Do different towns have different curriculums? (Camden: credit, private schools, tuition)

[MrsPiggleWiggle]

This may be a pretty dumb question, but I wasn't able to Google a definitive answer and hoping educators or more experienced parents may help answer my questions about schooling in NJ, specifically for lower grades.

1) Do all the schools in the state have to implement same curriculum from K-12?
Meaning, Camden and Short Hills schools all technically use the same textbooks, worksheets, standardized testing, etc? Now that Common Core has passed, this means any child in a public school in NJ should be educated in a similar way from the top down?

2) Are private and charter schools exempt and allowed to choose their own curriculum?
E.g. Montessori schools, Catholic and Christian academies, etc. all may be teaching more or less than local public schools. How does a parent compare to see whether the education opportunity at a private school is worth the tuition?

Now I know there are many aspects to childhood education aside from what is taught academically in classes, so please refrain from comments on peer pressure, pace of learning due to class ability, culture, etc. I just want to learn more about the pure academic aspect, as best as I can.

Thanks!

[lkb0714]

No, districts write their own curricula which incorporate the relavent standards. It is common for different schools even within the same district to use different texts so no, there is no universal textbook. As for worksheets these are frequently teacher generated.

Private schools may choose to implement standards or not. Many of the better private schools at the secondary level encourage their students to take AP exams so they must align their curricula to those subject standards.

The minimum you should look for in any school, private or public, is that they are middle states and njdoe accredited.