Since I was in kindergarten I attended a Catholic school that prided itself in educating students while instilling in them strong, religious values. While I very much liked the school while I was there the rules were incredibly strict, something I didn’t realize until I graduated. Everything from classes to recess to after school programs was highly regimented and strict guidelines on uniform policy were heavily enforced. The school demographic was largely vanilla, not much diversity in terms of social class or cultural background.

Then I got to high school.

It had always been my desire to go to a public high school, and so when I graduated eighth grade I elected to attend the local public high. To say it was different from grade school would be an understatement. High school was nothing like grammar school. There were so many new people, so many interesting classes, much laxer rules, unsupervised free time, hour-long lunches, and enough extracurriculars to make my head spin. It was such a departure from what I was used to, but I quickly adjusted, meeting new friends and delighting in the absence of a uniform.

I took Web Design and Graphic Arts, Engineering Concepts and Dance Exercise. I had a lot of fun throughout high school with both classes and activities. I attended the homecoming games and went to the school dances, acted in a musical and performed in a dance showcase. I met a lot of lifelong friends throughout those four years, and for me it was a definitely worthwhile experience.

That’s not to say, however, that my grammar schooling was a stifling occurrence. Those nine years of private school gave me an academic foundation upon which I built my continuing knowledge. I met friends there when I was seven years old that I still talk to on a weekly basis. There was fostered my love for science and technology, and I learned valuable lessons about dealing with people and being a model citizen. I still use the morals and values I learned there today.

Which is better to attend, then? A private school or a public school? The answer, I think, is a little bit of both.

Having been fortunate enough to attend both ilks of school has shaped me as a person, both academically and socially. Having been exposed to each separately has definitely taught me a wide variety of skills regarding how to interact with different people throughout my life. Neither is necessarily better or worse, simply different. I didn’t learn the values of morality through high school, but neither did I learn cultural appreciation in grammar school.

Either way, it was a great experience to be exposed to a wide variety of people. Despite the downfalls of each, both private and public schools have their benefits for students.