Moving to Seattle and questions about public versus private schools

[REignbow]

Hi and thanks in advance for any advice given.

Myself and family currently live away from the UK and at the moment my oldest DC goes to an international school and follows an IB curriculum (primary).

It now looks certain that at the end of the school year (June), we will move to Seattle (we currently live the other side of the world).

Ideally, I would like my DC to continue with the IB curriculum or even the British curriculum. Are there any schools that offer this (my DH office is located in the city centre)?

However, what are the public schools like and the level of education? This move is not a permanent one, so we want our DC to have the best level possible so that when we return to the UK, they will be on a level playing field with their peers?

Help!

Can't answer specifics for Seattle but can answer on matching up education between countries. The challenge is things are taught at a different pace/time. I grew up moving around and was ahead of everyone in maths for example when I arrived age 11 in US but when I came back to UK at 14 I had done maths in the us which didn't come up again until a level. Likewise I know lots of American history obviously and then on return to UK GCSE topic was American history .

As an adult the main thing I have noticed is my vocabulary is not as good as others. I learn new words even now which people in UK just somehow know.

Area you live in wil also dictate quality of school. Unlike UK funding for school is dictated by taxes collected in immediate area so better neighborhood means more funding and not just different profile of peers as you would find in UK.

Hope that is helpful

Seattle has some great public schools, including a handful that offer the IB curriculum. However like a lot of American cities, it can be hit and miss - many school districts that are in the greater Seattle area are not actually in the Seattle school district and are not particularly well-funded. (This is a problem around the US, but even more acute in Seattle as Washington is one of the few US states to not have a state income tax, which further hampers education funding.) Do you know where you'll be living? If you're on the north side, most eastern suburbs or in West Seattle, you should be fine. On the south side, things get dicier. The Highline School District, in the Seattle area and just south of the city proper, stuggles with a low tax base and underfunded schools.
Honestly though, from the way you describe your move, I suspect you'll be living in one of the areas where the schools are just fine.

You need to research IB public schools in the Seattle area and start your search for a home once you have narrowed down schools. Make sure by contacting each school directly that you are looking at homes within their District (= catchment area). You should contact the registrar/residency officer in each District you are interested in. Residency is strictly enforced in most American School Districts and you will need documentation to prove residency if you opt for a public school.

If you choose a private school you will be paying full whack for tuition and all incidentals if it is a faith school. Residency/catchment isn't an issue for most private schools. Some religious schools may take members of a certain faith ahead of students who do not belong to that faith (not all do this). Some private schools hold placement exams. It is possible to fail to be admitted.

@hatchee it’s a myth that our schools here in Washington are underfunded due to no income tax. If you look at finding state-by-state we are about average. But in a country this size a d diverse you obviously can’t compare directly as it’s apples and oranges (AK, CA and HI have much higher costs of living, WY has more rural schools so the pupil:teacher ratio is lower, making their costs per pupil higher, and so on). We have the school levy on our property taxes to compensate for the “shortfall” in income tax. Could we spend more on education? Absolutely. But the absence of state income tax has nothing to do with it. Tax is still collected in other ways (Seattle has one of the highest sales taxes in the country). Introducing income tax in WA would not increase school funding just as the promise that schools would benefit from the lottery or from the 37% tax on marijuana came to nothing.

Well yes, but the fact that property taxes are used is a big part of the problem. Again, it's why districts like Highline fall so far behind other districts that they are next door to. Washington is a wealthy enough state that I wouldn't expect it to be at the absolute bottom when it comes to funding, but it's still pretty underwhelming.