Rating Schools

I understand that many schools are ranked by standardized test results but if parents were given the go ahead by society, they would consider other variables. Many feel pressured to choose a school based on rank whether a school of the arts or honors. What I ask instead is to listen to both your child and yourself.

One of the most important choices a parent will make is to choose a teaching method. This may be easy for some parents but others may be curious or new to multiple teaching methods (or styles). This goes beyond formal or non-formal. Most public schools today use a state wide method, usually a form of Rote learning/liberal arts with text books, and standardized tests. There are exceptions. The City of Buffalo, NY has a public Montessori Elementary school. Montessori would fall under the progressive teaching methods. Some public school districts have magnet high schools such as a school of the arts, honors or technology. But most public school systems do not have teaching method choice at the elementary level. Whereas, charter and private schools could be traditional, liberal arts, progressive or even technology or art based. There are many classifications. I have a tendency to group them as Main Stream, Classical/liberal Arts and Magnet/Progressive. Examples of magnet schools in Buffalo, NY would be The school of the Performing arts, City Honors, or Hutchinson Technical school.

What I found was that in order to choose a school, I had to choose a teaching method (Main Stream, classical/liberal Arts and progressive), which depended on several smaller desires. So, I made a list of all the details I wanted from class size to a preference of using all natural cleaning products. I then rewrote the list putting the items I refused to go without at the top and then the ones I would be flexible on at the bottom. Remember items like a second language can be had by using a tutor.

Factors that could lead you to choose a school could be class size, teacher quality, teach method and the amount of free time or study time (depending on the grade). What types of teaching materials were used (books, hands-on, abstract, verbal, computers, TV?)? Were the kids at desks, tables, or allowed to move from task to task? Also, look for condition of learning materials, school resources, activities both in and out of the class room. Do the kids go on field trips and how often? Are the book cost separate? I have heard of parents having to buy the books for their children in public and charter schools not just the privates.

Something that is easy to do is to dream of the school you always wanted to attend. This may not be the best fit for your child though. In fact, my brother has two lower school age children. The eldest, step child, is clearly leaning towards the arts and dance while the younger one will most likely go the way of a Non-Arts School. He was of the mind set that to be fair to all children they should all get the same education. But that would not really be fair to them, would it? A child with artistic & dance skills may not be happy in say a honors school, sitting in 8 classes of scholastic learning Latin, calculus, AP English, etc. Just as an honors student may not be comfortable in a dance leotard for ballet, modern dance and tap classes for most of the school day. He got the point.


So, once you have your list and you have thought about what your child's temperament and interests are you will start to see a natural selection happen. I knew from the beginning I wanted a progressive teaching method as a first choice and a classical/liberal arts as a second. Though, I originally was leaning towards a public gifted and talented (G&T) program near my home. Some parents may start with choosing public or private first then seeing which teaching methods were available.

This is how knowing your child and your wants for your child can automatically whittle your choices down to a short list of schools.

....May the school lotto be forgiving....

The Recession Hits The Preschools

I was doing a search for "tuition free preschools" and found this article about Texas preschools. The problem they are running into is that many middle class families make too high of an income to get financial aide and not high enough to afford the tuition.

The other dilemma is that daycare is a tax credit, dollar for dollar, whereas preschool is not tax deductible. So, if you had a choice between essentially free tuition at daycare vs. paying preschool tuition during this recession, the choice...well, there is no choice.

Paying for Preschool a Lesson in Economics

Tours and Applications

Many applications for the following school year become available in September and October but are not due right away. Applications for 2009/2010 school year would be picked up in Fall of 2008.

Example: The Buffalo Public Elementary and Secondary schools, "The choice application process begins each year in mid-September with an application submission deadline date the first week of December."

Many schools allow a tour before submitting an application. This gives you an opportunity to see if the school is a good fit for your child before the application is due. This is not always the case though, double check with the school to see if the tour or application comes first.

Some schools will be hosting open house nights in September or October that are open to potential candidates. Other schools prefer to do small group or one-on-one tour. You can look up the school's website or call the school ahead of time to find out how the the admission process works at each school on your list.

Additionally, some schools require an entrance exam like City Honors (public), Canisius, Nardin, Holy Angels, etc. Other will require an art portfolio or essay. This information will be on the school's website.

Here are some links to school admission pages on their websites. The Performing Arts and City Honor Schools go through the general school application process but require extra information for the admissions.

Public

Buffalo Public Schools General Application Information

City Honors - Public

School of the Performing Arts Elementary and High School - Public


Private

The Park School Of Buffalo - Private, Co-ed

Nichols - High School - Private, Co-ed


Canisius High School - Private, SS Boys

Buffalo Seminary High School - Private, SS Girls

Nardin - High School - Private, SS Girls

Holy Angels - Private, SS Girls


Charter

Tapestry Charter Crammer and High School

Westminster (They are having problems with their website)

Elmwood Charter School

Oracale Charter School

Screening Schools

There are a plethora of attributes that a parent looks for in a school. Some parents have short lists, others rather long ones. Performance is usually near the top of the list for many parents, though it may not take the form in the highest test scoring schools. It may come out in the teaching method or focus on a talent, such as art or athletics. There are many other attributes that parents today have to identify as compared to when our own parents were looking for educational centers for us. Here are some items to consider. It may be helpful to list the ones you and your child find most important for later reference.

Core Focus
Academics
Vocational
Art/Music/Dance/Theater

Teaching Method
Magnate - Academic, Business or Talent focused
Conventional - Standard NYS education in publicly ran schools.
Classical / Liberal Arts - This method is often based on a liberal arts training. Extends from Grecian/Roman era.
Progressive - Montessori, Park, Waldorf, Emilio Reggio, and many more.

Athletics
Intramural - Team and Individual
Competitive - Team and Individual

Arts/Music/Dance/Theater
Art
Music
Dance
Theater

Social and Environmental Awareness
Classes - Social Skills Awareness & Environmental Awareness
Clubs - Social & Environmental
Activities - Social & Environmental - A chance to practice
Does the School practice what it preaches?

Travel and Field Trips
Local
State Wide
National
International

Health
Healthy food - Whole food, Allergens
Indoor physical activity (for winter)
Outdoor physical activity
Indoor Health of space (mold, Chemical odor, estrogen disruptor, carcinogens)
Outdoor Health of grounds (mold, chemical odor or spray, estrogen disruptor, carcinogens)