The opening of a school year constitutes a great headache for middle -class families who opt for private education for their children.
The high costs of enrollment in private schools, followed by investment in textbooks, notebooks, uniforms, backpacks and other supplies required to receive teaching, is a matter of restlessness for the generality of parents since they are obliged to borrow to get out of that trance.
Middle class families face high costs in private education for their children
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Carolina Pimentel is a young executive of a private institution and mother of 2 girls with ages of 7 and 2 years. Together with her husband, she achieves a monthly salary of $ 250,000, of which they had to use $ 21,000 in textbooks, $ 9,000 in uniforms, $ 2,000 in shoes and $ 20,000 as registration payment for each.
Great investment
“This year we had to resort to a bank loan to meet that need, which competes with the payment of the apartment, the purchase of food and other needs that are generated in a home where there are children,” Pimentel explained.
Although it considers the school where their daughters study, this year will pay an annual registration of $ 349,000, for five weekly classes, from 8 in the morning to 4 in the afternoon, lunch and task room.
The loud of private education hits Angela Ferreras with equal force.
“For example, the basic high school kit usually costs between $ 13,000 and $ 15,000, without having optional subjects, languages, arts and new technologies,” he said.
“A family of 2 children in a private school must invest above 250,000 thousand pesos each year, without counting expenses in food and materials for academic projects,” he said.
“The most difficult thing for families lies in the payment of the percentage of the school year that is usually between 30 and 40 percent and the acquisition of books, the latter because the editors change the books every year and forces parents to buy new books new house,” said Ferreras.
A big business
Altagracia Florentino lives from a small clothing and shoe store, mother of 3 children.
He complained that the books he used last year his eldest son in the third year do not serve for his second stem this year, and have to invest almost RD $ 30,000 alone in that line.
“I thought that this year would drop almost 50%, because I could use books last year, which I took to be almost intact,” he said.
Investigating the issue, Florentino said he found that the editors change the series of books every two years so that, although with the same content, they seem different.
“I wonder how an organized state, which claims to defend people’s interests, can allow such a thing,” said outraged.
Margarita Aquino, mother of three children, questions the directors and owners of schools that force parents to buy the new series.
Complicity
Margarita Aquino complains about the complicity of the directors and owners of schools, because, they force parents to buy the new series, although they know they have the same content as the previous one. “That happens is unusual with a sector that, although private, is responsible for many families,” said this mother of three.
