Debate Between Public And Private School

What determines the quality of the education each person receives? There are many aspects that can change the type of experience we have as students, but one revolutionary aspect is the type of institution we belong to, private or public. Not all students get the opportunity to make their own decision of the type of education they want to receive. I believe that the most important things in life have to have balance and equality, and education isn’t an example of this because of the lack of equality it has because of its deficiency in providing everyone the same opportunities. Many time the students are giving the opportunity, by their parent or maybe by an extrinsic reason, and they don’t take advantage of the opportunity, because of poor mentality and postmodernism. “Boredom was everywhere in my world, and if you asked the kids, as I often did, why they felt so bored, they always gave the same answer: They said the work was stupid, that it made no sense, that they already knew it.

They said they wants to be doing something real, not just sitting around,” (John Taylor Gatto, Rereading America 114) In this reading, Gatto talks about different aspects of school and there’s this one aspect that is essential for the quality of the education, the teachers. Private schools, because of their money, they can pay teachers better and that motivates them to make a better job, and how teacher do their job, influences a lot in how the student see school. First we have to analyze the differences between private and public schools so we can have a clear perspective about this debate, because there are reasons why public schools are better for some students, and reasons why private schools are better for other students. I believe the most important factor is money, funding and tuition is one of the first characteristics a parent thinks about, when deciding what education to give to their children. Private schools can be very expensive, depending on things like location or technology advances, while public schools are funded by the government and paid with taxes, but this doesn’t mean private school is the best choice, because there are other factors to consider. Teaching methods are completely different between public and private schools but there are also different between any schools, so that’s definitely something to consider while deciding.

Another difference between these different institutions is religion and faith-based learning, most private institutions have certain beliefs and religion based teaching while public institutions are usually secular. Most of the time, because of their beliefs, private schools can have longer days where students have to stay and learn about other things besides what the public institution teaches. Public schools can also be affected by local politics, there are provided by the government so obviously events that occur in the politics can affect the school while private institutions stay the same no matter what happens in the local politics. These are some of the differences between the two types off institution a student can belong to, there are many more that each person has to research before making a decision but there are enough to start building a point of view on which option is the better fit for you.

Money is maybe the first thing someone considers when debating between public or private schools. Private schools get all their money by their student’s high cost of attendance, so they do depend of the government, and this can mean two things, either attending to a private school is going to cost you a lot of money, or a private school can give you a great scholarship, and maybe it can be even cheaper than a public school. What I believe to be the biggest affect that money has in both schools, is what the teachers are getting paid.

According to an article in The Atlantic, “Private school teachers make way less than public school teachers. Average salaries are nearly $50,000 for public, and barely $36,000 for private. That’s not just a gap. It’s a chasm. ” (The Atlantic) One would think that if a teacher gets paid better, he or she would do a better job, although it’s not very safe to assume that, we could say that teacher in public schools do a better job, but now, according to The Infographics Show in Ted Talk on Private School vs Public School, “During the Obama administration, there was an average graduation rate of 83. 2% of student in public schools, while private school had a graduation rate of 95% of students. ” (The Infographics Show) So it seems like a private school does a better job on the students, but at the same time, it also depends of the students, their ambition, their goals, and their education.

Another big time difference between public and private schools, is diversity. Public school are known to have a big amount of race diversity in their students, while private schools are almost completely the same race. According to the same Infographics Show in Ted Talk, “The Washington Post reported in 2016 that private school are virtually all white, with non-white student making up to only 10%, and one of the main differences in public schools, is the mixed ethnicity from 50. 7 million public school students, 24. 4 million are white students, 13. 6 million students are Hispanic, 8 million students are black, 2. 8 million students are Asian/Pacific islanders,. 5 million are American Indian/Alaska native, and 1. 5 million are mixed race. ” (The Infographics Show)

So, clearly, public schools are a most attractive choice for various different races and ethnic groups. This is an important difference to consider when deciding between schools, for some people, rich diversity in students may be a good thing, and for some, it can be a bad thing. These type of things are the ones that make me realize that private schools are better for some students, and public schools are better for other students. “Regardless of how obvious and inevitable the racial and cultural diversity of students in American public schools is, teaching about race, culture, or ethnicity remains a complex and at-risk instructional activity that many teachers feel uncomfortable or ill-equipped to take on. ” (Mary Dilg, Race and Culture in the Classroom)

Indeed, teaching about race can be quite a challenge for many students, especially when there’s all kinds of races in the classroom, but it’s essential to learn for the education to be richer. I don’t think that private school can teach a lot to their students about this, because I feel like it’s a much closed environment, so I see this difference like a benefit for student in public schools. “Parents are given rights to make certain choices about how to rear their children. Many people believe this should include an entitlement to choose how and where their children are educated. Many parents choose to pay tuition to have their children educated privately, sometimes for religious reasons. ” (Private School and School Choice, Stanford University)

Students should be able to make a decision of their own, when it comes to deciding where they want to study at, but it can’t be this way because not all student have the some opportunities, not all parents have the money to send their children to a private institution. Sometimes it sounds like if private schools were better, one would think it is, because when something is expensive, it means it has more quality; but maybe it doesn’t. Each student has to research and find the school that fits them best and that they will love and help them the most. There are so much differences between public and private schools but the good thing about that, is that there are so much options so there is definitely a school that fits each student, and the only thing we have to do, is find it.