When parents think about their children’s education, they often wonder about the benefits of private school. Private schools in the U.S. make up 24% of the schools in the country. Most of them are quite small, 86% of which have a student population of under 300. A private high school is about half the size of the average public school. In addition, classes are smaller; 12.5 students per teacher in comparison to 15.4 students per teacher in public schools. Many believe the small size of the classes to be one of the benefits of private school. A survey done during the 2011-2012 school year showed that 96% of private schools included both male and female students, with 2% of private schools being all male, and 2% all female.
Parents who have chosen to send their children to private schools are on average 80% satisfied with the school’s standard of academics. When looking at children who have attended private preschools, statistics show that they score 21% better than children who did not attend preschool when given reading and math testing in kindergarten. Upon graduating from a private high school, 88% of the students will apply to college, where only 57% of graduates from public high schools apply. Parents who enroll their children in private schools have also reported that an important reason for their choice was the level of dedication on the part of the teachers.
Athletics in private schools can differ from athletics in public schools because the public school budget for sports is usually less than the sports budget at private schools. Because they charge a tuition, private schools are able to allocate more money to their sports departments than can the state owned public schools. Student athletes in private schools make up approximately 75% of the student population, where student participation in some form of sports in public schools is just over half. Parents of private school students will encourage their children to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities, often because they are paying a tuition for their children to be able to attend there. Another reason why sports participation is lower in public schools is, in some cases, the demographics. A public school located in heart of a city where drugs and violence are prevalent will not typically have a lot of students going out for sports teams. Greater participation in sports is also seen as one of the benefits of private school.
