Are Private Schools Selling Out?

by Eileen Spatz

My neighbor, a mother of two, is beginning the arduous search for a good private school for her future kindergartner.  She has read enough distressing articles about the trendy public school curricula (tolerance training, death education, and global citizenship, etc) to rule out this option for her children.  Because of the research I’ve done on textbooks and teaching methodologies, she has asked me to help her sort through various private schools’ catalogs.

In asking these schools what book publishers and titles they use, it is evident that many private schools are now using the politically correct public school textbooks.  Most private schools receive government subsidies for textbooks, and this appears to be influencing which textbooks are then purchased.  Most state-approved books are tailored to and aligned with the Goals 2000 law of 1994, and reflect a carefully crafted political vision.  This message runs through all subjects; math, literature, social studies and science.  It is pervasive and consistent among the major textbook publishers.

What is this message?  That we are one world, one community, one citizenship.  That we must save the planet and worship Mother Earth.  That we should think, work, and function as teams, not as individuals.  That morality is self-defined, based on one’s personal experience, not on abstract God-originated absolutes.

Mind you, these books are being used in Catholic schools and Christian schools of various denominations.  Although the schools also provide religious instruction alongside these texts, many of the messages woven through the secular texts are in direct conflict with the Bible!  Wouldn’t this be confusing to children?

Parents who enroll their children in private schools are making significant financial sacrifices.  I know, I experienced this strain the year my children were enrolled in a private school.  And because I had also experienced several years at the local public school, I was able to identify several red flags at this private school.  The same bad math books, the same whole language-based reading curriculum, and many of the same ridiculous teaching methods (ie, making puppets to act out a scene from a book instead of writing a book report).  Most of the teachers hired at private schools have received their credentials from universities where all this muck is taught as holy writ.

Many parents (myself included) place blind faith in the private school they select assuming that if it’s private, expensive, and they teach about God, it must be good.  They do not take the time to look through the textbooks or quiz the teachers on their personal teaching philosophy.  And if they did, would they know what to look for?

Only a textbook comparison would clearly show the slant of these politically correct texts.  For instance, the 4th grade Mathematics Plus from Harcourt Brace shows three kids (a black child, an Asian child and a Hispanic child) on the cover recycling newspapers and cans.  The book has about 400 pages filled to the brim with multiculturalism, environmentalism, politically correct messages woven into group projects, calculator icons throughout (use your calculator!) and so many bold graphics and color photos it makes your head spin.  Sprinkled through these 400 pages are about 100 pages of actual math—but don’t confuse that with good math.  No indeed, estimation (guessing) is the key concept this book stresses through every chapter.  The local private schools that use this book charge $4,500-$5,500 annual tuition.

Compare this with the Saxon 4 math text which also has about 400 pages.  Saxon, which is rarely used in public schools, contains no pictures, no color graphics.  Every single page in the text is about learning math concepts and doing math computation.  Calculators are not permitted.  There is not one word about recycling or global warming.  There are no group projects at all, and the only time estimation is used is at the beginning of a difficult division problem.  Could it be that private schools that receive government textbook subsidies are steered clear of Saxon because it does not contain "the message?"

Looking at this disturbing trend in our private schools makes me nervous.  We are quickly reaching a point where a government-defined curriculum will shape all schools, public and private.  The only way for a private institution to remain true to quality standards is to refuse any government subsidies and to reject accreditation (which is also railroading private schools toward the political education agenda).  Tuitions may rise when government assistance is eliminated, but this is a small price to pay for freedom in education.

As I looked through the dozen or so private school catalogs my neighbor handed me I became even more convinced of our decision, two years ago, to home school.  Although I know there are some private schools where quality books are still used, they are not the norm anymore.  Frankly, the stress caused by the high cost and inconvenient commute to these schools is just not worth it.  The answer is to create the school of your choice at home.  Now, if I could just convince my neighbor of that…

Ms. Spatz is a mother of three who now home schools her three children in San Clemente, California.  She has been active in researching and writing about education issues since 1994.