BY: ASHLEY HUSCHILTFEBRUARY 5 , 2014

Public vs. Private School

FOR THIS LESSON WE WILL CONSIDER PUBLIC SCHOOLS AS

GOVERNMENT FUNDED AND FREE EDUCATION PRIVATE SCHOOLS AS

ANY SCHOOL WITH A TUITION.

What classifies a school as

public or private?

Is there such a thing as “Private School Advantage?”

Private School Advantage

The first study for a private school advantage was

performed by James Coleman and his colleagues in a

1982 study (Wenglinsky, 2007 p10).

Coleman studied various students in public and private

schools for 2 years between 10th and 12th grade and

found that private school students learned more and at

a faster rate.

Coleman’s study was criticized for not being clear

enough in his methods.

Private School Advantage

Harold Wenglinsky’s study was commissioned by Center of Education Policy National Educational Longitudinal Study (NELS) of 1988-

2000 Focused on a sample of low-income students from inner-

city high schools and covered a wide variety of public and private schools

After accounting for SES variables there was little difference in student performance between Public and Private schools.

“The private school advantages seen in 12th grade could be a reflection of attracting previously successful students, rather than contributing to that success (Wenglinsky, 2007 p10).”

Factors Contributing to Success

Socioeconomic StatusScholarships Peer InfluenceExtracurricular Activities

Visiting Museums Going on Tours Music Lessons Tutoring

Family Advantage Parental help with assignments Academic family discussions Parental expectation of Student

Chart from the National Center for Education Statistics

Most Current Data

There is a new High School Longitudinal

Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) that is currently

being conducted by the National Center for

Educational Statistics.

Data is set to be completely collected by

2014.

Video Clip

Education- Public vs Private School

In this six minute video clip a New York news

broadcaster discuss the differences,

advantages and cost between public and

private school.

Discussion Prompts

Do you think there is a true private school

advantage?

Which would you choose, public or private

school and why?

References

Wenglinsky, H., Jeong, D.W. (2007). Are Private High Schools Better Academically Than Public High Schools. Center On Education Policy, Washington, D.C. Retrieved February 4,2013, from http://www.cep-dc.org/displayDocument.cfm?DocumentID=121

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Private Schools: A Brief Portrait, NCES 2002–013, by Martha Naomi Alt and Katharin Peter. Washington, DC: 2002.