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Ok, so I'm curious about the public schools here. We recently moved from Texas where there were really only two school districts in the entire DFW area that ranked a 10 on great schools website and only two public high schools that ranked exceptional (this is not including charter schools). We had planned to send our kids to private school because of it. Now we're living in South Charlotte and just put a contract down on a home and when we were looking there were nothing but highly ranked schools from Union County to Ballantyne and everywhere in between. Even the high schools and middle schools received top rankings (I'm thinking Providence, Butler, Ardey Kell, JM Robinson, etc.). I visited two elementary schools; Elizabeth Lane and Providence Spring and really liked them both. My only complaints were that PSE didn't offer Spanish and it's start time was incredibly early, and they were both a bit overcrowded. Other than that though, they both had smart boards, which are typically only seen at private schools, the principals seemed to be on top of things, the school looked to be well run and the parents raved about them and provided load of support both financially and through volunteerism.
So I guess what I'm asking is am I missing something? So many people seem so negative about the schools on this board. I know there are some not so good ones throughout the city, but I would think it's usually like that in any bigger area. Don't get me wrong, if I had the power to change up how schools are run in this country it would be handled totally different - I completely acknowledge the overall problems that exist - but given the system that they have to work with, I feel like these schools are pretty good options for my children. Am I wrong about this?
One caveat I should state is that my oldest will be starting kindergarten this fall so we haven't officially experienced the schools yet, we've only researched them, so maybe the actual experience will be different from what we've seen so far.
Ok, so I'm curious about the public schools here. We recently moved from Texas where there were really only two school districts in the entire DFW area that ranked a 10 on great schools website and only two public high schools that ranked exceptional (this is not including charter schools). We had planned to send our kids to private school because of it. Now we're living in South Charlotte and just put a contract down on a home and when we were looking there were nothing but highly ranked schools from Union County to Ballantyne and everywhere in between. Even the high schools and middle schools received top rankings (I'm thinking Providence, Butler, Ardey Kell, JM Robinson, etc.). I visited two elementary schools; Elizabeth Lane and Providence Spring and really liked them both. My only complaints were that PSE didn't offer Spanish and it's start time was incredibly early, and they were both a bit overcrowded. Other than that though, they both had smart boards, which are typically only seen at private schools, the principals seemed to be on top of things, the school looked to be well run and the parents raved about them and provided load of support both financially and through volunteerism.
So I guess what I'm asking is am I missing something? So many people seem so negative about the schools on this board. I know there are some not so good ones throughout the city, but I would think it's usually like that in any bigger area. Don't get me wrong, if I had the power to change up how schools are run in this country it would be handled totally different - I completely acknowledge the overall problems that exist - but given the system that they have to work with, I feel like these schools are pretty good options for my children. Am I wrong about this?
One caveat I should state is that my oldest will be starting kindergarten this fall so we haven't officially experienced the schools yet, we've only researched them, so maybe the actual experience will be different from what we've seen so far.
If your child has the chance to go to Providence Spring - the #1 elementary in the whole school system- JUMP at it. This is a great school!
Some people on this board are down on the schools here (and they don't even have kids in them or any personal experience with them!) but the reality is, there are some very fine public schools in the Charlotte system. We do have some problem schools too - but they are more inner city and in high poverty areas. Like most things in life, nothing is ever ALL one way or all the other. I'd certainly give the good public schools a chance before I spent the money on private school - UNLESS you are considering private school for religious reasons.
I don't have children but my impression is the same as yours. CMS is second largest school district in North Carolina and the twentieth largest in the nation. There are bad schools but good schools do exist! I think the system is far from perfect but I think a lot of times schools get a bad rap.
You will find many ill informed posters on here when it comes to schools and educational experiences. Their intentions are often good, but in reality they often lack any true knowledge that would make their posts valuable to someone like you, who is trying to make a very important decision. Truth is, like you and the previous posters have said, there are some very good schools in the CMS district. If you are in the South Charlotte area, especially the Providence or Ardrey Kell districts, you should have a very good experience with the public schools. Good Luck!
If your child has the chance to go to Providence Spring - the #1 elementary in the whole school system- JUMP at it. This is a great school!
Some people on this board are down on the schools here (and they don't even have kids in them or any personal experience with them!) but the reality is, there are some very fine public schools in the Charlotte system. We do have some problem schools too - but they are more inner city and in high poverty areas. Like most things in life, nothing is ever ALL one way or all the other. I'd certainly give the good public schools a chance before I spent the money on private school - UNLESS you are considering private school for religious reasons.
loves - One thing that I've wondered about, and juliema touched on, was the early start times of schools here. I've seen small kids waiting for the bus in my development before 7:00 AM in the morning. That seems soo... early! I'd hate to be one of those kids! When I was a kid (when the dinosaurs roamed) back in NJ, the school bell rang at 8:25 where we were required to line up by class. The teacher then took us to the classroom where we put our coats away and classes started 8:45 and went to 3:20 PM. This was elementary school BTW, K-8. In high school, we started a few minutes earlier than that and the last period (8th) was over at 3:08 PM. Here, I see the buses driving away from the elementary school just a little after 2:00 PM. What's with starting so early? Does it have anything to do with the "agrarian past" of the area? I guess I'm one of those people who believe that "getting up with the birds" is "for the birds"!
loves - I know you're a good deal younger than I am, but were those early start times part of your "educational experience" or some outgrowth of NCLB? Also it seems like the kids in my development ride the bus home from school even though the school is at the end of the development. I'm as lazy as anyone, but it seems like a waste of money to be driving kids a couple of blocks!
