The other day I saw this bumper sticker: “I’m the proud parent of the only average student in Palo Alto.” And I had to laugh, because education overachievement is such a core value in Palo Alto that we often lose perspective on what “average” really means. Our schools are filled with the children of university professors, engineers, medical professionals, and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs — not really a representative slice of the U.S. population.
Chances are that if you’re house hunting in Palo Alto, schools matter, so here’s a brief overview of elementary school options. Let me preface this discussion by saying the all the Palo Alto schools are very good, which is one of the reasons that local real estate prices are so high. So when you look at differences in the schools here, they’re minor philosophical or structural differences, not radical ones. [Photo: Animal husbandry is taught at Ohlone Elementary. Credit: Eva Soos/PA Weekly]
One way to compare schools is to look at the California Department of Education Academic Performance Index (API), which is a statewide benchmark based a standardized achievement tests. (Scale: 200 to 1000)
In most cases, Palo Alto residents send their children to the closest neighborhood school, but there are a few alternative choices for people who are looking for something a little different.
Hoover: This “Back-to-Basics” alternative school emphasizes more traditional teacher-driven classroom instruction. Seats in this school are allocated by a lottery, which accepts applications in February.
Ohlone: This alternative school emphasizes child-centered learning and has a no-homework philosophy. It has two-grade-level mixed classrooms and an animal farm on site, which is used to teach children about animal husbandry. Seats in this school are also allocated by a lottery.
Escondido: About half of this school participates in a Spanish Immersion Program, where a large percentage of the instruction is done in Spanish. Seats are allocated by lottery, and students who which to continue this program into middle school need to attend JLS Middle School.
Greendell: This “Young Fives” program is for children who aren’t quite ready to start kindergarten.
Mandarin Language Immersion Program: A three-year pilot program will begin at Ohlone starting in the fall of 2008.
Here is a map of the elementary school districts. Be aware that Palo Alto is considering opening a 13th school, so the boundaries will probably change in the near future.
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