There are many different opinions on how to decide what school is best for your child.

Read:How To Select The Best School| when Relocating & Buying Princeton Homes For Sale

Princeton New Jersey Schools – Princeton Charter School

Parents often ask how one school compares to another to help them select where to live and/or buy their home in the Greater Princeton. Others argue the rankings may not address your child’s specific needs.

Here are few facts to help you in thinking about high schools  in Princeton, Montgomery, West Windsor and Hopewell. New Jersey Monthly ranks New Jersey schools and many parents consider these ratings when evaluating the best school for their kids and as part of their decision when moving to the Princeton area. With a freshman in my family, I could particularly appreciate how high the scores are for all area schools. The second observation is the high number of AP classes offered and the high grades (over 3) students received.

There are some changes in the lineup in the recently released 2008 rankings. Princeton High had moved up significantly, while Montgomery High and West Windsor South moved down, West Windsor moved down just one rank.

According to NJ Magazine’s ranking of  New Jersey schools:
School Rank    2008 Rank 2006
Princeton High School            6                       13
Montgomery High School       16                       4
West Windsor High North       19                       18
West Windsor High South       21                       9
Hopewell Valley Central          39                       59

Here a few other facts:
School     Average Size Class        Av. SAT                     #Of AP’s Offered       % Scoring >3 on AP
Princeton                    11.8                              1824             27                            91
Montgomery               12.1                              1755             24                            90
W. Windsor  N            19.9                              1742             29                            87
W. Windsor S              21.5                              1798             31                            91

If you are reading this article because you are considering a move to Princeton NJ area, you could

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What are the schools like in Princeton, West Windsor, Montgomery, or other towns in the greater Princeton area and how to select the best one? This question is very important for the New Jersey real estate buyers when they are considering where to buy their next home.

It is not surprising that as the Princeton New Jersey real estate agent I am often asked this question by buyers looking for Princeton area homes. And although there are many places and reports that rank and rate schools based on various criteria, this is not an easy question for a real estate agent to answer for several reasons.

The first reason is something called “steering” and which is illegal under the Federal Fair Housing Act. Steering is defined as “channeling home seekers either to or way from particular areas on the basis of race,religion, country of origin, or other protected class”.  Although schools are not explicitly mentioned in this  law, offering opinions about schools could be construed as steering, which for NJ real estate licensed agents is illegal.

The second reason, is practical, rather then legal. As parents we know that every child is different and with educational needs that could be different for each child in a family. Even the highest ranking schools may not meet the needs of every child. Parents are the best judges of what educational environment is best for their kids.

The third reason is that schools rankings are done by many different organizations, and criteria for such rankings are different as well. The ratings may not be meaningful for each child, since they may not all reflect criteria important for a particular child’s educational needs. Parents are the best judges of what educational environment is best for their children and they are the only ones who could determine which school best meets their child’s needs.  Parents therefore are in the best position to select the right greater Princeton school for their child.

If you are considering purchasing Princeton home, Hopewell home, Montgomery home, or West Windsor home, you could approach your school research in several ways.

II. Research Schools On the Internet

Here are a few helpful sites.
1. Great Schools – Compares schools based on several criteria and has useful advice for parents.

2. Newsweek The Top of the Class -public schools rankings based on the ratio of the number of Advanced Placement tests taken by all students divided by the number of graduating seniors

3. New Jersey Statewide Assessment Reports – provided by the State of New Jersey Department of Education

4. School Digger _- New Jersey School Districts Rankings

5. Star Ledger 2007 school Report Card – information on basic tests mandated by the NJ – grade 4 (ESPA), 8(GEPA), 11(HSPT), and other information

6. Blue Ribbon Schools – information about schools awarded this designation by the U. S. Department of Education

7. Recognition Programs – information about schools other awards provided by the NJ Department of Education

8.New Jersey Monthly -Rankings of the Top High Schools in New Jersey

9. Information for parents by the NJ Department of Education

8. New Jersey School Directory (including charter, non-public) – provided by the  state of NJ Department of Education

10. New jersey United Higher School Standards – information “to help parents and educational stakeholders hold informed discussions about what students are expected to know and how they are tested.”

11. Seven ways to evaluate an education (By Gabriel H. Gluck and Padriac Cassidy)

12. School District Web sites

III. Visit the schools

Find out information that could be important to your child’s needs and skills: about programs such as art, music, or athletics, or special services.

You as a parent could find all the important information for your child’s educational needs. Once the decision regarding the school is made, you could focus on finding the best Princeton area house to meet your family’s needs.

Please call us for any additional information, so we could help you make your Princeton real estate search as easy as possible.

If you are relocating to Princeton area read:

Relocating to Princeton – How To Decide Where To Live

Resources for finding best Princeton real estate:

How To Buy And Sell Your Princeton Home Like A Pro

Monthly and quarterly Princeton real estate market housing reports:

Princeton area Housing Prices, Market Reports, Statistics

Princeton NJ Mercer County Real Estate Market Housing Report -First Quarter 2008

Please call 609-553-4175 for services in Princeton, Montgomery Township, West Windsor, Plainsboro, Princeton Junction, Hopewell, Pennington, and Lawrenceville New Jersey.New Jersey Real estate, New Jersey homes for sale and/or listing New Jersey homes to sell, relocation services and assistance. Referrals are accepted. Countrywide and international relocation program is available.

Faina Sechzer does not guarantee or is in any way responsible for accuracy of the information on this site, and provides said information without warranties of any kind, either expressed or implied. Every consumer is urged to perform their own research and analysis.

Copyright ©2008-2009 Faina Sechzer All rights reserved. This information cannot be copied, reproduced, transmitted, distributed, displayed or published.

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