Reprinted from 1984 Some information may be outdated.
The Christian school phenomenon is exploding across America today. According to the Association of Christian Schools International, there are approximately 25,000 Christian schools in the U.S.A., with a total population of 3.75 million students. Tim LaHaye has predicted that if present rates of growth continue, Christian schools will outnumber public schools by 1990.
Torn between Christian and public school options, many parents are realizing they must choose, even if the choice demands sacrifice or compromise. Christian schools teach a foundation of Bible and Christian principles, yet they usually don't have the facilities that public schools have. And parents must pay twice-through both taxes and tuition-to send their children to a Christian school.
The stakes are high. By the time a child graduates from high school, he will have spent about 16,000 hours receiving input from dozens of teachers. Parents naturally wonder about turning their children over to humanists with varying moral philosophies of life. Furthermore, teachers in public schools seem helpless to solve the discipline problems. Literally thousands of teachers are assaulted each year, and the estimated annual cost of school crime is in the hundreds of millions. More and more parents are leaving it up to the schools (whether public or Christian) to discipline their children.
Before parents who care can make a valid decision, however, they must know their children, the home situation, and the Christian school alternative. A good school without a good teacher can be just as bad as a poor school.
First of all, visit the schools in question. Talk to the principal and the teacher(s) who might teach your child. Check out methods of teaching and even the curriculum. Danger signs in public schools are spotted more easily, but the problems in Christian schools are just as critical, though more subtle. Going to a Christian school to avoid the public school does not guarantee a quality education.
Education in a Christian school will no doubt include a biblical perspective on learning, but the teaching approach should encourage critical thinking, not just indoctrination. Look for an integration of biblical principles into all the disciplines, not just separate Bible teaching and Bible memorization.
Look for strong academic training (college degrees and teaching certificates) and experienced teachers. Some Christian schools pay as little as half the wages of public school teachers. How much turnover is there among teachers in that school?
Do their high school upperclassmen take scholastic aptitude tests for college entrance? What percent of their graduates are accepted into institutions of higher learning?
Many Christian schools use church buildings. Are their facilities adequate?
Examine the kind of input you and your church have into your child's life. Do you have good communication? Does your child respect what you say? Does he/she confide in you? If the answers to these questions are yes, then your child may do well in a good public school. It's not an easy decision, but it's one that must be made.
After wrestling with the issues, we decided to keep our two children in public schools. You may decide differently, but here was our decision, after praying and trying to understand what the Lord was saying to us.
The Bible tells us that Christians are to be the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13). In the same context Christ stated, "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven" (5:16,NASB).
How can a Christian student be a salt preservative in the non-Christian world when he has been removed from that world? How can the light of Christ shine from a student into the darkness of the pagan world if the light can't reach darkness?
Jesus frequently entered the world of publicans and sinners because He was concerned about them. Obviously, our first concern must be our own children, but many Christian parents have copped out of their responsibility to the community's educational system.
By misunderstanding what it means "to be separate," many Christian parents have taken a retreatist attitude. As a result, the public schools can only get worse. Then the community will get worse because "secular" and "Christian" will not be integrated, but divided in two separate worlds. The way to influence non-Christians is to show loving concern and win the right to be heard. Going off to do it one's own way usually does not establish much rapport.
We believe that public schools will better reflect the wishes of Christian parents if the Christian parents actively seek ways to affect their community's education system. This requires involvement in their school and community affairs.
We led both our children to Christ at age four. They grew in their Christian faith through church, Youth for Christ activities, and our strong parental input. We often had lengthy discussions about God, heaven, sin, salvation, and many moral issues. We prayed together and occasionally acted out Bible stories to help them remember the stories more graphically. Use of the teaching moments became our specialty. And we enjoy good respect and communication with our children.
Though we had no extra money to pay for Christian school tuition, we would have changed priorities and sacrificed extensively had we believed that our children should attend a Christian school.
Art had worked with hundreds of public school kids in Youth For Christ, and we were aware of their problems. We also knew many youths from Christian schools who had very little foundation to the faith on which they stood.
Em Griffin, in his book, The Mind Changers, points out that studies have shown that people who have little opposition to their Christian faith usually put down very shallow roots. After years in a cocoon-like environment, they often falter when the first winds of false doctrine blow. Such youth are especially vulnerable to some of the cults.
If a student goes only to a Christian school that teaches only one side, he may "jump ship" later when the school's good influence is gone, and someone with more impressive "reasoning" comes along. We've seen it happen.
As our children approached school age, we decided that we wanted them to be "in the world" but not "of the world." We wanted them to experience the world firsthand-not just hear about it in class. We wanted them to meet and talk with a humanist-not just read about one in their texts. We wanted them to be taught by an evolutionist so they could sharpen their skills in defending creationism. We asked the Lord to give them non-Christian friends whom they could influence for Christ.
All of our children's schools have had better facilities than most Christian schools in our area. Sports, music, and science seem to be the areas that suffer the most in Christian schools. This is often caused by lack of funds and lack of students. Public schools quite frequently have better libraries and more extracurricular activities.
We wanted our children to benefit from a large music program with band, orchestra, and choir, so we chose their high schools and deliberately moved to that district. We got involved in many school and community activities. We faithfully attended parent-teacher conferences and supported the music program financially. Lois met each of the kids every day after school when they arrived home. She spent fifteen to twenty minutes with each individually, listening and talking about the just-completed school day.
Our home became a warm and loving place for them to bring their friends after school, so they didn't spend lots of time away. We worked at good, consistent discipline at all times.
Deanna and Jeff were active at church, memorized Scripture, and learned how to share their faith. (Jeff has led three of his friends to Christ.) We've taught them to reach out to hurting, neglected students, especially during the years they participated in a citywide bussing program.
When they brought up questions on sex, standards, values, evolution, and abortion, we utilized such teaching moments to explain the Christian worldview. We taught our children to face difficult situations and work out solutions rather than avoid such difficulties. Deanna is now enrolled in a Christian college and Jeff in public school.
We strongly believe in Christian liberal arts education. It is at this age that many students are ready to handle a more in-depth study of the Bible and the Christian worldview. Plus, it's a good place for students to find a Christian husband or wife.
Deanna has reported that many students at her college who came from Christian high schools take their faith for granted. They aren't as interested in chapel or church services or even in their Bible courses.
Sometimes they are the ones who become troublemakers or get into trouble because their restraints are suddenly removed. They find themselves with instant freedom but are unable to handle the responsibility that goes with it.
Both Deanna and Jeff are better prepared to develop relationships and deal with fights, disagreements, confrontation, and adversity. We're glad we placed them in public schools, for their faith is stronger and they are ready to face the real world ahead.
