School Decisions

Much to my disbelief, my boy Hardy will be starting kindergarten next fall. Part of me is in shock that it is already time for him to be in school full time. I still my baby when I look at him, not a boy ready to enter school and deal with others on a full time basis.

I worry a bit about him because he is a bit reserved at first. It can take him months to warm up to kids. He is wary of new experiences, and I worry about him coming into contact with bullies. Part of that worry is because although he is very tall for his age, he has no clue that he is big for his age. An apt description of Hardy is that he is a gentle giant.

In Murfreesboro, there are options other than your zoned school. There are 2 magnet elementary schools, and a campus school that has a waiting list a mile long. There is also a NASA Explorer school (whatever that is). So there are a lot of public school options.

For my family, public school is the only option I am comfortable with. There is nothing wrong with private schools, but that is not the atmosphere I want my kid in. And while I am religious and am glad there are religious school options available, I don't want that for my kid either.

Part of what drives me is that I want my child to be exposed to as many different kinds of people as possible in his life. It is estimated that we "white" Americans will be in the minority by 2050, and this will be the reality of his adulthood. I need him to know that no matter the race or creed that all people are fundamentally the same. We all want and strive for the same things - fulfillment, love, achievement, acceptance, belonging. It is not that I don't believe there are cultural differences, but I think those differences are things we should learn about, not things to be feared.

Although I myself went to a magnet high school, I am a little uneasy about the magnets in this town. Part of the unease is due to the racial and socio-economic makeup of the schools - they are overwhelmingly white and not disadvantaged. I do not know if that is the atmosphere I want my kid to learn in. While I believe those schools do a fantastic job of educating children, I also think the other city schools have teachers that are doing a fabulous and selfless job of educating children.

Education is not only made up of the curriculum taught; it is also a matter of learning about people and how to get along in society. I don't want my child to have a faith that has been so sheltered that it fails him when he enters the adult world, full of people of differing or no faiths. I don't want him growing up only learning about his own history and background; I want him to learn about other cultures and see how the presence of so many different cultures only enhances life.

So this is my conundrum. Do I send Hardy to his zoned school? I hesitate there only because it is large (over 700 students) and worry about how he will cope with going to a big school. Do I send him to the NASA Explorer school, which is closer to campus and has a more diverse (and disadvantaged) student body? Do I have him tested for the magnet schools, not worrying if he can get in? I honestly do not know what is best for my son. I only know I don't want my issues (my desire for him to be in school with lots of different cultures) to make him miss out on better educational opportunities. I think it was easier for our parents -they just sent us where the school board told them to send us. I almost wish we could go back to that.