Why I Dread Returning to an American Public School
By Firoozeh Dumas, NY
Times
After almost six
years in Munich, my family and I will soon be returning to California, and
there are a few things I already know I will miss. I am not talking about the
obvious (fresh pretzels, fresh pretzels with cheese, fresh pretzels with cheese
and pumpkin seeds, no potholes, universal health care) but the less known
differences that come with spending time in schools.
We are fortunate to
live in a part of Munich with top-notch public schools, similar to where we
lived in America. We pay a few percentage points more in taxes than we paid in
California, but holy Betsy DeVos, do we get more!
Our daughter’s
elementary school, which she graduated from a few years ago, offered a rich
curriculum, from math and sciences to arts and languages. After school, in addition
to the more traditional offerings of chess, theater and computers, she could
take circus lessons, where children learned to juggle, walk on a tightrope and
ride a unicycle. Since her school did not have a pool, students were bused
every week to a nearby sports club for swim lessons, at no extra charge.
