Private Schools (Columbia, Sumter, West Columbia: renting, elementary schools, safety)

[usc_rn03]

I am thinking about placing my children especially my 2nd grader in private school. Anyone have any experience with this? I am a single mother and would like more information on the requirements for financial aid assistance. Thank you!

[LexingtonDad]

I imagine that financial aid varies greatly by school. I would suggest that you call a few private schools and inquire about any programs they have available.

If your concern is the quality of your child's education or their physical safety in their present situation I would suggest you also look into better public schools. A slight change of address can make a world of difference.

[Ceezer]

Where?

I very seriously considered putting my daughter in private school (Sumter area, but I'm sure this is applicable nation-wide) 5 years ago when she was starting, but now I'm glad we didn't. From what I've seen - and I've had quite a bit exposure, as it seems 90% of the girls in the activities my daughter participates in are made up of TSA/Wilson Hall students - my daughter is no worse off for having attended public (District 02) schools. In fact, if anything, she may have a slight edge over them. My daughter is probably equally matched, intellectually, with private school girls 2 and 3 grades ahead of her.

I've come to the conclusion that private schools are nothing more than a social status for the parents. A bumper sticker for their car. Just because you (not *you*, I'm speaking indirectly here) can afford to send your child there doesn't necessarilly make them smart. Well-off people can have dumb kids, so the class is either going to a) slow down to the pace of the "weakest link" or, b) keep at it's excelled pace to meet the curriculum and appeal to the wallets of the parents, leaving the kids behind and neglected.

But then, I believe that educating your child is a full-time job; an obligation that the schools (private or public) can't shoulder alone. We need to constantly challenge our children, and that requires work outside of the classroom.

I believe this is what separates public schools from private. It's not the quality of the education provided, it's the quality of the parenting. Now I don't mean to isolate or target the parents of public school kids - I just stated I'm one myself, and I'm a wonderful father - but when you have cases of families that are lazy, indifferent towards or spiteful of their children, etc, odds are these are going to be families that send their kids to public school. Because the kids have parents/guardians that don't care enough to put in the time and effort to ensure their children are learning and bettering themselves, the kids develop an attitude that an education isn't important, and they themselves aren't putting in the time and effort to learn and process the information being provided to them. So when it comes to testing, the retention isn't there.

I have a niece that attends private school. She's a straight-A student but admits that she has a hard time keeping up because they move through material so fast to adhere to schedule. It doesn't matter if the kids "got it", or not, so long as they hit the points that they'll be tested on. So they're not being taught, they're being prepped...

[gamecoxfan1]

This is not answering your question, but a new private school is opening in Lexington/West Columbia. It will open next year at the new Northside Baptist. Grade K-9 will be offered at the beginning of next school year. A grade is planned on being added every year. It will be called Northside Christian Academy.

[Wildflower-222]

The parochial schools offer financial assistance. The Elementary schools in Columbia are St John Neumann, St Joseph & St Peter. They all have a very good reputation.