Private schools for kids, or invest the cash for the kids?

What are your levers to seriously consider sending them to private school?

There's always a risk that they'll become complacent if they know there is a pot of mullah for them to fall back on. The trick would be not to tell them and only give it to them when the time is right.

 

Levers? Not sure I understand the meaning intended, but financial capability and an enhanced scholastic experience are two drivers.

A clandestine pot of gold .... nice idea!

 

Mr D, dare I ask which path you took?

 

No
My kids have been to private schools, when the 3rd one started and fees went to $45,000 per year I could no longer justify it, pulled them out and put them into a public school.
It was more relaxed, no strict uniform rules or strict behaviour rules and kids were much happier.
Classes went from 14 in private school to 30 in public school but it was not worth $45,000 for smaller class sizes.

My 2 older ones are now in a Steiner high school which is private but that's because we believe in that kind of education above conventional schooling ... and there are no uniforms in Steiner schools. I can't stand uniforms - bad idea for busy parents who have better things to do than worry if that one item of clothing is clean and ready for Monday. ..... so glad we ended that dilemma!!!

 

I would steer kids away from private schools for sociological reasons.

 

Terry, do you mind expanding a little on that point?

 

I presume because they are like living in a bubble?

 

The last thing you'd want is that they rub shoulders with the great uwashed masses.

Seriously though, selective schools are possibly just as bad or worse. You have selected kids to go to a school purely on ability - kids who attend Saturday school or after school coaching not necessarily natural ability but pushed to their limits. These schools tend to be very ethno-centric, does that sound more like a sociological experiment than teaching a bunch of 'rich' kids of mixed ability?

 

@Terry_w , I am interested to hear your reasoning if you don't mind. Cheers, Greg

 

Funny you asked. The missus and I are debating this decision right this moment. Our boy sat a test about 1 month ago, and got selected to attend the private school (he's pretty bummed a few of his mates also sat the test but didn't get in). So now we have the honour paying $30k++ per year to attend this private school!

Missus is leaning towards waiting a couple of years until high school. I'm thinking bugger it, we can afford it, so put him in.

I spoke to one of my old friends whose kid goes there. The year 5 excursion this year is to spend 2 weeks at the NASA school. Pretty cool.... But.... Kaching!!!

 

Have you had to make a decision Greg?

 

That's a pretty Penny for yr 5.

You'll see a world of difference.

 

Private schools segregate the rich from the poor, the Jews from the Muslims, the boys from the girls etc they promote a us v them thinking.

 

& that's not a good thing?

 

This is a quandary.

While I love the idea of equality, if we're realistic, I think we have to acknowledge that a large part of the planet operates on the expectation that not everyone is treated the same way (whether we like/agree with it or not).

I don't want to encourage my daughter to be a snob because she's been privileged enough to attend a private school, but I also don't want to deny her the chance to access better resources and different opportunities and perspectives that come from being educated in a single-sex private school.

It's a tricky choice.

 

@mrdobalina , decision time is on me now, as my twins were just provided offers by the private school following the interview process. I have until this Friday to decide, hence it was timely to revisit this thread.

I sense you'll bite the bullet and go with the private school?

Regards
Greg

 

@Scott No Mates , I sense you're a fan of private schooling?

 

I think you can do both. That 30k could be spent on any number of extra-curricular activities or sports/hobbies that they're interested in (for many of these, you'd need to pay extra on top of the fees at private school anyway). They can do privately run overseas exchange programs. The money can cover tutoring for any subjects they need assistance with. It can be used for family holidays to different countries. They can learn a language and many other things - and still leave you with lots of change.

I can maybe understand private schooling if you live in an area where the public schools have lots of issues but given that this is a property investing forum, I'm presuming most people live in areas with access to reasonable public schools.

Many prestigious uni courses like law and medicine are now heavily graduate based meaning that high ATAR scores, one of the main 'benefits' promoted in private school marketing, are now increasingly irrelevant.

 

OMG which school is that?

My brother's child started at All Saints this year in year 6 after getting a scholarship and has said it's leaps and bounds different to the govt school he was at in terms of teaching, ethos and amenities. He now has an hour of homework a night whereas his old school was about 20mins tops. It's a $20k a year school but he was pleasantly surprised as the wide range of demographic there. They are one of the 'have nots' and are on an 80% scholarship but he has settled in fine even though there was only 3 new kids this year.

I think it's a good compromise to do govt primary and then private high but even changing at year 5 or 6 is not a bad thing if you can afford it.

I don't like elitist single gender schools where it's very spoon fed and la di da but it seems All Saints is still not too far from the school that my brother and I attended in the 80s/90s. It is our alma mater but back then it was just a middle class school and now it is quite a bit more expensive.

My kids are previously discussed go to a $5k school and I'm happy with them to still see quite a wide slice of life. My eldest just finished last year and got a great TER - he's been there since Kinder and has made some great friends for life. Not old boys club friends but real friends who you can call drunk at 1am and be rescued

I would rather spend money on school so that my kids can make their own way in life and be self sufficient than save up that money and give it to them. Here's money = we couldn't trust you to make your own way in life so we saved up for you. They won't value that money as they haven't earnt it nor will they know what to do with it if it's just handed to them.

I'm all for giving them a leg up a some stage for a certain reason - perhaps help out with a house deposit but it won't be a done deal that is spoken about or mentioned to them. They need to work hard then it will come as a surprise bonus.

 

I dislike inequality. Full stop. But having said that, some public schools do better than others because of socioeconomic reasons. I went to public schooling.... Went to a primary school in an underachieving area (that school is still very underachieving... Ranked 300+ in NSW), and went to high school in a better area. I never had coaching for selective school tests but if I had, I would have gotten in... I never sat a practise selective school paper, never had any sort of primary or high school coaching. My final year of primary school was wasted because it was a composite year 5/6 class... With the 5 best year 6 students entertaining themselves the whole year. Yep, I was in that class.... I had plenty of siblings, a 2 year old younger sister... Parents didn't speak up. So I was stuck in that class in that school.

Overall though, I think what would have helped me was a careers councillor or a teacher/session to help me pick the right Uni course and then high school subjects to do while in year 10. Because I do have talents... But back in year 10, 11, 12 you really don't know about careers. My parents weren't helpful for that.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/10/...bid=EDUAprilINTLSale&ad-keywords=EDUAprilINTL