I took a poll here at Global Citizen- granted a very small and informal poll of about six of my fellow content peers- on who attended private and public school. The results were fairly even, with several of my co-workers having both private and public education in their background. I also fall into that category. I had both private and public education and attended four different schools for primary and public school, half of those public, and the other half private. There are benefits to both types of education and sometimes the differences might not be as big as you think. Education opportunities also vary greatly by location, availability (especially economic), and personal preference.
As a note to our British readers, when I say "public" education, I mean that the schoool is funded 100% by the government, and "private" means funded by fees paid by the individual student's families. (For everyone wondering why I am saying this, the terms are reversed in Britain). Now back to the regularly scheduled content.
The private vs. public education debate is an ongoing one, and it’s important all over the world. Especially as private school companies invest and open schools in developing countries. For example, Gems Education, a private school company with schools in ten countries is expanding operations in Africa. This expansion of private education at the primary and secondary level is controversial because there is concern that the high school fees that accompany these private schools will exacerbate inequality.
Every year, parents choose either public or private schools for their children and it can be a complicated decision. I am going to use my home country, the US, as an example to uncover a few myths about private and public education. So here are the seven myths about public and private education that might help you choose which education would be the best fit for you or your children.
1. Private education is more expensive–TRUE
According to the National Center for Education, private education at the primary level in the US costs an average $7,770 USD and $13,000 USD for secondary (high school). Cost of private education also varies by type of school, whether it’s religious or not, location, and other factors. Private education is often more expensive because of tuition fees, but there are hidden fees in public education too.
Access to public education in the US is free, meaning there are no tuition fees, but there are other costs. School supplies being one of them, and today supplies like expensive calculators, on top of notebooks can really add up. Budget cuts in education are the reason schools without funding rely on donations, fundraising, and often fees for students to provide the materials needed for education. Extracurriculars can also have high fees. After school activities often require equipment to be purchased, excluding students that cannot afford to buy things like art supplies or sports equipment.
2. Public education has more diversity–TRUE (sort of)
This is a controversial one. One, because diversity depends greatly on location--and two, because it’s hard to find real transparency in measuring diversity. If there is little racial and socioeconomic diversity in an area there is likely to be little diversity in public education.
But I think public schools are generally more diverse. This one is my opinion. I experienced more beliefs and socioeconomic backgrounds in my public school education. I think private schools advertise diversity but often admit students with similar beliefs, or do not provide support for students of different backgrounds.
Diversity in both public and private education is important. Exposure to different cultures fosters personal growth and is an essential part of a quality education. I believe more diversity in education can help decrease inequality too.
3. Private education has more opportunities–FALSE
There are some pretty awesome and unique schools in the public education system in the US. In New York, there’s a public school called the New York Harbor School, located on an island between Brooklyn and Manhattan that focuses education on marine science and marine technology.
More public schools, mostly charter schools (which is a whole conversation for another time), are integrating computer coding and placing value on computer technology. Other public charter schools like the Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School focus on culture and language fluency.
While these programs offer a lot more options without the added tuition cost of private school, charter schools use a lottery systems for admittance and getting into one of these schools is hard. So there are alternative opportunities within public education but access is limited.
4. Public education has bigger class size–TRUE
Private schools account for only 10 percent of students in primary and secondary education in the US. Which means there are a lot more kids in public schools.
There are two ways to compare the amount of students to teachers: by class size and student to teacher ratio. However, student to teacher ratio can be a little misleading because the ratio includes all staff. So while the average student to teacher ratios for public schools in the US are 16:1, average class size is 24 students per classroom.
Private schools do have lower student to teacher ratios (12:1) and an average class size of 15.4 which is quite a bit smaller than public schools. I think this is one of the biggest benefits of private schools when comparing the two.
A student teacher ratio that is too high makes for an overwhelming classroom. The benefits of reducing class size include decreased dropout rates, better test scores, higher graduation rates, especially for children with learning disabilities.
Public schools recognize the importance of smaller class size though. Schools in Washington state pledged to reduce class size to 17 students per class by 2017. I hope more public schools acknowledge the importance of smaller class size and make reducing overcrowded classrooms a priority.
5. Public education is accessible to everyone–FALSE
There are still many countries around the world where education is not available at all. Check out the six barriers that are limiting education opportunities for children. Education should be free and available to every child, but there are 58 million children that cannot access the education they deserve. While most of these children are in developing countries, hunger and poverty in the US limit access to education as well.
6. Private education has a more flexible curriculum–TRUE (sort of)
Private education is not held to the same standards as public education. Private schools are not required by the state and federal government to do as many tests as public school, which does allow for more time in education curriculum. But.... public school reform can change curriculums.
For example, research shows that teenagers need more sleep than adults and younger children. As a former 15 year old that loved sleeping 10+ hours I can support that claim. Research on sleep and school performance led to some high schools in the US changing school hours to better accommodate schedules for students. Students were able to get more sleep and they performed better in school too.
Change in education policy is possible and it doesn’t always require tests and research to figure out. Investing in quality education worldwide is one example.
7. Public education is underfunded–FALSE (sort of)
Textbooks are old and falling apart. Teachers are underpaid. Extracurricular programs are cut. Volunteers help but schools need trained specialists for many provided services. Funding is not distributed equally. You've probably heard all of these before, and a lot of them hold true for many public school in the US. US schools appear underfunded but the US spends over 800 billion on public education. The US spends more than any other country on education, but has much lower performance. So maybe allocation of funds are more the issue rather than the overall amount the US spends.
I went to public primary school and I remember the library, science class, and even my fourth grade math class were run by parent volunteers. While this is a better option than cutting these classes, paid positions for teachers in all subjects from science and math as well as art and music-which are all too often considered “extracurricular”- will help improve education. Also, fairly allocating resources so that schools that are not underfunded is key too.
Because every school is different, and more research on education is needed, these true or false nature of these myths varies greatly depending on location. The availability of charter schools, and access to private education is not the same for everyone. Investing in education especially public education for underfunded schools can provide higher quality education and more opportunities to all children.
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