Chinese immersion program, those kids are actually becoming fluent in Chinese. But if it's like most of the Spanish courses taught in public schools, you may not be getting what you think you're getting.
You definitely didn't come off holier-than-thou. I just wanted any of the other readers to see a different take. I do think some schools can be discriminatory. The comment by Nook that public schools can't compete with private because they get to handpick their students is true. But sometimes, that inflates how good the school actually is, because they don't have any bad apples in the mix. If you're only taking the best of the best, your school better do great. Doesn't necessarily mean that the teachers are better. Its almost like have 5 all stars on an NBA squad. They should do better than most other teams, regardless of coach.
I pay 10k/year each for my 2 girls at Ascension Episcopal. Its a great school and probably worth it. Hell, Mike James' kids go there...it's gotta be good...amirite? But seriously, so many more extra curricular activities, the parents are all amazing, probably bc they're all paying and maybe 'care' more. I dunno. The atmosphere just feels like they all give a crap, especially the teachers. I'm not a religious guy as folks may know, but I do like the chapel that they do 3 times a week. I grew up in a public school, sometimes I feel like my kids are missing out not having to put up with the crazies I did in public school and ultimately seeing the bloody fights and such. But in the end I'm more relieved at their safety with the coded gates and such.
Sounds great how some of you guys had the opportunity to get a great education. It definitely makes a huge difference. I went to an HISD magnet school, and even there, it wasn't all that great. I definitely saw a huge difference when I studied engineering at UT. I struggled my first two years while students who went to good schools did great. I made it, but holy **** it was tough. My hope is that I can send my kids to better schools than I went to. Sounds like a huge sacrifice financially but may be well worth it to get them the opportunities I didn't have.
