Originally Posted by
bisous
Regarding California schools, I agree that they seem to be able to produce graduates capable of going toe to toe with students from other states. I do think a lot of that is despite the system and not because of it. I feel like there is a subtle "tax" on many CA families because we must somehow come up with programs and facilities that schools in other places provide. Our schools don't have social workers. I've never even seen a school with one. Our elementary schools don't have school psychologists. We don't have busing in many areas. We don't have music programs or daily PE. We don't have cafeterias. The schools in my city DON'T HAVE LIBRARIES! Our family makes it work because both DH and I come from highly educated families and are ourselves very educated but we have to strain a bit to fill the hole that is created from not having access to these resources. That's not to say that getting a good education is impossible in California. At all. But my sister who teaches in Arlington, VA is ASTOUNDED by the vast disparity between what her high school students have access to and what we had access to as children.
This just floors me - esp when some of our school libraries are a similar size to some towns' public library. So much of what I hear about CA schools just baffles me.
OP no one can really decide for you. I was in favor until I heard the target location. COL, traffic & schools are 3 huge quality of life issues for me and I could not uproot my life w/o assurances in this dept
dd1 10/05
dd2 11/09
and ... a mini poodle!