Making the Most of Public Education
Your child is not doomed to a mediocre education if you send them to a public rather than a private school. Some parents believe that the path to Ivy League schools and the highest quality of education is through private schooling. There are potential benefits to sending your children to private schools including smaller classroom sizes and often more focus on preparing for future college attendance. However, your child can receive a great education and have the same opportunities for college after attending public school.
There are steps you can take to ensure that your child gets the most out of their years of public education. From the beginning of their school days, you need to be actively involved in their education. Attend all parent-teacher conferences. Make time to attend school functions and to get to know the teaching staff. Take the time to always know what your child is studying in school, what homework they have, and the date of any upcoming tests and quizzes.
Join the parent-teacher association so that you know everything that is going on at your child’s school. Volunteer directly at the school as well. Even if you cannot volunteer on a regular basis, make sure to volunteer at least once or twice each year. You can have more feedback on your child and their education if you are actively present at the school and if you interact with teachers regularly.
Make yourself available to help your children with homework and to study. Remember to ask your children each day what they are studying in school. Show your children that you are interested in their academic experience. Being involved in their education, will help them to achieve better grades. If you are actively involved, you will also know when there is a problem at their school, with a teacher or with the curriculum that needs to be addressed.
Hire a tutor for your children if you think they need some one on one assistance with one or more of their courses. This will help to offset any difficulties your child is having as a result of the larger classrooms associated with public schools. Hiring a tutor will help to make certain that your child is not lost in the crowd. There might even be resources through your school district for free or low cost tutoring services.
Encourage your children to participate in one or more extracurricular activities. When it comes time for your child to apply for college, the colleges will look for students who have been involved in sports and/or other activities at school. Being an active participant in activities throughout your child’s school career, can help them to compete with students applying to college from a private school.
Help your child to select courses that will benefit them when they apply for college. Your children should take Algebra, Trigonometry and perhaps even Calculus if they want to attend college. They should also complete courses in Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Your child should take three or more years of a foreign language.
Ask your child to take the College Preparation Track at their school. This is especially important for students who want to attend top-notch private schools or Ivy league colleges. Your child will not be as well prepared for college as students who attended private schools if they do not complete the college bound curriculum.
If your son or daughter does very well in school, consider asking them to attend advanced courses. Most schools offer Honours classes. In addition, your child can consider taking one or more Advanced Placement courses in high. AP courses allow your child to complete coursework on a college level. Advanced Placement tests are administered at the end of the year. Students who earn high scores on the test will receive college credit for the class.
Some parents might believe that your child is at a disadvantage if they do not attend a private school. This is not the case at all. A child can receive an excellent education if they work hard and study well. You can help your child to get the most out of their public education by being actively involved in their education and frequently involved at their school.
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