As of Fall 2011, there were over 30,000 private and secondary elementary schools that were responsible for teaching close to five million students. Many of these children participate in long day care, with the average child spending over 36 hours per week in child care. In 2012, estimates from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) reported that the United States was fifth to seventh to last (27th out of 34) in math performance, and still just in 20th place in science performance.
If you are overwhelmed by these statistics, that is a good thing. The recent performance of American children on standardized testing is not commensurate with the country’s standing as a worldwide symbol of power, and something needs to be done to change that. It is getting even harder for kids who are able and who want to go to school to access the best education, even in a country that offers high quality colleges and universities. Private school tuition far exceeds that of public school costs, but neither one is accessible to kids who don’t have the means to pay high fees.
If you are interested in learning more about the state of education in America and want to know exactly what is going on with programms intended to improve it, keep reading to learn the basics. The unfortunate failings of the public school system represent some of the key reasons why parents send their children to private schools.
- The public education system is broken
The private school systems have much more funding than public schools in this country so the quality of private education has surpassed that of anything that public schools can provide. If you want the best education, barring public policy reform, the best option is to send your kid to a private school. - Students are not completing their four year degrees
Unfortunately many kids can’t even access the opportunity to go to college even if they want to, but a lot of schools are not producing the results that we want for students who do attend. The average college graduation rate for the entire country is less than 50%, which signals a huge problem with our state and private education system. There are several factors that affect the issue of kids not graduating from college, but one of the biggest is lack of support during the beginning college years. - Long day care at an early age is one way to encourage an appetite for learning in your child
Things like private child care, and if you can’t afford it, subsidized child care, are a great way to ensure that your child starts learning at a young age. If you want your kid to be thirsty for knowledge for his or her whole life, then it’s really important to instill a habit for learning at a young age.
What are your thoughts on the state of the education system in America? Do you think there is a difference with regards to private vs public schools? Do you think enrolling a child in long day care makes a difference in the long run when they are applying to colleges? Whatever your thoughts are, we would love to hear your opinion so please join the conversation by sharing your ideas in a comment below!
