Famed reformer Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

This is a feel-good, popular sentiment, and it gives us hope. The problem is, this goes in both directions: the world can be changed for good or for evil. When we look at what a subverted education system – or simply a poor education system – does to the next generation, should we be hopeful? Or should we think that something’s got to give?

Christy-Faith, in her popular book Homeschool Rising, describes the growing skepticism of the current public school system in this way:

“It’s having the courage to truly ask ourselves, ‘This may be normal, but is this “normal” good?’”
Increasingly, the Christian community in America looks at the 200-year-old public school system and says, “No. This is not good.”

The ever-declining test scores, increasingly unhinged political and philosophical agendas, and the behavior and crime problems in public schools are now well attested and documented. But where does that leave the future leaders of our churches, businesses, and governments?

If we abandon the public school system as a failed model, where are parents to turn?

Increasingly, the answer is:

1) Private Christian Schools
2) Homeschool
3) A hybrid model that blends the first two approaches.

The numbers tell us that private school enrollment is booming, and more families are homeschooling than ever before. We spoke with parents, educators, and even church staff who have funded new private schools in order to better understand the phenomena of America’s slow rejection of the public school system.

“We chose a private Christian school for the morals and values,” says Michelle Perelman, a mother of three (and pregnant with her fourth). She and her husband moved their family from Alabama to Tennessee and have recently enrolled their children in a parochial school. “We’ve enjoyed our experience so far and have been very satisfied with the education… Overall, we chose it because we either wanted to homeschool or have them attend a Christian school so our kids would learn Bible stories. God is very present and known in our kids’ lives at school.”

Dan Deyling, Principal of Foothills Christian High School in San Diego, CA, says this reasoning is becoming common.

“A significant number of people aren’t interested in the religion of the public schools – which is secularism – and they’re looking for an alternative. Christian education offers a coherent, cohesive theory that is based on reality, and it works.”

When asked why Christian schools are an increasingly attractive solution for even non-believers, Deyling highlights the classroom management issue that is facing public schools, and the alternative environment you find in a private Christian institution.

“Parents want places where you can actually make rules, have discipline, and enforce it. That’s become less and less available in the public school system.”

Foothills Christian School follows the hybrid model, which provides 3 days of in-person instruction in a fairly typical school setting, and 2 days of independent study – essentially home schooling – that allows parents in on the process of educating their children. The school was founded nearly three decades ago by a local church.

Some other Christian parents, however, prefer to keep all of the education in-house.

“We really love spending time with our kids,” says Ben Gordon, an entrepreneur in Los Angeles with four children. He and his wife have decided to homeschool. “We value passing our values onto the next generation, and we want to be the primary ones instilling values into our children. We’re very passionate about it.”

Sara Reading, a mother of three in Chattanooga, TN, expressed a similar sentiment but with an intriguing twist. She and her husband have taken inspiration for their children’s education from the monastic tradition. “What I love about monasteries,” Reading says, “is that they operate in slowness and thoughtfulness. Their faith isn’t compartmentalized as part of their day; it’s central, and everything else is peripheral to that. That’s why we are doing what we are doing. We want to grow together in a faith-centric lifestyle.”She and her husband send their kids to a hybrid school once a week, and the rest of their days they spend with their parents.

As more and more Christian parents reflect on their time in the public school system, spending 8 hours a day in classrooms, followed by multiple hours of homework in the evening, they are starting to think that we’ve been given a raw deal. (Over 50% of U.S. adults say that public K-12 education is going in the wrong direction.) Christian private schools, hybrid schools, and the homeschool approach offer a different solution, which allows faith to be integrated into every aspect of our lives and builds up the family unit at a time when that is rare.

Homeschooling, however, takes some organization, a special set of skills, and at least one parent who doesn’t have to be at work. Private Christian schools tend to be expensive (over $12,000 per year, per child, on average), and not everyone can afford to send their children. Thankfully, there are more and more resources and homeschool support networks to assist people who are making the switch. Private Christian schools often offer scholarships, especially when affiliated with a local church – and in some states, such as Tennessee, the government now allows for a voucher system so that your tax dollars can go towards tuition at a private Christian institution.

All of this is to say that finding a way to give your children a Christian education can be challenging, but there are ways of making it happen – and the stakes have never been higher. Preacher and writer Voddie Baucham provides a piercing epigram in an era where more and more young people are abandoning the faith and embracing strange and damaging ideas:

“If you send your children to Caesar to be educated, you should not be surprised when they come back as Romans.”

Private Christian schools aren’t funded by Caesar, so that gives them a bit more freedom in how they operate and in what they teach. Instead, they get their operating capital from tuition, endowments, fundraisers, or even from local churches pitching in using tithes and offerings. Private school teachers make much less (around $41k) on average than public school teachers (around $66k), so even the instructors are willing to take a hit in order to help the cause. Homeschooling, needless to say, isn’t government-funded either; it’s mom, dad, and a whole lot of decisions to make and organizing to do.

At the end of the day, parents who put their children in private Christian schools or homeschool their children feel that the unique education is a price they’ll gladly pay.

“It’s worth it,” says Rita Fulkerson, a mother of three in Georgia. “It’s very worth it.”

Quick Hits

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• Blackstone President Jonathan Gray says, “We can see the pillars of a real-estate recovery coming into place, specifically in regards to the multifamily/rental market.
• The Wall Street Journal traces several shifting narratives on the stock market and encourages investors to be clear-headed and eyes-open when placing bets.
• Pew Research Center offers “6 Facts about Americans and TikTok” for those wanting to understand the reach of the social media platform in our country.
• Church Leaders encourages pastors and elders to “fight the urge to make your small church look big,” instead valuing the intimacy and connectedness of a smaller body.