In recent years, there has been an unmistakable trend toward private education. Private school enrollments in almost all affiliations (with the exception of Catholic schools) have increased dramatically since 1965. What is it that private schools are offering that attracts families of all races, ethnic backgrounds, and religious denominations? This study provides one possible answer to this question in a narrow sense--through a trend analysis of school size and pupil teacher ratios. Specifically, the study examined changes in per pupil teacher ratios in private elementary and secondary schools within a 5-year period. Two data tapes obtained from the National Center of Education Statistics showed that private schools had smaller class sizes in 1980 than in 1976 even though their enrollments had increased. One might expect that private schools, tied by continuous financial burdens, would absorb new pupils into existing classes and thus increase their class sizes. However, this apparently has not been the case. This paper discusses trends in class size among private schools and examines the reasons for the willingness of private schools to maintain small class sizes regardless of the financial costs. A 15-item reference list is provided. (Authors/DCS)