Public Schools vs. Private Schools Essay

In 2014, 49.8 million children attended public schools; 4.5 million children attended private schools, with 2 million in Catholic schools according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. A Catholic school is a private school or education ministry of the Catholic Church. On the other hand a public school is a school funded by public funds and taxes. A Catholic education includes religious study combined with mainstream academics. A public education is just a mainstream education with no religious study added into the curriculum. Catholic schools and public schools are different and alike in many ways because of how they run and work, the many pros and cons of both, and the similarities between the two.

Linda Nathan states public school systems are open to the general public whereas private schools may select their students (Koonce, 2015).

The American public education system was founded on the radical notion that all members of society should have equal access to education. Also crucial was the notion that a basic common education was essential for a true democracy. This revolutionary system is now in indisputable trouble. Many worry about America’s ability to compete with foreign countries while others address the growing dichotomy between the quality of education in different economic areas. Recent rural shootings have only exasperated the problem, and caused many parents to entirely abandon the public system for a private alternative.

There are three main types of schools that students currently attend. The most prevalent school is the public school system. Funded by the government through taxes, this school usually has higher class sizes. The second is private schools which can have religious affiliations, and often do. However, that is not to say that all private schools have religious affiliations. To attend one of these schools, more often than not, the parents and students must have a higher socioeconomic status than most.

Private schools are schools that are privately owned, they are owned by personal organizations and are funded through tuition and donations. A number of the most notable non-public schools or universities within the U.S. are Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Yale University, and Stanford University. Private schools are eligible for enfranchisement from the government, however some schools don't have enfranchisement, and therefore the degrees they provide aren't recognized formally. The private schools might not lawfully discriminate when admitting students, however they need their own preferences in admission policies. Whereas Public schools are schools that are supported by the government. they're also operated by the State like the University of North Carolina. In the U.S. there are several schools in every state and a minimum of one public university. Private colleges tend to be the more prestigious colleges in the US. A list of the top 25 most expensive private colleges was made by the US Department of Education in 2011; they had Sarah Lawrence College topping the list off at $41,968 for tuition alone. There was 21 that hit the $40,000 mark. The average family household income is $51,939. Obviously, all families aren't going to send their kids to expensive private colleges, but even public 4-year colleges for in state students comes in at an average $9,410 for yearly tuition and fees. So for a family making average yearly income they are spending anywhere from 18% to 25% of the income in one year for their student to attend college. Student loans are always an option, although the trend continues. An individual goes to college and depending on their performance, they get a good job and make enough to support a family (average income) and then eventually sends their kids to college if that's the plan. In other words, you will

In the United States, getting an education is very important. Children spend thirteen years of their life learning English, history, math, science, and various other subjects so that they may one day be a productive college student or a working class citizen. In fact, “There are 33,619 private schools in the United States, serving 5.4 million PK-12 students. Private schools account for 25 percent of the nation’s schools and enroll 10 percent of all PK-12 students” (“Council for American Private Education”). Parents face many issues when deciding which school is right for their child. However, the factors that determine their choice of a private or public school are often the results of various essentials that closely mirror the parent’s ideology in regards to education. Parents should send their children to a private school because private schools have smaller class sizes, the curriculum is more challenging, and the school environment is much safer than public schools.

The issue of whether private education is better than public has been debated for many years. Strong advocates of public education feel that children grow and progress better in a mixed environment. Although most private educational institutions do not harbor racial discrimination or discrimination against sexes, they do not have certain classifications that may not suit the masses. For example, a large number of private schools are religious based. Additionally, private school education is not paid for by the state, thus children who attend these facilities generally come from a financially stable background. The danger in this environment is that student

In his new budget, President Obama proposed to substantially increase federal spending to improve public schools. Yet steady spending increases of the last three decades resulted in little change in the poor achievement of students that worries many citizens. Much research, however, shows that what works well is parental choice among schools fairly competing for students as in the case of traditional, tuition-based private schools. Rigorous studies comparing students randomly selected or not to oversubscribed private and charter schools as well as large, statistically controlled surveys show that these schools excel in achievement and parental satisfaction.

     I have examined and compared public versus private education. Also, this collection of information should help you understand differences between public and private schools. Aspects of equality and achievement in private and public education will be dissected and evaluated.

Thesis: Private school students are more likely to have a better viewpoint in learning, a firm stance in education, and will be more successful in colleges than of public school students.

Raising a kid cannot possibly be an easy task. With the responsibility of raising a child, there comes a point in every parent/guardian’s life that they much choose between the two forms of schooling offered, public or private. This can be a challenging task for parents, or on the contrary a very simple task. All parents have their own thought process on why one is better than the other but by far public school has the most to offer over private school. While choosing between the two, parents may be faced with economical, physical, religious barriers that

As time has gone by, Americans have increasingly paid more attention to the schooling process, trying harder all the time to get the best education possible for their children. As a result, more parents are turning from the public school systems to the private schools. This happens for several reasons. First, students that graduate from private schools tend to be better prepared for college. Second, private schools open up many opportunities to succeed in the business world. Last, the private schools allow the parents and the student to decide which school they feel will give the student the best education possible. Overall, private schools offer a better education for high school students than do public schools.

One difference between a public and private university is how they are funded (tuition). Private universities don’t receive funds from state legislatures because they rely on tuition and private contributions. While public influx if money is why public university.

One of the most important distinctions between public and private schools is the cost. The question regularly asked is, “Can I afford to send my child to private school?” Public schools are funded by tax dollars, whereas private schools demand tuition from their students. With private schools able to charge for tuition, and many charge for textbooks and materials, some offer scholarships for students to help with what is commonly a great final cost.  Public schools are prohibited from charging for tuition, or other fees that could incur, such as: transportation, materials, and textbooks. Most of the time if public schools need more money for education, taxes are raised. Uniforms are no longer just a private school requirement as many public schools have started to enforce this as well. Whichever education system a parent chooses there will always be a cost, it is just the difference in price that has parents wondering is it worth it.

Parents have a growing number of options available these days when deciding where to send their children to school. Public and homeschool are two of the most popular choices, and each one has benefits that are as unique as the children in attendance. Public school is free, homeschool has added costs; public school has more peer pressure, homeschool typically has less. When deciding which option to choose, parents should do their research in order to make an informed decision. While the reasons parents have when deciding where to send their children to school range anywhere from cost to religious, one thing remains constant—they want the best education for their kids.