Education

Discovering the school where your child will thrive

Shawn Star

Jumping for joyYou may know your child has talents and abilities that are just waiting to blossom in the right environment. Perhaps something that only a parent could recognize.

Or you may sense your boy or girl has great potential but you don’t know exactly what kind of studies or disciplines will bring this out.

In either case, you want an education to find the best in your youngster — and help him or her develop into the productive adult you know they can become.

You don’t want an assembly-line education that turns out look-alike products. You don’t want a one-size-fits-all approach that brings every student down to the same mediocre level.

WELL-ROUNDED: It’s not all about the academic program. Ask about extracurricular opportunities that take the students beyond the classroom, like this Environment Club at Royal St. George’s College.
WELL-ROUNDED: It’s not all about the academic program. Ask about extracurricular opportunities that take the students beyond the classroom, like this Environment Club at Royal St. George’s College.

You want an education that recognizes your child as an individual with individual needs and gifts. An education to challenge the student to find the individual — possibly unique — resources that may otherwise be left untapped.

That’s why you are looking at local private and independent schools.

But which one will help your child thrive? Which one will discover the excellence you know your child is capable of?

Here are the steps to finding the right school for your young student.

1. Survey the field

Yes, you have to get cracking with some studying yourself.

Reading this publication is a good start, of course. Especially peruse the “Guide to the Local Schools” section that lists institutions and what they have to say about themselves.

The Town Crier is also putting the articles from this publication and Education Guides from the past three years online in a special section at mytowncrier.ca.

Another great resource is the Our Kids website, which covers schools right across Canada. You can do a local search at www.ourkids.net/school/school-search.php. Our Kids also holds school expos in Toronto.

Questions for your
basic needs list

These are some of the items for your list of requirements that your school must meet:

  • What is your budget for tuition, uniforms (if required) and supplies?
  • Do you require boarding? If so, what is your budget for residence?
  • If not boarding, how far need your child travel back and forth to school — and does the school provide transportation?
  • Do you require before-school and/or after-school care?
  • Can the school handle any special learning problems your child has? Any physical, linguistic or emotional needs?
  • Does your child have disciplinary problems or require extra structure in his or her program?
  • What size of school is best for your child’s learning — small or large?
  • Are you seeking a school that focuses on specific grade levels or one with a wide range of levels (K–12) where your child can stay for many years?
  • Do you have a preference for instructional model: traditional with emphasis on back-to-basics program or alternative approaches to learning?
  • Do you prefer modern facilities and use of new media and technology?
  • Are you looking for college preparation? If so, does the school give special attention to this?
  • Is your child looking for specialized training in certain fields, such as science and technology, athletics, music or arts?
  • Do you want your child educated in a boys-only or girls-only environment — or in a co-ed school?
  • Do you want religious training as part of the curriculum? Even if you are not concerned about religion, you may also be interested in the school’s beliefs that inform its philosophy and pedagogical methods, to see if they are consistent with your own views.
  • Which extracurricular activities are important to  your child — sports, arts, clubs — and are they available at the school? These may seem like frills compared to the weightier academic program but they could affect your child’s overall experience just as much.

Also have a look at www.cais.ca for the Canadian Accredited Independent Schools website, as well as the member sites.

So now you know what schools are available for the age range and gender of your child. You’ll have an idea of which ones have the schedule — year-round or traditional school semesters you seek.

This gives you a general idea of how many schools are worth checking out more seriously.

Probably quite a few. How to narrow it down?

2. List your basic needs

By which, of course, we mean your child’s needs.

Put together a list of bare requirements. It is important to do this now, before visiting or contacting the schools directly.

Why? Think of the process of seeking a new home: if you’re looking to buy, you first decide what you are looking for and then start making the rounds of houses that meet your basic criteria, don’t you? That way you don’t waste time at places that are out of the question. Similarly you want to narrow down your school inquiries to at least those that meet your basic needs.

These are your physical requirements — like cost, distance of the school from your home, whether you need the school to offer boarding or transportation, care before and after school — as well as concerns about the kind of education to be provided, such as the school size, the availability of modern facilities, specialized training you need supplied by the school. and that old issue of whether you think your child would do better with just his or her own sex or in a co-educational environment.

See “Questions for your basic needs list”  (at left) for a more complete checklist.

3. Check the schools against your list

Now that you’ve got your basic needs list put together, it’s a simple process of checking the available schools against it.

You may have to extend your initial survey a little or make a few phone calls to find out the necessary data about certain schools.

Depending on how strict your requirement are, this should narrow down the number of school substantially — in many cases to no more than three or four close enough to the local area.

Now it’s time to….

4. See for yourself

Now you know the handful of schools you’ll want to visit to see for yourself.

The schools are generally happy to allow you to visit, which is best to arrange during the school day while classes are in session to learn more about the philosophy of the school as it is put into practice.

Questions to ask
during your visit

  • What are the qualifications and backgrounds of the teachers?
  • What is the school’s style of instruction and what facilities are available to help in this?
  • Are there counsellors on staff and are counselling services readily available?
  • Are personnel — like a nurse and librarian — on site to provide services?
  • Are parents welcome to take part in school activities and decision-making? Is school administration open to parents’ input?
  • What is the policy on violence and bullying?
  • Is the school supportive of the local community and involved in its life? Does it have programs or projects that take students into the larger society beyond the classroom walls?
  • Are scholarships and financial aid available?
  • Does the school’s program equip students with critical thinking, creativity, and the abilility to collaborate — skills increasingly in demand.
  • For schools that go up to grade 12, how strong are their university preparation? What percentage of students go on to university?
  • Does the school prepare students for after graduation — to give the confidence to take risks and handle the pressures and heavy workloads of university and work life?

But the schools also set up days in fall and spring semesters for open house visits and school tours. You can find many of the set dates in this Guide, as well as on the school websites. Some schools also allow other opportunities for parents to visit their campuses, including interviews with staff members and participating in the school’s special events.

In any case, this is the time to ask the less practical — but still vitally important — questions about how the school operates and how your child may thrive within it. (See sample questions at right.)

5. Check the qualifications and apply

Private schools usually have entry requirements for the grade levels of the students who are accepted. Make sure your child meets the academic requirements, which may include an SSAT score and an in-school admissions test that gauges the child’s academic entry level.

You may — and probably should — apply to more than one school that you think would be a good fit to bring out the best in your student, so you don’t put all your eggs in one basket, which could lead to disappointment.

But don’t get carried away. Applying to too many schools would be stressful for your child. The process generally involves filling out multiple forms with family information, providing transcripts, subjecting your child to interviews, and some test taking.

Also, most schools charge application fees.

When you receive acceptances, remember why you set out on this process in the first place — to find the school where your child’s individual talents will be discovered and nurtured.

Select wisely.

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