3 Important Details Parents Shouldn’t Forget When Choosing A High School

Your child’s time in high school will have a big impact on their future, self confidence, and self esteem. After all, high schools are the buildings where we spend the most formative of our most formative years!

Whether your child is going for the first time or you’re trying to find a new school for them to attend, there are quite a few important details to go through. 

How far away is the school? How many cases of bullying have there been? Are there any other parents you could talk to? You’ve got quite a few hours of research ahead! 

But within them, we urge you not to forget about the three important details below either. They can have a dramatic impact on your child’s enjoyment of their high school education, and they require some thinking about! 

Visiting is Essential

Never pick a high school without seeing it in person! You need to take a tour around the place, getting to know the setting (and its teachers) for yourself. 

Even if you feel you know the school already (maybe because you sent one of your elder children there), a visit to their open day will give you an insight into what’s happening there now. 

Schools can change pretty quickly, and it’s good to get a proper, up close and personal impression.

The Way the School Teaches

This is something to ask about when you’re visiting the school, or if you’re able to get a meeting with the head teacher. 

What kind of approach does the school have to teaching and learning? What are the building blocks of the school culture? How do the teachers encourage and support the students?

You can also look into the school’s background, including student history and accreditations here. 

The latter is most important when you’re thinking of the school for a particular strength they have, such as a religious school holding Catholic Institution Certification that indicates their alignment with Christian principles. 

You need to see that the school really does follow through on what their website or prospectus promises. 

What Your Child Wants

It’s always best to include your child in their choice of high school. You need them to feel positive about attending, and at the very least, show them that what’s important to them does matter. 

Of course, kids can be quite fickle when it comes to choosing schools, and your child’s only reasoning for their preference might be because their friend is going there too! 

But this can tell you something about what they’re worried about. If they want the guarantee that they’ll know someone, the school’s social aspect is probably the most important thing! 

You can take that and factor it into the search, making sure that you account for extra curricular opportunities, fun clubs, and the school’s overall social culture. 

If you’re in the midst of choosing a high school, don’t forget about these essential details. Factor them in to make a truly informed educational choice.