Homeschooling vs Private School

If the local public school is not up to your standards of education, you may decide to start looking elsewhere for a place to teach your children. Some people may choose to take their children’s education into their own hands while others may enroll their child in the local private school. Which is right for you? Let’s take at some of the factors which may help inform your decision.

Commitment

Both home-schooling and private schools require a certain type of commitment but they differ depending on the school itself. Home-schooling requires you as the parent to give up your free time or even a career so you are able to teach plus more. Meanwhile, private schools can cost thousands of dollars per term and this only increases if you are putting multiple children through the education system.

Small Class Size

Children in both private schools and a home-schooling environment both benefit from small class sizes. To see an example of this, there’s The Children’s University who is a private school in Arlington that prides itself on keeping class sizes small, so all its children are able to receive the attention they need.

Home-schooling also offers a small class-size to the children in its system too. Even if your child is part of a group of other home-schooled children in your city, they will still probably be in a smaller class than they would in public school. This allows them to receive more attention and more support from their peers and their teacher.

Varied Activities

A great benefit of private schooling is that they often consider a curriculum which is far more varied than that which is offered by the public system. Children are often placed into science labs at a much younger age (while public school children may not enter a lab until middle school or even later) and there is also more of an emphasis on language.

Meanwhile, home-schooling is frequently child-led. This means that, with the exception of the main skills like mathematics and literacy, it is down to the child to decide what they want to study and where they want to study it. Have you got a child who is interested in flowers? Take them for a walk and ask them to point out as many as they can. If they are interested in space, you can arrange a trip to a local museum for them on a weekday when it is likely to be quieter.

Which is Best for You?

Unfortunately, it is up to you and your child to determine which learning path is best for you. Some children thrive in the traditional learning environment of the private school whereas others might feel better if they are in control of their own education. Speak with your child and get their opinion on what they would like to do; it is their education after all. You will hopefully be able to reach a solution which benefits them as the child and you as the parent.