Attending a boarding school can give a child several advantages compared to a public school. The education, athletics, and activities all make up an experience that is difficult to duplicate.
1) No Pressure
While a public school tends to organize cliques and social groups, the atmosphere of boarding schools is quite different. Not only is it fashionable to be smart, but bullying and hazing are rigidly weeded out by teachers and leaders.
2) Responsibility
The road to maturity cannot be taught, it can only be learned. Any boarding school has its own philosophy and code of conduct, keeping students responsible for their conduct, discipline, and work ethic. The community is held to be more important than the individual and students behave as their tenants of honor dictate.
3) Teachers Who Care
The hiring process of boarding schools targets those who are passionate about what they teach. Only instructors who truly want to communicate with students are given the green light. What’s more, they are not bound by specific subject material and have greater leeway for instruction.
4) Recreation
PE class is never a tenant of boarding schools. Instead, a great amount of pride is placed in the school’s sporting activities. Instead of basic basketball and football, students are encouraged to explore other activities like handball, crew rowing, and even jai alai. Quality facilities are par for the course.
5) Spirit and Mind
Just like they instruct in physical well-being, a boarding school educates its pupils in aspects of cultural well-being. If you have an interest in art, music, theater, and so on, you can be sure to find instructors who share your passion and who encourage you to pursue your talents. The programs facilitate more productions and more exhibitions for those who want to show off their abilities.
6) Live On Your Own
Becoming an adult involves getting away from the comforts of home. This is an adjustment, to be sure, but being able to survive away from a parent’s pandering greatly increases character and motivation. Since boarding schools require students to live on campus, they are responsible for their own well-being.
7) Pressure Makes Diamonds
The workload in a boarding school is immense compared to a public school. Since the expectation is that every student will be able to not only be admitted to college but also succeed, they are pushed hard in each subject.
8) Get Attention
While the subject matter is difficult, the teachers give better classes because they instruct only ten to fifteen at a time. This ratio gives more time for explanation and one-on-one mentoring.
9) The Goal Is Set
Every classmate you have in boarding schools all want the same thing: to get into a good college. Nobody came to slack or to take time off. The mutual motivation provided goes a long way.
10) Make Friends
The atmosphere of a boarding school can easily create friends for life. The shared experiences, the highs and lows, and the class camaraderie are unparalleled in comparison to public schools.
About the Guest Author
Agnes Jimenez is a professional blogger and writer. She writes for many online establishments and currently partners with HelpYourTeenNow.comin spreading awareness about troubled and depressed teenagers (and how to deal with them). Help Your Teen Now aims to increase awareness on the current psychological and societal stresses of today’s teens and how these factors affect the future of our society.
Earnest Parenting: help for parents who have teens that would thrive in boarding schools.
Image courtesy of EaglebrookSchool via Creative Commons license, some rights reserved.
Hi Agnes, My oldest daughter goes to a boarding school. I never would have thought I would send my kids to a boarding school, but we loved the school so much and it requires boarding in 11th and 12th grades so we sent our daughter there.
She is absolutely thriving there. She has grown up so much and has gained a sense of self-assurance that she didn’t have before. The friends she has made are wonderful and the environment is idyllic.
Many of the teachers are alums of the school so they understand the students and their lives very well.
Thanks so much for giving these great reasons for sending your child to boarding school.
There’s some very convincing points her, but I couldn’t send my girls to a boarding school. The stories that are coming out about boarding schools in the 1980s are horrible. Even though many people say that is the past and it doesn’t happen anymore I still don’t trust my children with others… it’s a sick world and it’s getting worse 🙁
Marry, I totally get what you’re saying! I would vet a school super carefully before sending my boys. That said, as a homeschooler I’m not super likely to send them anyway. Although I have threatened military school on more than one occasion…..;)
Have you ever attended one? if so what was the experience like for you?
If you’re asking me, nope…I’ve not been to one. I have friends who sent two of their daughters and seemed to like it. They weren’t living in the US at the time though. That may have some bearing on their choice.
Wow!! Indeed a nice post to have come across, I must admit that you have done a great work. Nice hair styles, I’ll definitely look out these and yeah even I have something to share whenever you look for a good private school for your child. The teacher should be highly qualified and that means using the first degree in the subject being taught, complemented by an advanced degree. The requisite coursework should fortify the inborn passion a teacher has for that topic specialization. For example, if a teacher is teaching physics or calculus, he ought to have a respectable first degree in those subjects, preferably using honors.