Which would you choose - the 'best' school (at a cost) or a better lifestyle?

[Loveinamist]

I personally think B. In my personal opinion (as an ex teacher and mother) I think it is the parent's job to 'shape' their children's childhood. Schools are only a new institution in our culture. In fact schools were only really made compulsory and state funded for all in Victorian times when Big Business Heads realised they could get a more compliant, punctual and efficient workforce if they could create institutions where children were taken away from the 'influence' of their parents and shaped to fit the schedules and restrictions of their factories and workplaces and not question authority etc. So in reality the softer, more natural approaches to education like Steiner and Montesorri were attempts by progressive people to try and return to the sort of gentle loving education that parents (in an ideal pre-industrial world!) would have given their children. By education I mean of course, life skills, personal skills and skills needed to work in their profession so not necessarily reading and writing. With today's emphasis and the necessity on academic skills things have changed but I think there is no reason an involved parent cannot provide these skills with the help of the internet and libraries.
In my experience as a teacher I believe that once a child has the tools to read and they are happy and confident because of a loving background and they have a sense of wonder and have been inspired then it doesn't matter whether they learn at home or school, they will do well. But nothing can replace the loving influence of a parent that has time for them and can help them on their learning journey.
That is just my pretty radical opinion. I seriously felt sad for all those children who I taught in many different schools, in two countries, who spent more time with me in a week than with their parents. Not that I was cruel or awful but I just couldn't love them or have as much time for them as their parents would have if given the chance. So if you want Steiner and can't afford it, then give them Steiner in the home. Your version of Steiner would be a hundred times better than from someone who can never know and love your kids like you do. Even if it is only in the afternoons after 'normal' state school. Your influence is so much more important I think.

Sorry full of punctuation mistakes as I am dealing with a climbing toddler and I can't go back to find them all...even so I hope my rambling makes sense!

[Gigi]

i've just started my child at a public primary school, that has a Steiner stream. I've heard there are many dual stream primary schools in Melbourne, so could you consider one of those, instead of a pure Steiner school? It's a compromise, but i'm assuming, like it is for me, the fees are HEAPS less than $6k. Even the pure steiner schools here are WAY under $6k, more like $1k, last time i heard. Paying a few hundred, instead of a few thousand, is much more manageable. Fingers crossed for you that you can find a dual stream school near you, that has similar fees to ours.

[AnyDream]

Well I'm flying in the face of everyone else, because eldest DD has just started high school at a school that I believe strongly is absolutely the best place for her to go, despite our budget shortfall. In our case it's a little different because it's a catholic school so there is some room for negotiation of fees (which may also be an option at the Steiner school, it's worth asking about), but even so the next couple of years (esp while we're paying the same again in childcare for our youngest) will be tight tight tight. Partly it's an act of faith on my part that by committing to this for DD's highest good, that the universe will support this path, and the abundance needed to get through this time will arise as it is needed (which, LOL, is a very un-catholic way of thinking about it). We've never really had a lot of money to do activities, holidays, house renos etc, so - what difference will a few years more of living with less make?

[wysiwyg]

I think the answers depend on the interpretation of the question - with the original post it my interpretation was that you were concerned about the lack of time with Option A (maybe frazzled gave a stronger impression than you meant), so came across like A)Steiner School vs B)More time with you/parents. So I said B.

Your reply highlighted money more - so if it was A)Steiner School vs B)More money in pocket - I would most likely choose A.

So based on the above if had to make a decision I would ignore the money aspect (unless A) would put you into severe financial hardship) - as think kids enjoy the simple things in life anyway and I would quantify the amount of extra time you will need to spend working/thinking about work to go option A (you still need time to go camping etc) - if is small like an hour a day then A) sounds good. Once it gets into multiple hours a day and not seeing kids before bedtime etc then for me then B starts sounding better.

[AnyDream]

But I guess there is an inherent relationship between money and free time if the number of hours you work is the key factor in how much you're able to increase your earning power.