loves - One thing that I've wondered about, and juliema touched on, was the early start times of schools here. I've seen small kids waiting for the bus in my development before 7:00 AM in the morning. That seems soo... early! I'd hate to be one of those kids! When I was a kid (when the dinosaurs roamed) back in NJ, the school bell rang at 8:25 where we were required to line up by class. The teacher then took us to the classroom where we put our coats away and classes started 8:45 and went to 3:20 PM. This was elementary school BTW, K-8. In high school, we started a few minutes earlier than that and the last period (8th) was over at 3:08 PM. Here, I see the buses driving away from the elementary school just a little after 2:00 PM. What's with starting so early? Does it have anything to do with the "agrarian past" of the area? I guess I'm one of those people who believe that "getting up with the birds" is "for the birds"!
loves - I know you're a good deal younger than I am, but were those early start times part of your "educational experience" or some outgrowth of NCLB? Also it seems like the kids in my development ride the bus home from school even though the school is at the end of the development. I'm as lazy as anyone, but it seems like a waste of money to be driving kids a couple of blocks!
Em, not all schools in Charlotte have the early start times - some of them have the later 9:00 start. It's all designed to best utilize the buses and cover all the bus routes.
As a teen in the 70's my school did start at 7:10 - which I hated, BUT it was initiated at that time to allow all the kids with after school jobs to get to work by 2:30 or 3:00 so many kids in my community liked that early start.
In addition, I have heard complaints over the years from people with late school times because they need to be at work themselves by 8:00 and this screwed things up for them! Guess you just can't please everyone
Em, not all schools in Charlotte have the early start times - some of them have the later 9:00 start. It's all designed to best utilize the buses and cover all the bus routes.
As a teen in the 70's my school did start at 7:10 - which I hated, BUT it was initiated at that time to allow all the kids with after school jobs to get to work by 2:30 or 3:00 so many kids in my community liked that early start.
In addition, I have heard complaints over the years from people with late school times because they need to be at work themselves by 8:00 and this screwed things up for them! Guess you just can't please everyone
Thanks loves - I thought the school systems all had uniform start times. Your 7:10 start time seems to me, to be "ungodly early" and I must admit I never worked while I was in HS. I started HS at 12 and started college at 16, so work wasn't much of a consideration back then! I've read that there have been new studies that indicate teenagers need so much sleep - nearly 10 hours, to function properly with all of the accelerated growth during this time. I would have been perfectly happy to start HS at 10:00 AM and get out at 5:00 PM. But these days, I'm making up for any lost sleep from the past!
Em, with regards to start time, I do believe a lot of schools are still on farm times like you mentioned. I know when I took the tour of Providence Spring, she specifically told us that is the reason they not only start early but also have only a 6 hour school day. She said she's been asking the district for an additional hour for the past 3 years but hasn't had it approved yet and probably won't anytime soon because of the sour economy. There were two elementary schools that started later that we looked at; Elizibeth Lane and Olde Providence. There were literally only 3 houses available in our price range in EL though so it just didn't work out for us and we found 1 in OP but it would have required more work than we wanted to do. We bought in Providence Plantation so Nick will go to PSE. While I'm happy with the choice I'm literally dreading the early start time. Right now Nick doesn't even wake up until 7:30 so the whole "out the door before 7am" routine is going to be a huge change.
Em, with regards to start time, I do believe a lot of schools are still on farm times like you mentioned. I know when I took the tour of Providence Spring, she specifically told us that is the reason they not only start early but also have only a 6 hour school day. She said she's been asking the district for an additional hour for the past 3 years but hasn't had it approved yet and probably won't anytime soon because of the sour economy. There were two elementary schools that started later that we looked at; Elizibeth Lane and Olde Providence. There were literally only 3 houses available in our price range in EL though so it just didn't work out for us and we found 1 in OP but it would have required more work than we wanted to do. We bought in Providence Plantation so Nick will go to PSE. While I'm happy with the choice I'm literally dreading the early start time. Right now Nick doesn't even wake up until 7:30 so the whole "out the door before 7am" routine is going to be a huge change.
julie - Your poor son has my sympathy!! I bet he'll feel like you're waking him up in the middle of the night. I also feel sorry for all those little kids I see with the enormous backpacks strapped to them. I guess their teachers were under the influence of that old TV commercial "Weebles wobble but they don't fall down"! I always thought that having the "equivalent of an old 27" Sony Trinitron strapped to the back of a full-grown adult" was "cruel and unusual punishment". I'm glad that I went to school in the 50's and 60's, before they became fashionable!
Em, with regards to start time, I do believe a lot of schools are still on farm times like you mentioned. I know when I took the tour of Providence Spring, she specifically told us that is the reason they not only start early but also have only a 6 hour school day. She said she's been asking the district for an additional hour for the past 3 years but hasn't had it approved yet and probably won't anytime soon because of the sour economy. There were two elementary schools that started later that we looked at; Elizibeth Lane and Olde Providence. There were literally only 3 houses available in our price range in EL though so it just didn't work out for us and we found 1 in OP but it would have required more work than we wanted to do. We bought in Providence Plantation so Nick will go to PSE. While I'm happy with the choice I'm literally dreading the early start time. Right now Nick doesn't even wake up until 7:30 so the whole "out the door before 7am" routine is going to be a huge change.
My teenager has complained since he now has to wake up 1 hr earlier than he did up north. However, he now goes to bed earlier and is gradually adjusting after 4 mths here.
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So many people seem so negative about the schools on this board. I know there are some not so good ones throughout the city, but I would think it's usually like that in any bigger area. Don't get me wrong, if I had the power to change up how schools are run in this country it would be handled totally different - I completely acknowledge the overall problems that exist - but given the system that they have to work with, I feel like these schools are pretty good options for my children. Am I wrong about this? 
He'll adjust
