Why an Independent School?
What are independent schools?
Independent schools are private schools that are independently governed by their own boards of trustees. They are mainly financed by tuition payments, charitable contributions and endowment revenues, and receive little, if any, government funding. Independent school accreditation standards are rigorous, and are validated by a national commission. Independent schools offer pre-k through grade 12 education and include coeducational and single-sex day and boarding schools. Each has a distinct educational mission, yet they all share a commitment to achieving excellence and inspiring innovation. This commitment attracts high-quality educators and promotes a supportive learning environment.
What are the advantages of independent education?
Independent schools focus on educating the whole child, offering learning experiences that reach beyond core academic areas such as math, science, history and English. They have the freedom to promote creative thinking in hands-on ways and to introduce students to exciting and challenging subjects including art, music, foreign languages, global and environmental education and technology. Students come from diverse backgrounds to develop their interests—and a love of learning—at independent schools. Independent schools maintain small class sizes so that educators can learn about every student and attend to each child’s individual skills and needs. Educators form close relationships with students and their parents, and go above and beyond to ensure each student’s success.
Why choose independent education?
The U.S. Department of Education finds that:
- Independent schools tend to be smaller than other schools, which often results in higher achievement for students.
- Independent schools offer exceptionally low student-educator ratios, and thus more individual attention, responsible in part for greater success in college and future endeavors.
- Educators at independent schools are able to communicate consistent goals to their students and collaborate more effectively on raising achievement.
The information on this page has been reprinted, with permission, from the NAIS bulletin.
|
|
 |
