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The Importance of Class Size

Thursday July 29, 2010

Small class size is something I know works from a teaching point of view. And the difference between a class of 15 and 25 students is like night and day. I pretty much knew where everybody was when I had a class of 15. I could see all the eyes. I could assess what each child was learning and doing. That's one of the reasons I have been such a strong advocate of private education. The small class size.

David Leonhardt's article in the New York Times, The Case for $320,000 Kindergarten Teachers, reports on a recently released study which seems to prove the importance of early education. That's interesting. But it was this paragraph which caught my eye:

"Class size -- which was the impetus of Project Star -- evidently played some role. Classes with 13 to 17 students did better than classes with 22 to 25. Peers also seem to matter. In classes with a somewhat higher average socioeconomic status, all the students tended to do a little better."

Small classes allow more individual attention and more interaction with teachers and students. Discipline issues tend to disappear. Children don't slip through the cracks the way they do in the larger class settings.

What do you think? Is kindergarten more important than high school? Do class sizes matter? Leave a comment here or post in the Private Schools Forum.

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Discovering Cristo Rey Schools

Wednesday July 28, 2010

What are Cristo Rey Schools? Cristo Rey schools are an alliance of generous benefactors with an organization which is a force for good and change. Cristo Rey schools take urban kids who are at risk and plant their feet on solid ground both academically and emotionally. It's a young organization too. Founded in 2001.

The Cristo Rey story will inspire you and restore your belief in the intrinsic generosity and compassion of the American people.

Private schools offer something for everybody. Whatever your requirements are, you can almost always find a school to meet your needs.

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The New Career Path for Headmasters

Friday July 23, 2010

The Emperor's Club told the story of a private school teacher's life back in the 1960s.  Mr. Hundert has waited patiently his whole career waiting to be appointed head of school. Unfortunately he doesn't get the job. Frankly in my opinion Mr. Hundert was probably lucky.

Read the story reported by Jenny Anderson in the New York Times to understand why I say that the 21st century headmaster has to be equal parts CEO, scholar, fundraiser extraordinaire and leader of his or her school community. The New Career Path for Headmasters lists several attributes which I feel the 21st century headmaster must have in order to be successful.

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New York Military Academy to Remain Open

Tuesday July 20, 2010

New York Military Academy was due to close it doors in June 2010 as we reported a few months ago. Apparently the trustees were able to secure the necessary funding to keep the school open for another year, according to a story in the Cornwall On Hudson blog.

Now the question will be surely asked by many parents: "Should I send my son to a school which almost closed?" If New York Military Academy offers what your child needs and you like the school and staff, then why not? What matters most is to get the fit right. Do that and you will have a happy child.

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What About a Gap Year?

Monday July 19, 2010

"Mom, I don't think I want to go to college right after graduation. I want a year off."  Before you press the panic button, calm down. He may have a point. Kids are different these days.  When you went to high school, you couldn't wait to graduate, finish with college and get a job. But it's not the same in 2010.

Gap year programs have proliferated over the years. And the gap year is a quite common practice in Europe, for example. Organizations like Interim Programs can help you focus on the issues and answer the questions you may have. Then you can sit down and discuss the gap year idea sensibly and logically. Good luck!

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Discovering Junior Boarding Schools

Thursday July 15, 2010

The British have no qualms about sending their children off to boarding school at the very young age of eight. We, on the other hand, agonize about sending our high school age children off to boarding school. (Will they be ready to leave home?)

As a result we do not have a plethora of junior boarding schools, which typically take children from 6th grade through 8th grade. Junior boarding schools pride themselves on having a really warm, family atmosphere. Your little darling will be surrounded with love, attention and supervision as he learns to do all sorts of things you never dreamed he'd be able to do on his own.

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Schools Still Have Places

Monday July 12, 2010

If you think you are too late to find a place for your child for fall 2010, don't be discouraged. Yes, the highly selective, very competitive schools are most certainly full. But hundreds of other wonderful schools still have a place or two.

I live in Raleigh, North Carolina, and I just recently heard some announcements on my local NPR and classical music radio stations encouraging parents to apply to one private school or another.

But aren't the application deadlines sometime in January? Normally they are. But if the school doesn't fill all its places or has some last minute vacancies, it has to find applicants. And fast.

Go to Schools Currently Considering Applicants for Fall 2010. This is on the SSAT site and will give you an idea of some of the possibilities. Don't delay. Call a couple of these schools today and explore the possibilities.

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Discovering Carden Schools

Friday July 9, 2010

Mae Carden was an educator who believed in educating the whole child.  She established her first school in New York City in the 1930s. Carden schools offer an alternative approach to education. For example, classes in a Carden school are organized in forms according to students' skill levels. Foreign languages are introduced as early as kindergarten. Public speaking is another integral feature of a Carden education.

The Carden Educational Foundation keeps Mae Carden's torch burning brightly. Carden schools are independently owned and operated. While California seems to be home to the most Carden schools, you will find them in several other states as well as outside the United States.

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I Couldn't Cheat on My Exams

Tuesday July 6, 2010

I studied Latin and Ancient Greek at McGill. So, when I took my final exams, I sat in the Curry Gymnasium with hundreds of other classmates. Fortunately, or unfortunately for me, I guess, the proctor handed me a battered old book of Thucydides, an answer book, some scrap paper and the exam paper itself. Its message was simple: "Translate page 43 line 5 through page 45 line 10" or something like that. At this point it is a blur. I remember being allowed to use a Greek dictionary.

As I read about the cheating woes facing professors and proctors at the University of Central Florida, and I suppose hundreds of other colleges, I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. When I taught English, I insisted that my students write. And write. And write. It's difficult to cheat when you have to write down your own thoughts spontaneously, as opposed to regurgitating answers on a quiz or selecting answers on a multiple guess, er, choice, exam.

Read Cheating 101 for some insight into why students feel they must cheat. Then discuss cheating with your children. It's something which they face frequently. Let them know where you stand.

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Discovering the Oldest Schools

Sunday July 4, 2010

Today is July 4th. This year we celebrate 234 years of our nation's independence. But did you know that there are private schools which predate the birth of our nation? Actually there are thirty schools which were founded in the 1700s. Seventeen schools were established before July 4, 1776, and four of those were founded in the 1600s.

Happy Independence Day!

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