About Private Schools

"Honey! They want me to run the Berlin office. It's a great promotion. They want us there in two months." After congratulating your wife on her thrilling new assignment, reality sets in as you wonder what you will do about your children's education. Will they be able to attend a school with classes taught in English? Will the curriculum follow American standards or foreign ones?

Relax. Your wife's overseas assignment has many perks, one of which is that her employer will pay for your children's educational expenses at a private school while you are abroad. Your children will be taught in English to international standards. Of course, if you prefer to have them attend schools where they will be taught in a foreign language, that will be an option. Most expats keep things simple and have their children attend international schools with classes mostly in English. Let's explore what's involved in educating your children overseas.

International Schools

You can find international schools in almost every major city outside the United States. International schools offer instruction in English and the usual kind of college preparatory curriculum you would expect to find in an American high school, public or private. International schools offer Advanced Placement courses and International Baccalaureate programs.

This video offers us a glimpse of what the Berlin Brandenburg International School offers.

You will find so-called American schools in many major cities with many Americans. These schools will make your children feel like they have never

This article has been updated to reflect 2026 data and recent developments.

This table will help you see at a glance how private schools compare with public schools. Use it to explore issues and help answer questions about private schools. A list of resources with supporting data and information is given at the end of the table.

This article has been updated to reflect 2026 data and recent developments.

Joseph Gauld is a distinguished educator who founded Hyde School in 1966. He very kindly agreed to answer some questions about Hyde School and his educational philosophy. The Editor.

As of 2026, Hyde School remains a coeducational, college-preparatory boarding school in Bath, Maine, serving grades 9-12. The school continues to center its program on character development and the five words discussed by Gauld: Courage, Integrity, Leadership, Curiosity, and Concern.

1. Tell us a bit about the crisis of conscience that you had back in 1966. This is how the concept of Hyde School was shaped, correct?

As a director of admissions who taught calculus and coached football in 1962, I had a crisis of conscience when I realized I was part of a competitive educational system valuing certain abilities that blocked the full development of the unique potential of students.

On the other side of the spectrum, there was another student in the same class who was the classic “plugger.” Although he had considerable difficulty with the material, he embodied all of the qualities and virtues I hoped that schools would espouse: curiosity, strong work ethic, concern for others, honesty, etc. I praised his effort, yet ultimately, and reluctantly, gave him the lowest grade in the class.

This example represented what was wrong with our educational system, which values achievement, ability,

Gossip Girl, NYC Prep, and Private Schools: What Still Rings True in 2026

Two television series about private schools have received a certain amount of buzz recently. Gossip Girl aired on CW. NYC Prep is on Bravo.

While both shows originally aired more than a decade ago, they continue to shape public perception of private school life. In 2026, that influence persists through streaming platforms and social media, where clips and themes from both series regularly resurface. For families beginning their school search, it is worth separating entertainment from reality.

Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl is based on the novels of Cecily von Ziegesar. Ms. von Ziegsar herself is a graduate of The Nightingale-Bamford School, a Manhattan girls' school. The Gossip Girl series made it to the best-seller lists in 2002. It chronicles the lives and exploits of the wealthy teens attending The Constance Billard School for Girls. Gossip Girl premiered on CW in 2007 and has since seen renewed cultural relevance through streaming platforms and the HBO Max reboot released in 2021.

What's to Like

• The cinematography is fabulous. You will have plenty of New York City vistas, shops, and restaurants, as well as those incredible Park Avenue apartments to soak up. HDTV and modern 4K streaming make it a breathtaking experience without a doubt.

• The fact that the show really does not depict what actually goes on in a fine old Manhattan girls' school. That's a good thing. We can only imagine what those poor teachers and administrators

These titles are books that private school teachers and administrators have shared with each other on various lists and groups. One or two are quick reads. Most are pretty meaty. They all deserve a place in your collection. Parents need to read many of these books in order to understand what really goes on in the classroom.

Adios, Barbie: Young Women Write About Body Image and Identity (Live Girls)

By Ophira Edut (Editor), Rebecca Walker ISBN: 1580050166
"In more than 20 candid and humorous essays, a diverse group of women explore how they have chosen to ignore, subvert, or redefine the standard of beauty. These women break down modern culture's feminine ideal and reinvent it for themselves."

After Long Silence

By Helen Fremont. ISBN: 0385333706
"In her mid-30s Helen Fremont discovered that, although she had been raised in the Midwest as a Catholic, she was, in fact, the daughter of Polish Jews whose families had been exterminated in the Holocaust."

The Age of American Unreason

By Susan Jacoby ISBN: 9780375423741
"A scathing, witty indictment of American modern-day culture examines the current disdain for logic and evidence fostered by the mass media, religious fundamentalism, poor public education, a lack of fair-minded intellectuals, and a lazy, credulous public, condemning our addiction to infotainment, from TV to the Web, and assessing its repercussions for the country as a whole."

A Separate Peace

by John Knowles ISBN: 0743253973
"At a New England boarding school during World War II, a group of boys discovers the depths of