Challenger

I only sent my kid to the Kindergarten program in summer to try it out. The teachers have attitude, are rude to kids and they do not treat the children well. I will not recommend this school at all
--Submitted by a parent

Hi, I am an eighth grader at Challenger Sunnyvale this year. I think Challenger gave me the best education I could possible receive and everyone is really disciplined and nice. I never encountered any sort of bullying or peer pressure in this school and the teachers take good responsibility. I highly recommend this school.

My first suggestion is to avoid this school if you want the safety of your child. The school is overcrowded and has least amount of supervision during outdoor activities. All the emphasis is on Academics, there is no importance given to Social Skills. My kid got hurt twice within a couple of months, one of them being a serious injury, but the school management refused to improve their supervision practices. I heard great things about this school, I deeply regret sending my kid to this school. Please don't make the same mistake as me.
--Submitted by a parent

Challenger focuses mainly on academics, and only has a running field. You can get a $1000 scholarship too; however, you need a 3.9 GPA in all the terms and 97% and above in all sections of the ITBS.

Challenger empowers my daughter to be her best - the school has very high academic standards and provides the encouragement I would expect from every school.
--Submitted by a parent

It's true this school has VERY high expectations. Some of the students have even developed permanent health problems due to all the stress. The school rules limit ours AND the teachers' creativity severely. Challenger is actually given standards by corporate (situated in either California or Utah). When one of the best teachers in our school tried to give the classroom a theme, someone from corporate said it was too 'colorful' and 'distracting' and demanded it be taken down. In the past we have taken Stanford Acheivment Tests, used mainly for private schools, but they have recently changed to IOWA tests, for public schools too. I work hard, and being in a private school, I want to be on private school standards. Also, some teachers could definitely be smarter, and the staff is simply unorganized - but just going to preschool is worthwhile, and middle school is average if not above.
--Submitted by a student

They have too much strict rules like army. They don't think about child's charateristic. Bad School....
--Submitted by a parent

Very bad experience putting my kid thru' the priamry school system. Extremely high rate of turnover starting with the principal all the way thru' the baby-sitters. If you can please do avoid.
--Submitted by a parent

Teachers work with only few kids. They dont work with all the kids. Biased approach. Had a very bad experience.
--Submitted by a parent

This school is not like any other. The expectations are high and hard to achieve. Though the discipline satisfactory, the extra-curricular activities are bad. Thirty minutes of fitness and really not much. Parents have to pay a lot for not much. This school for sure takes away your ability to grow and to have fun. Once I entered middle school, freedom has become a lot less than I would expect. Teachers want too much out of students. I would for sure not recommend this school to anyone else in my opinion. Unless, you want your child to become a brainy little child. I have to admit, the academics are fantastic.
--Submitted by a student