New City, New School

New City, New School

How to pick the best school for your child when moving to a new town

Each year, hundreds of thousands of families with school-age children move because of job opportunities or company elocations. Parents have to find new homes and safe neighborhoods, and just as important, they have to find new schools for their kids. Dr. William Bainbridge, president of SchoolMatch in Westerville, Ohio, helped about 30,000 families make this difficult decision every year. Here, we recall how he challenged the assumptions many people made when choosing new schools:

What are the best indicators for an outsider to use when picking a new school?

One thing is the education level of the parents in the community, because there is a high correlation between the education level of parents and the success of their children in school. This is quite different when you look at income levels and property values. For example, some college towns around the country have extremely high test scores and moderate income levels, because you have a bunch of college professors' children in school.

Give me a school with very high parent education level and I'll turn out good students at a very low cost. The youngsters in such a community are born with the expectation that their parents graduated from college and they should too. Plus the parents are more equipped to help them in homework, and the parents have a higher expectation level for the children.

What should parents look for in a school?

In addition to the high parent education level, they should look at the scholastic examinations themselves. Also look at the awards a school has won. And look at a school's accreditation. It's almost frightening to think that some people are being steered to non-accredited schools, which creates a major problem for children when they apply to a college.

What awards reflect school quality?

We think that a state's department of education is very careful for the most part in the awards that they give each year for what they call blue ribbon schools and outstanding schools. The states select award-winning schools that we think are very good. Many private foundations give awards. But they usually specialize, awarding drug-free schools or schools with great computer programs.

Students marching through the city. Photo by Elena.

What test scores should parents use to compare schools?

The college entrance exams are extremely important. It is not necessarily important that the school be in the top ten percent of the country, but if you want your youngsters to go to college, it stands to reason that if the school is in the top third, that would be important. For elementary school children, there are about 11 different standardized tests around the country, and they are not intended to be used for comparison from school to school.  You should rather look at the scholastic exams from high schools that the elementary schools feed into. Even the developers of the tests will tell you that achievement tests are not a very good way to compare schools, because they are normed differently.

How can you tell if a school is coasting on its reputation?

Look at the accrediting association's summary reports. If the school is in the Midwest, you might look at the North Central Association, for instance. The summary report generally makes recommendations as to what's going on and what the needs are for a school. You can find some glaring things. SchoolMatch did a study for Money Magazine, where they took deomgraphically identical schools, but one school had good test scores, while the other did not. All a person had to do to find this out was to look at the final report of the accrediting association, which flat out said that in the school with worse test scores there was too much emphasis on athletics and that they had not replaced the director of instruction. A summary report is usually made public bu a board of education at the end of an accrediting association's visit. These visits average about once every four years.

It is better for a child if relocation takes place at the star of a new term?

Experts believe in mid-year relocations for small children, because it gives them a chance to meet other youngsters, so they don't have an isolated summer. Some people have the idea that it's better to relocate in June as soon as school is out. Frequently that child will spend the entire summer not knowing very many other youngsters. It is a better idea to go ahead and do the relocation mid-year in January and give them a chance to get acclimated to the school and to prepare for the unusually long summer vacation that we have in the United States. It also gives them a chance to meet some of their neighbors.

For high school kids, it doesn't make much difference. However, it is important to finish a term or semester. The child could end up losing three or four credits if his or her courses are not available at the new school.

What are the biggest mistakes families make in picking a new school?

They listen to friends – what might be right for one family might not be right for another. Elementary and secondary schools are as different as colleges. Take the issue of school size. That's the biggest single issue that people ignore. Everyone understands its importance when choosing a college, but school size can be just as important in terms of a child's opportunity to participate on the elementary and secondary school level. Small schools tend to be less competitive, so if you want to make the volleyball team or the debate team, you've got a better shot. However, some of the specialzied academic programs are not available at the small schools. It is most important to choose like-size schools. If you have a youngster in a school with 2,800 students, he or she is likely to be very unhappy in a school with 599, Conversely, the student in the school with 500 students is going to be very unhappy in the large school.

What advice do you have for a child being uprooted from a community and then dropped down in a new and unfamiliar situation?

I think it is very important for children to be involved in some activity, whether it is a musical, theatrical, or an athletic activity. The quicker the parents can get their child involved in an activity, the faster the child is going to make friends and be acclimated. Check out leadership programs such as student council and ask about competitive and non-competitive athletic programs.

Should the child be involved in the process of selecting a new school?

Absolutely. If the child can go to the school visits, that is great. Many schools, if asked will asign a buddy. The teachers or principal arranges for your son or daughter to be taken around by another student who will spend time with your child for the first few days.

It is also important to look in metro areas at schools where they already have a high incidence or relocation ,because they are probably better equipped to deal with it. You go into a lot of other places and the whole system seems to be stagnant and the same people have been there forever. The teachers and the students aren't used to having new kinds on the block.

It is important for parents to talk to teachers and ask questions about the curriculum?

Yes. It is more important though to talk to the administration. Check out computer hardware, text books, library resources, and teacher backgrounds. Ask if the curriculum emphasizes basic skills and if there is a diversity of program offerings. Ask if parent can't get an interview with a school principal when they are prospective parents, what's the situation going to be like when they are really there?