PPBC2: On Schools...Where, When and Why

Here in the Philippines, the government has declared that June 10 will be the start of classes for public schools. Private schools will probably open at around the same time.

The child's education is something that is a matter of greatest concern for most parents. There is so much to ponder over when choosing something important like this. The child's education prepares him or her for the future, when he/she will need all the knowledge and all the skills that he/she learned during her formative years to forge his/her own place in the world.

I guess our parents also had some difficulty in deciding where to send us to school. Now that we are parents ourselves, there seems to be too many considerations in choosing for a school to send our kids. Questions like WHEN to send them, WHERE to send them, WHAT kind of education will they be getting, HOW MUCH is it going to cost...These are questions that parents try to answer when they choose a school.

Maver Monet, in her own words, is not really an advocate of early childhood education, since she believes that her son has a lot of learning already from the home. However, she and her husband decided to let their son Nino start school this coming school year. Her reasons here.

Mommy Pat is currently enjoying bonding moments with her 15 month old daughter Tina via Kindermusik. She's already scouting for play schools around her community, as she plans to enroll Tina when she is a little bit older. She still prefers the more traditional schools, preferably exclusive, as she believes that these are already "tried and tested" rather than the newer progressive schools. More on her thoughts here.

Mommy Jenny, on the other hand, prefers a more progressive set-up once her 20 month old Belle. She plans to enroll Belle in a school nearer her community when she's about 2-2.5 years of age. She also prefers a co-ed type of education, and one that offers Chinese. Her thoughts on her school choices and the points for and against each of them are here.

Mommy Jeng muses on her experiences, beliefs and memories about school. She believes that no matter what the teaching philosophy and style the school chooses to focus on, there are advantages and disadvantages to each one. She also believes that the readiness to start school should come from the child. Her Joaqui is currently in toddler school. Her entry here.

Mommy Joey (that's me!) has decided to send Ethan to toddler school in an effort to jumpstart his learning, especially his speech, which has been found to be slightly delayed. My entry here.

Daddy Angel, a proud dad of two and a relative veteran of schooling kids (compared to the other participants), shares his view on how to prepare your child for his first day of school. For parents like me who are just starting to send their kids to school, this is required reading!

All parents want the best education for their kids. For Mommy Tricia, the best education occurs at home. Hence, she has decided to homeschool her child, Zoe. Her reasons are all stated here. I wish I could have her confidence and willpower that she has! Hats off to you!

Every parent desires the best education for their kids. For this round of the PPBC, I have learned that in choosing for the best school for your kid, there is really no one solution that is the right one for everybody. The choice of education really depends on a lot of different factors. And education does not start and end with school. The primary source of education, whether or not the child is homeschooled, is still the home. Everything the child sees or hears at home is what he build unto himself. A child of God fearing parents will most likely be God fearing himself. A child of parents who continually says cuss words in front of the kids cannot be expected not to behave the same way.

To all the participants of PPBC2, I thank you all for your participation and I'd like to apologize for the late roundup. It's been super busy for me the past 2 weeks. I hope you will still join us in the 3rd edition of The Pinoy Parenting Blog Carnival. For the month of June, the PPBC will be hosted by Mommy Leah :). Hope to see you there!