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Is there anyone here who has live in both places that can tell me your opinions on the subject? Dh is interviewing with a company in Manchester. We were thinking ideally of living in MA, looking at Chelmsford, Acton, or Westford, and Dh commuting to Manchester. It looks like a 45 minute commute, which by L.A standards (where we're from) is on the shorter side. However, with gas prices being what they are we are also looking at living around Nashua. But we really don't know anything about schools in NH. On the one site where I've been able to see ranking of schools across states, MA usually comes out on top, with NH a few spots lower, depending on the parameters.
When I inquired about schools on the MA forum the reply I got was that the range is narrower than in CA. Meaning the best schools aren't THAT amazing, and the worst schools aren't THAT bad. So no matter where we go, odds are the schools will be very good. What about in NH? Would you say that in general the (public) schools are pretty good, or do you have to carefully pick which town to live in if education is your priority? Maybe I should state for the record that we aren't looking for amazing schools necessarily. Coming from CA almost anywhere is a huge jump up. But since we might have the liberty of choosing, we would like to go where the schools are better. Are MA schools that much better than NH?
fyi: I'll be posting this same question in the MA forum.
Last edited by maestramommy; 05-13-2008 at 03:26 PM..
for the most part, NH schools are okay - not any different than MA. No better and no worse.
Each state calculates their success differently, which is why you will see numbers all over the place.
I worked with transfer students from MA and they would be ahead in certain subjects and behind in others. Not much difference there.
I would recommend private schools over public simply for safety reasons, especially at the high school levels. Schools do not have the funds nor the ability to monitor bullying.
I would recommend private schools over public simply for safety reasons, especially at the high school levels. Schools do not have the funds nor the ability to monitor bullying.
um, how serious is this bullying? kids getting beat up, or more psychological? Our whole reason for moving is for better public schools.
Mass funds their schools more equitably than NH and you therefore have a greater chance of getting at least a school that is well funded and held to high standards anywhere in Mass. That being said, there is still a huge range in Mass with schools - academically, behaviors, and funding. Of the places you mentioned in MA, I've heard very good things about Acton and mixed about Westford and Chelmsford. Westford used to be considered excellent, but from what I understand they are dealing with a big influx of kids because of that reputation.
NH funds schools from property taxes and the PTOs so the more a community wants to invest in its schools, the more resources and opportunities you will find there. Basically I think you will find a wider variation in NH than MA, although MA has more urban areas and more challenges there. Not that all urban schools are bad, in fact some are stellar, but they do face different situations than the 'burbs.
I'm a former homeschooling mom though and what I think of as a good school is not what everyone else does. High parent involvement, creative learning opportunities, and chances for real life learning are what I consider a good school. Lots of people look at test scores and stop there. I say this because I think you need to figure out what you want from a "good" school and look for those qualities.
As far as academic achievement alone, from what I have heard Hollis and Londonderry/Derry are on par with lots of the top notch Mass schools.
um, how serious is this bullying? kids getting beat up, or more psychological? Our whole reason for moving is for better public schools.
Where are you coming from? There's big/inner city bullying - a mere look gets you a knife in your face, or the type of bullying most of us remember: big kid/ little kid. There ain't nothing in the world that's going to eradicate the 2nd type.
I don't think there is any difference between physical and psychological bullying. The degree to which it is inflicted is the main factor. There is cumulative line where teasing and roughing up become verbal abuse and assault which can ruin lives.
Coming from L.A., i reckon if there is no need for a cop and metal detector on every entrance, then the school is probably ok!
Please DM me for more details, as I have been an educator for 15+ years and am currently a consultant--I travel the state extensively and am familiar with many of the school districts in NH. I post often about education matters in NH--you can certainly read my other posts if you are curious If you want to be close to Manchester, yet have great public schools, the town of Bow is a close commute and has one of the best school systems in the state. Amherst has a decent system as well, and that is not far from Manchester. These are smaller towns, with smaller class sizes and great community support. Londonderry is also a close drive to Manchester and has great schools as well. I am not sure why you want to live in Ma and work in NH? I don't know much about public schools in Ma, other than the Andover school district and the Westford school district are both highly regarded and have good reputations. As far as bullying goes, compared to larger, city schools, NH has a minor bullying problem and I would not let that really be a consideration for you. Larger more urban schools tend to have a larger bullying problem. It can happen anywhere, but the school districts I talked about above are pretty proactive when it comes to behavior and responsibility, etc. Good luck.
Hollis and Bedford are both in that area and rate very highly. I don't know about the MA districts you've mentioned, but I think it would be hard for any NH schools to compare with the BEST MA schools simply because the demographic that tends to score so highly and send virtually all its kids to top colleges just doesn't exist in the numbers it does around Boston. In other words, it's not necessarily that the schools aren't as good, it's often just that there isn't as large a pool of wealthy, well-educated parents pushing their kids to excel, compete, and achieve. And since I've seen lots of evidence that pressure-cooker schools are unhealthy, I wouldn't necessarily assume that any given child will do "better" in Wellesley schools than they would in Bedford schools.
PS I also have to add that it's all local - meaning, it really doesn't matter which state has better schools. All that really matters is what the schools are like in your particular district. There are terrible schools in MA and great schools in NH. I live in CA which rates horribly and our school district is considered one of the best in the country - but again, it's a pressure cooker.
I've worked as a counselor at both the middle and high school level in NH and 90% of the bullying is psychological. And much of that is cyberbullying. This is a nationwide problem.
I also wondered why you would live in MA if you worked in NH. You would avoid the state income taxes if you lived in NH.
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If you want to be close to Manchester, yet have great public schools, the town of Bow is a close commute and has one of the best school systems in the state. Amherst has a decent system as well, and that is not far from Manchester. These are smaller towns, with smaller class sizes and great community support. Londonderry is also a close drive to Manchester and has great schools as well. I am not sure why you want to live in Ma and work in NH? I don't know much about public schools in Ma, other than the Andover school district and the Westford school district are both highly regarded and have good reputations. As far as bullying goes, compared to larger, city schools, NH has a minor bullying problem and I would not let that really be a consideration for you. Larger more urban schools tend to have a larger bullying problem. It can happen anywhere, but the school districts I talked about above are pretty proactive when it comes to behavior and responsibility, etc. Good luck.
