There were some that were very nice. But almost all had issues of one sort or another. Neglectful and/or absent parents were a common denominator in almost all cases. Many were emotionally stunted and a little off, which in conversation with friends who went to boarding schools I kind of attribute to a 24/7 atmosphere of society entirely created by peers instead of adults.
Additionally, some of the kids who went to private and boarding schools the entire way through were almost shockingly ignorant of anything outside their sphere of influence. One girl was astonished, literally astonished, that my public high school didn't have an equestrian team, for example.
I will say they weren't necessarily any more prone to substance abuse or shenanigans than the public school kids; we all had about the same level of promiscuity and drug use/alcohol use history.
Tell me she did not go to my school. Was it Foxcroft?
Haha I have to admit, I went to Foxcroft and I snorted.
I went to boarding school for two years because the public schools in my area were horrible (It was my decision and I picked one across the country from my parents and they actually let me go). I would send my kids in a heartbeat if they wanted to go, simply for the experience. My H doesn't agree though. I would not consider it before high school.
Tell me she did not go to my school. Was it Foxcroft?
Haha I have to admit, I went to Foxcroft and I snorted.
I went to boarding school for two years because the public schools in my area were horrible (It was my decision and I picked one across the country from my parents and they actually let me go). I would send my kids in a heartbeat if they wanted to go, simply for the experience. My H doesn't agree though. I would not consider it before high school.
Ha! I only mentioned that school because they were especially known for their equestrian teams.
My friends that were boarders loved it too and are still really close with their friends from school. If I could afford to send my girls as day students, I would in a heartbeat.
My opinion might change from "yes, absolutely" to "maybe" if the school was co-ed and my kids were boarders instead of day students, though. I was more focused on school during the week at the all-girls school I attended than I was when I went to a co-ed high school, so that may cloud my judgement a little bit.
People who think that boarding schools are only for bad kids are usually not scholastically strong enough themselves to be aware of boarding schools for the academic elite.
Ahh, now there's the Miso from the old days. Where you been girl?
Just to add the boarding school I went to would not have accepted children with behavior issues. It was near impossible to get into and I had to pass many tests, not just intellectual but also behavioral.
My parents tried to have my sister attend as well but she did not get accepted.
It was an amazing experience for me and although I did have issues with my mom most of my peers had awesome families that were mostly of international descent and sent them for the educational benefits. Not because they had issues of any kind, it was an honor for them to be there...
Post by expatpumpkin on Jan 21, 2013 10:49:30 GMT -5
I would throw a caveat in there: the boarding school would have to be single-sex. DH and I both went to single-sex schools and I think there's something really special about that type of educational environment: no distractions/competition for attention from the opposite sex, popularity based on character rather than looks, etc. Anyway, that's just two more cents from me.
I have several friends who went to boarding school (including my cousin & bff). The town I'm from just didn't have great high schools and, it was common amongst the folks with money to send their kids off for high school. The popular boarding schools the kids went to were only a few hours away and their parents were still very involved. That said, I don't think sending my kiddo away for high school is something I would consider under normal circumstances.
I don't have kids - yet - but I think it might be good for my hypothetical children to attend boarding school for a year or so or a study abroad or something like that, particularly for the educational benefits, being exposed to a different type of environment/kids from other countries, etc. I would want to have the school be fairly close though so I could be heavily involved.
As a kid, I would have loved to have gone to boarding school and remember reading some books where the main character was at a boarding school. Dorky, I know.
No I'm too selfish. It seems like most people I meet who attended one and very gung ho about their experiences and I can see to an extent why that would be. But I wouldn't want my kids to leave the nest that early
I am a little insulted at the idea that boarding school is only for kids with bad behavior, that couldn't be further from the truth from the schools and students I know.
I grew up an expat's kid so maybe I'm looking at this from a different perspective, but when I think of boarding schools I'm thinking of 90k or more a year in tuition with rigorous academic standards.
Sent from my cream of crap.
lol, do you suppose that most people on this board grew up with families with an extra $90k to throw at high school per kid or that they have expectations of this kind of money in the future? This has to be like a global 1% thing. It doesn't surprise me that most people have little experience with it.
I am a little insulted at the idea that boarding school is only for kids with bad behavior, that couldn't be further from the truth from the schools and students I know.
I grew up an expat's kid so maybe I'm looking at this from a different perspective, but when I think of boarding schools I'm thinking of 90k or more a year in tuition with rigorous academic standards.
Sent from my cream of crap.
lol, do you suppose that most people on this board grew up with families with an extra $90k to throw at high school per kid or that they have expectations of this kind of money in the future? This has to be like a global 1% thing. It doesn't surprise me that most people have little experience with it.
Yeah, I don't think most people have personal experience with boarding schools. At least where I live. My cousins live in New England and I think it was more common up there, but then again, my aunt worked at the school so they went for free. Had that not been the case, I'm not sure if they would have gone.
Possibly. DD is in 1st grade at a private catholic school that offers the option to board for 5th grade and up for US residents and 7th grade and higher for international students. There are many, many 13 year olds coming from overseas to go to this school. It kind of surprises me how many there are that start boarding at such a young age.
In our case, we chose this school because DH has a global position with a Fortune 10 company. We will probably do 2 or 3 two year rotations overseas by the time DDgraduates from high school. The curriculum at this school more closely aligns with international schools than tradition US curriculums for age/grade. It will be easier for DD to leave and re-enroll after each ISP placement. Having been involved in the school for a couple of years and seeing the boarding program, I would now include boarding as an option if it looked like we were going overseas during her JR or SR year of high school so that she could finish up with her classmates.
But seriously, we are just not in an income bracket to ever even consider boarding school. I am not necessarily opposed to the idea, though...if DS really wanted to go and got a full scholarship I would probably let him.