There was a huge difference between the secular government education that my grandmother, father, and my cousins received as compared to the Catholic education that was enjoyed by my mother, me, and my siblings.
For example, in Catholic school we said a prayer every hour as we changed subjects. If a police or fire alarm was heard, the class instruction stopped and we prayed for the safety of all involved. The feast days of saints were observed and an especially important one was the feast day of the saint for whom our school was named. An entire half hour every day was dedicated to learning the Baltimore Catechism which we memorized. We received instruction for our First Holy Communion and Confirmation. Of course, there was the yearly May Day celebration in honor of the Blessed Mary. During Lent, every Friday, there were the Stations of the Cross. Ash Wednesday was an important day with a special Mass. Christmas was entirely Christ-centered. In the upper left hand corner of every paper we wrote were the initials J.M.J. to remind us of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.
As we grew older the teaching of the Saints and church leaders were incorporated into our history and literature classes. We were reminded during science and math classes that these subjects reflected the glory of God's creation. We were taught to pray for God's guidance in seeking the best use of our talents ( for His glory, of course.) In high school, every spring there was an entire week set aside for a retreat filled with prayer, daily Mass, and speakers from the Arch Diocease.
Do you get the idea? This is the difference between a truly Christ-centered education ( specifically Catholic) and the puny amount of lukewarm and generic Protestantism nodded to on occasion in the government schools my cousins, father and grandmother attended.
My last two years of high school were in government school. Yes, there was the Lord's Prayer and short scripture in the morning but from then on it was a non-stop secular and godless worldview. Wow! What a difference!
What is the risk to children who attend government schools that force upon the students a lukewarm and generic Protestantism? Answer: They risk learning to be lukewarm and generic about their faith.
What does Christ do with the lukewarm? Answer: He spits them out of His mouth!
That's a real conversation stopper -- even if our public schools have prayers and our school board is 100% composed of Deacons...
Fin.
Besides the gross injustices of modern schooling, there are the often forgotten opportunity costs... You have to have a heart of stone to not be affected by this one.