Why I chose private school: B.C. parents speak out
Private school enrolment has increased while public school enrolment has decreased
"I never thought I'd be a private school mom."
Tracey Axelsson is part of a growing demographic of B.C. parents who have chosen to enroll their children in a private school.
She has two kids and both went to their neighbourhood public school in Vancouver. Things changed two years ago when her daughter Helena entered the fifth grade.
"The teachers are overwrought. They have 28 or more kids in the classroom. They cannot possibly be on top of everybody at all times, and [...] she was being yelled at."
Axelsson enrolled Helena in a private school that was close by where the class sizes were much smaller and Helena would get the attention she needed.
Helena thrived.
"At this school they spend a lot of time with you, helping you actually realize what's going on if you're confused," she said. "The teachers are much more welcoming."
It's a common theme. A 2015 Fraser Institute study said private school enrolment has gone up in the province by 24.4 per cent since 2001.
Lindsay Killam is another parent that also decided to choose private school for her child because of the attention they could give her son.
She said her 10-year-old needs the extra support because he's younger than most of his peers in his grade and quite sensitive.
"For him, academically, it has made him a bit self-conscious. He's evaluating himself all the time against kids who are a lot older and more ready to take on challenges than he is. It's not a problem for all kids, but when you're sensitive, you're just really aware of that all the time," she said.
"Over time, it really affects kids' self-esteem and in my son's case, it certainly has."
Expensive decision
But private school comes with sacrifices.
For one, it's not cheap — Axelsson says her daughter's tuition costs $7,200 per year.
"That's $7,200 that we didn't have to put on other things, but I'm really frugal. And I'm a mom — I go without for myself before I let my daughter or son not have what they need."
And for Killam and her husband, they debated long and hard before sending their son to a private school.
"I know that I find it a struggle that public funding goes towards private schools, but I also know if that funding wasn't there to help the private schools, that would make something like that completely out of reach to a family like us."
But Killam said it's worth it.
"As a parent, it was just really exciting to watch that moment when your kid is like 'this is a place that i could love.'"
Return to the public school system
That's not to say their kids will stay exclusively in the private school system for their entire education.
Both Axelsson and Killam have other children who are in the public school system, and Axelsson's daughter Helena is returning to the public school system this week as she starts Grade 8.
She said her daughter is ready to go back.
"I think we have the opportunity to try that system again, she's not with the same teacher all day, she changes classrooms, and she will be back with her old friends."
With files from On the Coast
To hear the segment, click on the link labelled: Why two B.C. parents enrolled their kids in private school