We faced a similar decision this year for our DD10: a large public school with many more course options and more chances to take classes for college credit versus a small private school with students who tended to perform much higher than the public school students in a school with very good teachers. We were very on the fence about it, but DD (9 at the time) had a list of thought-out reasons why she wanted to go to the private school. Because she'd thought so much about it and because we were really on the fence about it, we went with what she wanted, figuring, in the back of our minds, that if it didn't work out, she could always switch schools at any point. But, turns out, DD knew what she wanted and made a very good decision, and because she was the one who really wanted to go to that school, she really has ownership of her decision and her school experience in general and that's helped her confidence. Plus, we never had to feel guilty if it didn't work out.
Is your DS someone who is introspective and has a good read on his learning style?
Is entry in the IB program a one-time thing (meaning, if he doesn't choose to enter the program now, could he enter at another point)?
