--
I never went to a boarding school, or even a private school of any kind, but I have known people that have, and I have become fascinated these kinds of schools. I went to public schools in the southern United States, so I am sure, if I would have even been sent for even just a week to a boarding school, after going to public schools, it would have been a major culture shock. Having to be away from family and friends back home, and live 5–7 days a week in a picturesque school, sharing a room with 1–3 other girls, would be tough, especially for someone like me who was such a (and still am) a mama’s girl. I have a feeling that I would get homesick easily and there wouldn’t be a thing I could do about it, because my parents would have spent thousands for me to be there and it’s not like they could’ve just gotten their money back, it’s a school, not a gym membership.
Boarding schools are not cheap, and some of the tuition cost as much as a car, boat, or house. Luckily lots of the schools have scholarships, but the downside is, that most of those are hard to get, and many schools worldwide only award them to a select a few. There are still far too many around the world that don’t offer scholarships, as they are often for super smart children, from super wealthy families. So just because your child or children are genius level smart, that doesn’t mean they can get into Le Rosey in Switzerland if you’re not filthy rich. Parents who send their child or children to elite private schools will dish out several thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars (or in that country’s currency) just so they can go to one of the best schools in the country and/or world. But is the education really better there? I mean kids do have a better chance of getting into a top college, but is the tuition and status quo really worth it?
There are good, bad, and downright ugly things to consider when contemplating going to a boarding school. There are boarding schools that start with boarding children as young as five years old, and that is too young, as many kids this young cannot even dress themselves, bathe themselves, or even tie their shoes, and many are used to the constant help of adults. Unless your child is like Matilda the Roald Dahl character, then your kindergarten aged child will not benefit from boarding school at all.
Children will learn early independence and self-reliance, but if you send them as a high schooler, then parents lose that valuable bonding time with them, as they are just going to go away again in a few years to college. Boarding schools can work for parents that travel a lot or are gone a lot due to their careers, but then, why have a child you rarely see?
These schools will also teach kids to be more disciplined, as they will have less TV time (if allowed to watch it at all), meals and study time are set, as are bedtimes. Students can get more one on one time with teachers, as many of the instructors live on campus or nearby. Students will also make lifelong friends.
Many of these children though, they will get homesick. Some will cry and lose sleep. Children also have very little to no privacy, as they are around peers and staff constantly. Boarding schools have been compared to George Orwell’s ‘1984’ as far as privateness goes. Many boarding institutions are one gender only, so the only oposite gender the students will come in contact with is staff members, if there are any. Luckily, there are co-educational schools.
Kids being away from their parents, means the staff become more like their temporary parents. Their real caregivers are not there, so that means their parents are not able to watch them and make sure they are safe, doing their schoolwork, eating right, practicing good hygiene, etc. So anything can happen between students and other students, or peers and staff. You can go on many websites, including many Wikipedia pages and read the horror stories about abuse at these schools, some of them elite schools for the wealthy, and some of the abuse has or did go on for decades. Just take Choate Rosemary Hall, an elite school in Connecticut, where famous faces like Glenn Close, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Douglas, and Invanka Trump are all alumni. Sexual abuse went on for decades there. Sure schools these days are cracking down on this kind of stuff, but you can never be too careful.
Also the acedemic pressure at these institutions is a lot more intense. In a regular school, a student can remove themselves from class or the school campus to give themselves a break from the pressure. In boarding school, the pressure is constant. The schoolwork is also a lot harder and you learn a lot of things that aren’t taught in regular schools. Another thing, only the extracurricular activities the school provides are of any importance. If your child has any special talents, this will not be given the attention it needs to thrive.
If a parent does decide to send their child or children to a boarding school, they must explain to them that sending them there is good for them, and assure them that you are not abandoning them. Even though a child will be spending most of their time at the school, parents should keep checking in on their child(ren) and their classroom performance and keep in touch with teachers as well. Never send a child under the age of 9 to boarding school, as experts say this is the ideal age for this type of schooling. You see how many of the girls in ‘A Little Princess’ were at Miss Minchin’s Select Seminary for Young Ladies, are not well behaved or well disciplined, as they are far too young to be sent away from their parents. Also, make sure your child(ren) are truly happy at the school, as boarding schools like any school, may not be the right fit for them, and if they are unhappy do pull them out of the academy and into a non-boarding one.
Overall, boarding schools have their ups and downs, and if you choose this kind of education, then chosing the right school is very important and you must take precautions to make sure your kid(s) feel welcomed, safe, accepted, and that they are being educated right.
