How to judge academics of private schools

In considering a parochial or private school, are there test scores you can use to compare academics to local public schools? I can't find API scores. It is assumed that private schools are academically stronger, but parochial schools seem a mystery. Any suggestions on how to make comparisons based on data as opposed to anecdotes? Thanks anon

Get permission to sit in on a class. That can tell you a lot. Sit in on Honors courses or AP classes if you think you child will be taking those. If your child won't be taking honors courses, sit in on the regular classes. KA

Something else you may choose to look at are the high school acceptance rates of the school's graduates. Here at Corpus, 98% of our graduating students have been accepted into their first-choice high school. I am sure your respective school administrations can report on this important measurement.

Lastly, you may want to ask about school accreditation. At Corpus we are reviewed and have passed both the public and parochial groups of WCEA and WASC. These demand rigor and standards of performance on a myriad of academic and non-academic elements, and also form a basis for comparison between institutions.

Ultimately, in my opinion, you can be well served by visiting the schools and talking with the administration, students and community. Evaluate the school on where you feel most comfortable in terms of the learning objectives and school culture-which will be the closest fit for your child. Trust your parental intuition, and whatever performance measures you can uncover, and ultimately you will make the best decision for your family. JR

It is possible that a private school might provide test scores to you if you ask, but I have never known of this being voluntarily offered during the admissions process. What they do discuss is the high schools that their students are admitted to, but this is not a very good way for a parent of a kindergartner to know whether the school prepares all its students well. If you look at ''top'' high schools there is a broad range of K-8 schools attended -- there are always students at any school, public or private, who do well regardless of the K-8 school they attended. So just looking at high school acceptances doesn't really tell you much about the academics at a particular k-8 school.

In the East Bay, there is a group of schools that are generally acknowledged to be ''academic'' (eg., Head Royce, Bentley). The application process for these schools includes a fair amount of screening of 4-year-olds for ''readiness'', so the assumption is that high school admissions and test scores at these schools will reflect a student population that has been pre-selected for high performance. At the other private schools, there is a bigger range of student ability.

The important thing to know is that private schools, unlike public schools, have no requirements or restrictions on the curriculum they offer. They can choose to implement the curriculum du jour, and they do not have to answer to anyone. Since you have no way of knowing how a particular private school stacks up against other schools, private or public, you are basically going on faith when you choose a private school. Maybe your child will graduate 8th grade from private school with all the background she needs to succeed at Berkeley High, maybe not.

My own admittedly biased experience is this: not counting the few so-called ''academic'' private schools, the *public* schools are now much more demanding and rigorous academically than many, maybe most, private schools. Despite all the moaning and groaning about testing and standards, public school teachers are required to follow state guidelines for what children should know at each grade level. Private schools do not have this requirement. It is now very possible to change from private to public and find that your child is behind. It didn't used to be like this, but it is now.

My kid goes to a private school, not one of the ''academic'' schools. His school, which is unconventional in that no standardized tests are given, nor are grades given before 6th grade, nevertheless follows state guidelines for curriculum. I would like to see private schools giving their students the same tests that public school kids take, and publishing the results like public schools do, so parents can make more informed decisions. We really can't do that now. But at least I can make sure that my kid's school is meeting state-wide standards as opposed to choosing its own curriculum. Berkeley mom

Do private schools publish their test scores?

Do private schools publish their STAR and SAT scores, percentage of students going to college etc? If they do, where can I locate those statistics? Or if the students are not required to take any tests, what other criteria should I use to evaluate the private schools? My daughter is in first grade, and I am planning to switch her to private school soon. I appreciate any recommendations regarding private schools in Easy Bay area. Thanks.