What should I do if I'm being forced to go to a Christian School?

[LastPoet]

If she forces you, don't put up a fight. Just go. It's gonna fucking suck but it could be a much better education than you would get at a public school.

I can reckon one can get a better education in private schools, providing the parents have money for that. I liked public school. A big dude knocked my glasses off, so I knocked a couple of his teeth. Dad had to pay the guys teeth. He never punished me for that.

[Iroscato]

Roll with it, get a decent education, excel in your grades, get a good job for yourself, and vow to never use your mother's tactics if you ever become a parent.

Amen!

Erm, I mean, yes.

[GUBU]

If she forces you, don't put up a fight. Just go. It's gonna fucking suck but it could be a much better education than you would get at a public school.

I  can reckon one can get a better education in private schools, providing the parents have money for that. I liked public school. A big dude knocked my glasses off, so I knocked a couple of his teeth. Dad had to pay the guys teeth. He never punished me for that.

Actually, in the UK anyway, numerous studies have indicated that when adjusted for income disparities between private and state school students (i.e. you're essentially removing the advantage of being able to afford private tuition outside of school hours), state school students do better. And this trend continues into university.

Of course what's the current UK government's response to this. Why yes, it is to dismantle the state schooling system and hand it over to chain companies who will look to maximise profits (i.e. minimise the spend on education while creaming the difference between the spend and what they're given as "profit").

[Cecelia]

You'll probably have to learn to accept it, unfortunately.  She can force you to go to whatever school she wants, no matter how much you might hate it.  You can tell her your preferences (if you do, then you probably want to do it respectfully) but you can't really do much else.  She can't however force you to believe something you don't.  Do your best in school, and when you turn eighteen find a way to get out.  

The teachers are paid better, so they are better at their craft by and large.

Not really.  They're neither paid better, nor are they better at their craft by and large.  In fact far fewer private school teachers have masters degrees compared to public school teachers.  The idea that private schools do better is one that's popular, but there's many contributing factors to how well someone does in school.  Including parental involvement, which is the biggest advantage that a private school has.  Of course another advantage private schools have in their arsenal is the fact that they can kick students out for any reason they wish.  While public schools are forced to teach everyone, including the private school cast-outs.  Expulsion from a public school is far more difficult. 

As a public school teacher myself, I'm well aware of the challenges public school teachers face when it comes to students.  Class sizes are larger and parents tend to be less involved.  But I don't think that by any means makes private school teachers any better.  In fact as a parent I would never send my child to a private school.  I think public schools deserve more credit than they often get.  Perhaps I'm just biased.  I think that while we do need to continue improving our education system (this will always be true btw), I don't think it's nearly as bad as people paint it out to be. 

I'm not a fan of private schools.  I understand why people may want to send their children there.  I don't agree, however.  And I think our public school teachers are much better than most people are willing to give them credit for.

[SteelCurtain]

To be clear, Cecelia, I was not disparaging public school teachers.

My little brother and his wife are public school teachers, and they are fantastic ones. Through them I've met a lot of other fantastic teachers as well.

My point is that in a school system that rates very poorly on the national level, he is more likely to encounter a better education opportunity in a private school.

[Cecelia]

You were however saying that Private School teachers were 'by and large better at their craft'. I very much disagree.

And I disagree that private schools are a better educational opportunity. When accounting for demographics, it's been shown that public schools actually outperform private schools. I know it's an accepted truth that our public schools are 'failing', but they really aren't. Our nations schools really aren't poor. Drop out rates are going down, graduation rates are going up, the percentage of people attending college is going up, test scores are going up. If there is a failing, it's in addressing childhood poverty. It's an issue we continue to ignore in favor of calling for reforms (often by people who stand to profit off of these reforms, and then reported on by news stations that are affiliated with those same people.) Do we need to make improvements? I won't deny that we do. But that's always going to be the case. It certainly doesn't mean that our schools are failing or are poor.

[Losty]

In my experience private schools are much better than public schools. Their teachers are less likely to be over worked and their courses are more likely to meet higher standards than public schools

[The Valkyrie]

Spree kill.

[Losty]

It's not to disparage public school teachers. It's just the way it is. My school has 500 kids and the same number of teachers as the private school with only less than 200.

[Cato]

Cecelia,

I was educated in public schools, as were my children. By and large I would agree with your quality assessment, even though I despise the 'parental involvement' cop out. Perhaps fodder for a later discussion.

What you really said that I take issue with is the mention of how difficult expulsion is in public schools. The reason this bothers me is the irony when I consider how difficult it is to get rid of misbehaving teachers, let alone those that are underperforming.