The choice of which school to send their children to is not a decision parents should take lightly. David Schembri spoke to three parents to see what school they chose for their children and why.

Parents who truly want the best for their child often agonise on which school they should send them to. The debate on what sort of school is best for children is lively – some swear by State schools, others by Church schools, while others find the best fit for their child and interests in a private school. Some parents are ready to make sacrifices – like forgoing annual holidays – in order to pay for their children’s private education, while others are more than happy to send their children to a State school, despite having been to Church schools themselves.

Sarah Theuma is one such parent. Having been educated at a Church school herself, her daughter Amy, now nine, attends the Luqa primary school. She started school aged two, at St Cecilia in Tarxien, as her mother wanted her to get used to school before starting kindergarten.

“She loved school from the start,” Sarah recounts. “They used to do crafts and activities, and she loved it – she was very outgoing from a very early age.”

However, as soon as the option of a State school entered the equation, Sarah had no hang-ups on sending her daughter to a State school.

“I loved my past school but we still decided to take her to government school. I know that today the best teachers are at government schools,” she says. “I’m not saying anything negative about Church schools because my teachers were great. I will never forget my school years as I learnt a lot, not just academics but also a lot for life.

“The experience at her current school has been very good. Every year she had very dedicated teachers and she loved them all. They work very hard and for the best interest of the children even individually,” she says. “Today children are given the best education and support they need. Teachers work hard so that their class reaches certain goals by the end of the year and also prepare them for the coming years,” she adds.

Sarah points at the large amount of activities children have, as well as the classes being equipped with modern technology like interactive whiteboards, which children love. “I’m convinced that this is the best choice I could have made,” she says.

Michelle Vella Wood’s daughter Katie is almost four years old and has recently started attending the Siġġiewi primary school. Convenience, coupled with the good reputation and the fact it was free made the decision easy. “It was free, it’s walking distance from our house and it has a good reputation,” Michelle says. “It wasn’t a hard decision, a no brainer, really.”

Now a PhD candidate, she knows from personal experience that a State school education can be high-quality, having spent her time at school in State schools herself. However, she is still not 100 per cent sure that her ­daughter will be staying in a State school.

“I’m observing the current ­education policies and awaiting to see whether there are any changes. If, after I finish my PhD, I get a good-paying job, I will try to put her in Verdala ­International School, because of the diversity there and the ­opportunity to take the International Baccalaureate.

“In this way, her education would not be subject to the whims of a government change. That said, I’m not ­considering other private or Church schools,” she says.

Once upon a time, parents wanting their children to be in a Church school had two options. The first was a lottery before primary school, which might get them into a choice of schools. In the case of boys, they could also help their children to focus and do well in the common entrance exams which, according to how they were ranked, would enable them to choose a school until it filled up. This system, arguably meritocratic, has since been completely replaced by the pot luck of the lottery.

Michael, the son of Ian Scicluna, a teacher of Maltese, avoided the pot luck – teachers can automatically have their children admitted into the school they work in – and got admitted into Savio College in Dingli. Prior to that, he had been in a State primary school.

“When it comes to kindergarten and primary school, I feel government schools are good, if not better, than their private counterparts,” Ian says. “There are plenty of resources, and there’s a greater chance of your child meeting children from all sorts of backgrounds.”

There is a different answer according to which person you ask

Secondary schools, however, are a different story in his view. “State secondary schools are enormous. Students can get lost in the system and become just a number. Apart from that, there is more bullying in State schools,” he says.

That said, he does not give his son an easy ride at school. “I think I end up being harder on him so that his mates don’t think I’m making preferences,” he ­admits.

Had there not been the option of sending him to his own school, Ian says that he would have tried to get him into another Church school through the lottery system, then in a State school. The last choice, the teacher says, would have been a private school, because he believes that parents make too many demands on the administration because of the fees they pay.

“Savio College is all that a secondary school should be – there’s a small student population, students get individual attention and you have religious and lay people who feel connected to the school and the students’ well-being. On the other hand, teachers at State schools rarely feel so attached to the place they work,” he says.

Is the debate on what school is best settled? Far from it. Like many other things in life, there is a different answer according to which person you ask – and thankfully, there is a choice.