User:Kiflae/sandbox

Name

Instructor

Course

Date

Public versus Private Schools

Whether public schools are better than private ones, or the vice versa, is a common concern for parents with school-going children. Often, parents find themselves in the dilemma of making an appropriate decision and choice regarding their children’s school. Appreciably, the two types of schools differ significantly from multiple dimensions much as the focus is common; offering quality education. An irrefutable observation is that many people are biased in opinions because of limited exposure and knowledge of what happens in both types of institutes. A critical review of their fundamental differences and similarities shows that both have unique advantages although whatever public schools offer is available in the private ones although at a relatively higher cost and quality guarantee.

The bottom line of the discrepancy between private and public institutions goes down to the tuition and other charges. Parents with children in public schools have a better experience because these institutions cannot charge tuition fees as they please since they are funded through local, state, and federal taxes (Duine Par. 3). Unfortunately, public schools operate under sophisticated systems influenced by political shortfalls and can even be underfunded. By virtue of being government funded, public schools are bound to rules and regulations that require them to follow certain procedures. Contrary, private schools must generate their funding from tuition fees, fundraisers, and other avenues, which translates to high education expenses yet we all contribute towards public schools’ funding.

Other than the differences related to the amount of tuition fees and sources of funding for private and public schools, the two differ in admission procedures and even the student population. According to government regulations, public schools must enroll all students as long as they meet government conditions, and regardless of their academic abilities, religious creeds, or other factors (Wolf 4). Public schools, however, enroll selectively and may deny admission based on academic abilities or special needs requirements. Often, these schools seek to admit highly capable candidates to maintain the institution’s image of an academically exemplary institution. The school population and class size is comparatively larger in public schools compared to private schools, which influences the education standards to the detriment in public institutions (Wolf 5).

There exists a discrepancy between the curriculum development in public and private schools. While public schools must adhere to state or federal guidelines on specific procedures and standards for curriculum development, private schools have the freedom and room to choose a curriculum and assessment model that they consider as the most suitable (Duine Par. 4). The freedom to design independent curriculum and assessment approaches is often used by private institutions to develop and implement the most effective and reliable approaches, which results in higher standards and outcomes for the students. With financial independence and freedom from government interference, private institutions are in a better position to customize the curricula in accordance with the student’s needs, availability of resources, and other factors.

In summary, both public and private schools have certain unique benefits that must be evaluated before sending a child to any of them. While public institutions tend to operate at the minimum standards, it is undeniable that private schools go a step further to deliver the best possible, mainly because they are in competition for business. A comparison between the two has revealed that private schools are lesser subjects to government regulations. They have smaller class sizes and tend to admit academically talented students who can help to keep the school at the top. The only major disadvantage, which makes public schools seem better, is the large amounts of tuition and other costs. Parents who want the best education for their kids, therefore, have private schools as the choice as long as they are ready to pay the extra coin.

Works Cited

Duine, Chris. "Private versus public." 19 May 2016. Great Schools. Web. 21 September 2016. < http://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/private-vs-public-schools/ >.

Wolf, Patrick J. "Comparing Public Schools to Private." 12 July 2015. Education Net. Web. 20 September 2016. < http://educationnext.org/comparing-public-schools-private/ >.