I tripped over a discussion of public vs private schools in Melbourne (where I live with my family).

We have two sons and went through this debate already a few years back.

I read a ton of stuff at the time, including papers and books.

I recall the following book helped a lot:

We got to: send them to public school, because:

  • The local primary/secondary public schools are good (e.g. NAPLAN rankings)
  • The outcomes from private schools are equal when controlled for socioeconomic factors.

We told both kids that they can go if they want and that there are real tangible benefits (better grounds, building, subject/sport choices, networking, etc.), but they have to prove they are serious by earning some kind of scholarship first.

To some, the fact that we can afford it and don’t use it is madness.

When asked, I say:

It’s a luxury good and we don’t want it.

In my head I thinking:

I try hard to avoid status games.

Anyway, I was thinking about all of this again and had a chat with gpt4o.

I asked about recent Australia-centric studies on public vs private and a summary of their outcomes.

The results were warming (confirmation bias):

Recent Australian studies have examined the comparative outcomes of public and private schools, focusing on academic performance, socioeconomic factors, and long-term achievements. Here are some notable findings:

1. Academic Performance and Socioeconomic Status

  • Study: The Public–Private Debate: School Sector Differences in Academic Achievement (2021)

    • Investigation: This study analyzed student achievement on the National Assessment Program: Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) across public, independent, and Catholic schools.

    • Findings: After adjusting for socioeconomic status (SES) and prior achievement, the study found minimal differences in academic performance between school sectors. This suggests that factors such as SES and individual student abilities play a more significant role in academic outcomes than the type of school attended.

2. Longitudinal Analysis of School Sector Effects

  • Study: Private School “Effects” on Student Achievement in Australian Schools (2014)

    • Investigation: This research examined the impact of attending private versus public schools on mid-secondary school outcomes, considering various student backgrounds.

    • Findings: The study concluded that, when controlling for student background characteristics, there was no substantial advantage in academic achievement for private school students compared to their public school counterparts.

3. Influence of School Type on University Performance

  • Study: Studies Show Public Schools Achieve Similar Results to Private Schools (2015)

    • Investigation: This comprehensive review analyzed nearly 30 academic studies comparing public and private school outcomes in Australia over 15 years.

    • Findings: The review found that public school students often achieve similar, if not better, academic outcomes compared to private school students, particularly in university settings. Notably, public school students were found to achieve higher grades in their first year of university than their private school peers, despite private school students often attaining higher university entrance scores.

4. Parental Influence Versus School Type

  • Study: Private Schools Show Same Results as Public Schools (2015)

    • Investigation: This study assessed the impact of various factors, including school type, on children’s academic outcomes.

    • Findings: The research indicated that parental involvement, birth weight, and parents’ education levels had more significant effects on a child’s academic performance than whether they attended a private or public school. This underscores the importance of family and early life factors over school type in determining educational outcomes.

5. Socioeconomic Stratification in Selective and Non-Selective Schools

  • Study: School Selectivity and Socioeconomic and Academic Stratification in Australia (2021)

    • Investigation: This research explored the socioeconomic and academic profiles of students attending fully selective, partially selective, private, and public schools in metropolitan Sydney and Melbourne.

    • Findings: The study found that fully selective schools enrolled students from more socioeconomically advantaged backgrounds compared to private and public schools. This stratification suggests that selective schools may contribute to increased socioeconomic disparities within the education system.

These studies collectively indicate that when accounting for socioeconomic factors and individual student characteristics, the differences in academic outcomes between public and private schools in Australia are minimal. This highlights the significant influence of socioeconomic status, parental involvement, and individual student abilities on educational achievement, rather than the type of school attended.

I didn’t fact check anything.

Perhaps there’s some hallucinating.

I strongly suspect this in fact, after some checking on google scholar.

The vibe of the response matches the discussion that sparked this piece and my takeaways from the book I mentioned above..

Update: (Jan 12th)

Okay, here’s a better attempt via perplexity:

Recent studies in Australia comparing academic outcomes between public and private schools have found minimal differences when accounting for socioeconomic factors:

  1. A 2022 study by the Australian Educational Researcher found no tangible difference in academic achievement between public and private schools[1].

  2. Research from the University of Melbourne showed that NAPLAN scores of children who attended private schools were no different from those in public schools after accounting for socioeconomic background[4].

  3. An analysis of students’ learning trajectories across NAPLAN test years (3, 5, 7, and 9) revealed:

    • Students who switched from public to private schools in year 7 outperformed others, but this was due to their prior high achievement in public primary schools[4].
    • There were no differences in achievement trajectories between public and private school students, indicating that private schools did not add value to students’ academic growth[4].

  4. While some Australian research suggests private school students are more likely to complete school and attend university, these outcomes are difficult to separate from the effects of students’ background characteristics[3][4].

  5. A recent study found that a school’s socioeconomic status predicts student achievement of minimum literacy and numeracy benchmarks. Disadvantaged students attending advantaged schools were twice as likely to reach minimum standards compared to those in disadvantaged schools[5].

In summary, these studies consistently show that apparent academic advantages of private schools largely disappear when socioeconomic factors are taken into account. The socioeconomic composition of a school, rather than its public or private status, appears to be a more significant predictor of academic outcomes.

Citations:

The TLDR from the summary:

In summary, these studies consistently show that apparent academic advantages of private schools largely disappear when socioeconomic factors are taken into account. The socioeconomic composition of a school, rather than its public or private status, appears to be a more significant predictor of academic outcomes.