Specialized Institutions

What Do They Teach?

This article is a companion article to How Do They Teach?, which discusses what goes on in private school classrooms. This article explores the academics and other material that schools teach.

When we parents start thinking about sending our children to private schools, one of the first questions that comes to mind is the teaching content. What exactly will the schools you are looking at teach? Obviously, with thousands of private schools, I cannot address all the permutations and variations. So, I thought it might make sense to look at several educational approaches and methods and see what they teach. That will at least give you a starting point for some in-depth exploration of what they teach at schools you might be interested in.

Toddler

The wee ones won't be at school for very long daily. Apart from that, the teachers will create a rich environment to peak a child's interests. The development of fine and gross motor skills, as well as language and speech skills, are a focus.

Prekindergarten

Most prekindergarten programs focus on preparing their students for kindergarten. Look for the development of motor skills and teach children how to socialize. Also, look for play-based lessons with an emphasis on collaboration, teamwork, and listening. Building on the excitement of discovery is another component in the prekindergarten teacher's portfolio of skills. Children learn by doing. Your child should have lots to do balanced, of course, with snacks and quiet times.

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Let's start our discussion with this question: what if a school you are looking at is not accredited? Does it matter?

Does Accreditation Matter?

There are plenty of fine private schools which are not accredited. But the fact that they are not accredited means that you and I have to do a lot more basic due diligence as we evaluate unaccredited schools. Many of the foundational issues which an accreditation process covers in great detail now become our responsibility to investigate. Think of this investigation just like the inspection which you commission when you put an offer on a house. The house looks perfect. But is its infrastructure perfect? Are there flaws which are not readily apparent? The inspector's report will reveal the good and the items which need fixing. That's basically how accreditation works. The properly executed accreditation process celebrates the school's good points and offers suggestions for fixing what is deficient.

Does Accreditation Matter for College Admissions?

Some experts claim that it doesn't matter much whether or not a high school or school district is accredited. The issue surfaces any time a school or a school district loses its accreditation or is threatened with its loss. The truth of the matter is that accreditation is just one piece of the admissions profile for candidates. I was unable to find any examples of a college rejecting an otherwise well-qualified candidate simply because she had the misfortune to graduate from a school which had lost its accreditation. [Source:

The pendulum has swung once more. This time in favor of the advantages of single-sex education. New research quantifies what many of us have known anecdotally, namely that single-sex education works. Here are a dozen boys' schools' public thoughts about themselves and their missions.

From Avon Old Farms , Avon, Connecticut

As a boys' boarding school, our programs are designed to help young men focus on their development at a time when distractions abound. Although numerous opportunities exist for our students to interact with girls from Miss Porter's, Ethel Walker's, and other nearby schools, boys are free to live and learn in our structured, supportive environment. In an all-boys context, our students embrace scholastic challenges and compete in the athletic arena while feeling safe exploring the arts, experimenting with poetry, expressing school spirit, and just being themselves.

Avon Old Farms offers grades 9-12 and a Postgraduate year. The school serves approximately 500 young men.

From Marquette University High School, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

MUHS has evolved with each passing decade to meet the changing needs of the young men in our community and like our 17th Century namesake, Father Jacques Marquette, students, faculty and staff members share a passion for exploring uncharted territory, whether it’s in a textbook or their own hearts.

Marquette University High School offers grades 9-12. The school

One of the best things about private schools is that there is a school out there somewhere which is just right for your educational objectives, whatever those might be. As you begin to draw a picture of the kind of school which you would like your child to attend, you just might discover that the structured environment and leadership training military schools are well known for is just what you are looking for.

So, what about military schools? When might you consider sending your son or daughter to a military school? Let’s settle a couple of things before we proceed: military schools are not places you send a child with discipline or other issues. They are not reform schools or schools for troubled youth. If a professional such as a psychologist or psychiatrist recommends your child attend a therapeutic school, you will have plenty of options for that purpose. Military schools are genuine institutions of learning with a specific focus: military training. Second, military service is not required when you attend a military high school. If your child decides that military service is a career path which she wants to pursue, then a military school will have given her a good start.

Discipline

In life just about anything worth doing well requires lots of discipline. Discipline takes hard work, persistence, stamina, and time. In an era when instant gratification seems endemic, good old-fashioned discipline lays a solid foundation for success in adult life. Discipline evolves into a pattern

While you are in the early stages of identifying private high schools for your child, you will read plenty of catalogs and scan dozens of school websites. That will uncover a lot of information. Just be aware that all of this is the information which the schools want you to see. These are marketing tools that present the best side to the schools and their programs. While there is certainly nothing wrong with putting your best foot forward, the reality is that you need to lift the hood and see what's inside. Find answers to the following five basic questions as part of your due diligence as you sort through schools and begin to determine which one is the best fit for your child.

Get the answers to your questions two ways: by reading the materials offered and by asking in person. Incidentally, if you have decided to use the services of an educational consultant, these are questions which she can answer for you. Then all you have to do is follow up when you visit the schools and affirm what you already know.

1. What are they teaching?

For most parents, this is the first question on the list. It is our priority #1. It plays to our concern about what kind of college or university our child will ultimately attend. Preparing for that next step is a huge undertaking and we know that we have to get it right. Preparing for college level work is a 3-4 year project.

So,