When I was growing up I went to public school until the middle of my fifth grade year then I switched to a private Catholic school. The kids in the private school were behind me in math and science and maybe on par with the rest. Then there was the fact that the private school did not offer everything my public school did like orchestra and photography.
Do you think your yourgest will go to a public or private college? Will he even go to college?
On the other side of the issue why don’t you get involved in the public school and make it better. Do you really think your state and local government will just hand out a first class education without the people getting involved? Do you know the names of the people on the local school board?
I went to private schools through eighth grade, and public school for high school. Public school was much better. But this is probably cuz I went to crappy Christian grade schools, while my high school was the best in the state.
IMO there is no intrinsic advantage or disadvantage of a private school over a public school; you have to judge the options available and choose what is best in the circumstance.
Pkbites, some kids learn differently than others. Maybe yours just isn’t in sync with the teaching style of that particular school.
Before you decide anything, go back through your son’s report cards over the years. Were his grades consistent, or did they vary up and down from year to year. Try to find patterns. What were the teachers like in the classes he excelled in? Some students respond well to being lectured to, others need a more participative environment, some are visual, some are verbal, etc.
How are his reading skills? There’s no single thing more important for good grades (particularly as he gets into the higher grades) than the ability to process all that information.
Are the class sizes small enough that the teachers can actually do one on one time with each student?
Don’t overlook the social environment. Is he afraid he’ll get beaten up every day? Does his peer group have a bias against kids who seem too smart?
For what its worth, our oldest is now finishing up high school. Her grades are excellent and her test scores are high enough that she could get into pretty much any college she wanted. The only problem is, she hates high school, and Mrs. Kunilou and I are having trouble convincing her that college won’t just be another four years of the same. So, if your son is not happy, I’d consider making a change. If he is happy, just not doing as well as you like, I’d look into seeing if there are alternative ways of helping him understand the work.
I went to a private school from preschool through 12 grades, so suffice to say that I have zero personal experience with other school types. If I may suggest so, the decision to switch your son to another school would be best carried out without regard to whether it is a public or a private school. I would also suggest touring various schools and speaking to the students (not the admins) as much as possible, as well as encouraging your son to talk to the other students to see if he would like it there. It might be embarrassing or whatever (especially if he’s deathly shy like me) but it will pay off in the long run. If it turns out that he doesn’t really like any of the schools, then I guess the lesser evil wins.