Parenting is one of the hardest tasks out there and it involves a lot of decisions to be made every single day from the breakfast menu to the clothes to dressing up your children.

You also have to make decisions that are important and can dictate your child’s entire life and upbringing. One such decision is having to choose a school for your kid.

While choosing a school may seem easy, you have to realize that you are essentially starting your kid’s career trajectory and deciding the type of people they will associate with for more than twelve years.

These are the years that kids are most likely to develop their social skills and create their perceptions of the world. School can have a huge impact on the type of mindset your kid has in life. 

Due to the importance of this task, here are 5 tips you should keep in mind when choosing a school for your kid:

1. Homeschooling vs. Traditional Schooling

While the thought of homeschooling may not even enter some parents’ minds as both parents may have a job, some parents do decide to homeschool. 

However, homeschooling comes with its pros and cons.

For example, your child may face social issues once they leave for college due to reduced interactions with peers in their developmental age. This is often cited as a major homeschooling problem by many.

The most important benefit of homeschooling is that your child can grow in a safe and comfortable environment that caters to their individual needs. 

However, you might have to work harder and be more intentional about creating situations that promote social interactions such as play dates or extra-curricular classes.

Homeschooling can also be harder if you have more than one child.

2. Special Needs

When it comes to kids with special needs, the weight of responsibility is even heavier. 

You will have to consider your kid’s special needs and accommodate them. For example, if your child suffers from vision impairment, you might be doing them a disservice by not enrolling them in a specialized school.

Moreover, if they have a hearing impairment, you need to make sure you buy all the necessary equipment such as a hearing aid microphone so that your child can fit in like the rest of the kids.

Specialized schools are scarce compared to regular schools and can even end up isolating a child. Make sure to talk to your child about their needs and their feelings about going to a specialized school.

Many children may prefer to take the traditional schooling route as they do not want to be any more separated from their peers than their specialized needs make them already.

On the other hand, getting an education with other kids that have similar needs may promote social interaction and acceptance that your child would not get at a traditional school.

3. Public vs. Private Schooling

Another thing to consider is whether you should enroll your child in a public or private school. Once again, depending on your country, this can have a huge impact on the quality of education your child will receive.

For instance, if you are living in the US, there can be a huge difference between the schooling your child receives based on what type of school they attend. Teachers in public schools in the US are severely underpaid which for some parents means that the quality of education is inferior to private schools.

Additionally, private schools are extremely expensive so that might be a major deciding factor as well because the costs of textbooks, uniforms, and extracurricular activities can add up quickly.

Moreover, many colleges also have their preferences when it comes to public or private education. There might be some schools that value a private education more so that would be another factor to consider if you have a specific college in mind.

4. Education Board

Depending on the country you live in, the education system may vary quite a bit across the different boards and their difficulty levels. The difficulty of their board can determine how well your child does and what needs they might have.

For example, if you choose to enroll your child into the International Baccalaureate or IB originating from Switzerland, you will have to cater to their needs differently than if you were to choose IGCSE or A levels. 

If you choose IB, you might have to provide resources such as hiring IB ToK writers when your child is having trouble with their theory of knowledge assignment. If you chose IGCSE then you might have to buy special Cambridge-approved books.

There can be some huge differences between education boards from country to country and if you are moving overseas then you might have to pay more attention to this aspect.

Moving is hard enough for children and a change in the difficulty level of education can severely affect their mental health.

5. Career Interests

While you might think that it is too early to start thinking about career interests and you might be right to some extent, you have to make sure that you are catering to your child’s interests. 

If your child is already showing an interest in things such as dancing or playing an instrument, you should enroll them in a school or institute that will further nurture this interest.

Many students end up finding their passion early and want to spend their schooling preparing for a career in it. 

Your responsibility as a parent is to provide those resources that will help them achieve their goals such as enrolling in a school that has an amazing music program.

Conclusion

All in all, choosing a school for your child is a big responsibility. 

Bullying and other similar problems are a huge issue for many children which is why you need to make sure you consider their needs before making any decisions.

Even if you do make the wrong decision, just remember that if your child comes to you with any problems, assure them that there is room to change schools if they want. 

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