Boarding school

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Dollar Academy, a boarding school in Scotland Main (west) facade of Dollar Academy.jpg
Dollar Academy, a boarding school in Scotland
West Finland College, a boarding school in Huittinen, Finland Lansi-Suomen opisto.JPG
West Finland College, a boarding school in Huittinen, Finland

A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now extend across many countries, their functioning, codes of conduct and ethos vary greatly. Children in boarding schools study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers or administrators. Some boarding schools also have day students who attend the institution during the day and return home in the evenings.

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Boarding school pupils are typically referred to as "boarders". Children may be sent for one year to twelve years or more in boarding school, until the age of eighteen. There are several types of boarders depending on the intervals at which they visit their family. Full-term boarders visit their homes at the end of an academic year, semester boarders visit their homes at the end of an academic term, weekly boarders visit their homes at weekends. There are also semi-boarders who attend a boarding school in the school hours for formal instruction and activities but return home by the end of the day. In some cultures, boarders spend the majority of their childhood and adolescent life away from their families.

Boarding schools are relatively more prevalent in the United Kingdom, India, China, and parts of Africa. These countries begin boarding schools at a very early age and for a longer span of time. However, boarding schools are relatively less prevalent in Europe and the US where it is mostly seen for grades seven or nine through grade twelve—the high school years. Some are for either boys or girls while others are co-educational. The United Kingdom has a long tradition of boarding school education and the term public school has an elitist association. There are also some state boarding schools, many of which serve children from remote areas.

In some societies and cultures, boarding schools are the most privileged educational option (such as Eton and Harrow in the UK, which have produced several prime ministers), whereas in other contexts, they serve as places to segregate children deemed a problem to their parents or wider society.

The United States and Canada forcibly assimilated indigenous children in the Canadian Indian residential school system and American Indian boarding school institutions. Some functioned essentially as orphanages, e.g. the G.I. Rossolimo Boarding School Number 49 in Russia. Tens of millions of rural children are now educated at boarding schools in China. Therapeutic boarding schools offer treatment for psychological difficulties. Military academies provide strict discipline. Education for children with special needs has a long association with boarding; see, for example, deaf education and Council of Schools and Services for the Blind. Some boarding schools offer an immersion into democratic education, such as Summerhill School. Others are international, such as the United World Colleges.

Description

Typical characteristics

The term boarding school often refers to classic British boarding schools and many boarding schools around the world which are modeled on these. [1]

House system

Boarding house of the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney, New South Wales Croydon Shubra Hall PLC.JPG
Boarding house of the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney, New South Wales
Dormitory at The Armidale School, Australia, 1898 TASdorm1898.jpg
Dormitory at The Armidale School, Australia, 1898

A typical boarding school has several separate residential houses, either within the school grounds or in the surrounding area.

A number of senior teaching staff are appointed as housemasters, housemistresses, dorm parents, prefects, or residential advisors, each of whom takes quasi-parental responsibility ( in loco parentis ) for anywhere from 5 to 50 students resident in their house or dormitory at all times but particularly outside school hours. Each may be assisted in the domestic management of the house by a housekeeper often known in U.K. or Commonwealth countries as matron , and by a house tutor for academic matters, often providing staff of each gender. In the U.S., boarding schools often have a resident family that lives in the dorm, known as dorm parents. They often have janitorial staff for maintenance and housekeeping, but typically do not have tutors associated with an individual dorm. Nevertheless, older students are often less supervised by staff, and a system of monitors or prefects gives limited authority to senior students. Houses readily develop distinctive characters, and a healthy rivalry between houses is often encouraged in sport.

Houses or dorms usually include study-bedrooms or dormitories, a dining room or refectory where students take meals at fixed times, a library and possibly study carrels where students can do their homework. Houses may also have common rooms for television and relaxation and kitchens for snacks, and occasionally storage facilities for bicycles or other sports equipment. Some facilities may be shared between several houses or dorms.

In some schools, each house has students of all ages, in which case there is usually a prefect system, which gives older students some privileges and some responsibility for the welfare of the younger ones. In others, separate houses accommodate the needs of different years or classes. In some schools, day students are assigned to a dorm or house for social activities and sports purposes.

Most school dormitories have an "in your room by" and a "lights out" time, depending on their age when the students are required to prepare for bed, after which no talking is permitted. Such rules may be difficult to enforce; students may often try to break them, for example by using their laptop computers or going to another student's room to talk or play computer games. International students may take advantage of the time difference between countries (e.g. 7 hours between UK and China) to contact friends or family. Students sharing study rooms are less likely to disturb others and may be given more latitude.

Other facilities

As well as the usual academic facilities such as classrooms, halls, libraries, and laboratories, boarding schools often provide a wide variety of facilities for extracurricular activities such as music rooms, gymnasiums, sports fields and school grounds, boats, squash courts, swimming pools, cinemas, and theaters. A school chapel is often found on site. Day students often stay on after school to use these facilities. Many North American boarding schools are located in beautiful rural environments and have a combination of architectural styles that vary from modern to hundreds of years old.

Food quality can vary from school to school, but most boarding schools offer diverse menu choices for many kinds of dietary restrictions and preferences. Some boarding schools have a dress code for specific meals like dinner or for specific days of the week. Students are generally free to eat with friends, teammates, as well as with faculty and coaches. Extra curricular activities groups, e.g. the French Club, may have meetings and meals together. The Dining Hall often serves as a central place where lessons and learning can continue between students and teachers or other faculty mentors or coaches. Some schools welcome day students to attend breakfast and dinner, in addition to the standard lunch, while others charge a fee.

Many boarding schools have an on-campus school store or snack hall where additional food and school supplies can be purchased; may also have a student recreational center where food can be purchased during specified hours.

Boarding schools also have infirmary, a small room with first aid or other emergencies medical aid.

Time

Students generally need permission to go outside defined school bounds; they may be allowed to travel off-campus at certain times.

Depending on country and context, boarding schools generally offer one or more options: full (students stay at the school full-time), weekly (students stay in the school from Monday through Friday, then return home for the weekend), or on a flexible schedule (students choose when to board, e.g. during exam week).

Each student has an individual timetable, which in the early years allows little discretion. [2] Boarders and day students are taught together in school hours and in most cases continue beyond the school day to include sports, clubs and societies, or excursions.

British boarding schools have three terms a year, approximately twelve weeks each, with a few days' half-term holidays during which students are expected to go home or at least away from school. There may be several exeats, or weekends, in each half of the term when students may go home or away (e.g. international students may stay with their appointed guardians, or with a host family). Boarding students nowadays often go to school within easy traveling distance of their homes, and so may see their families frequently; e.g. families are encouraged to come and support school sports teams playing at home against other schools, or for school performances in music, drama, or theatre. It is recommended that international boarding school students have an appointed educational guardian. [3]

Some boarding schools allow only boarding students, while others have both boarding students and day students who go home at the end of the school day. Day students are sometimes known as day boys or day girls. Some schools welcome day students to attend breakfast and dinner, while others charge a fee. For schools that have designated study hours or quiet hours in the evenings, students on campus (including day students) are usually required to observe the same "quiet" rules (such as no television, students must stay in their rooms, library or study hall, etc.). Schools that have both boarding and day students sometimes describe themselves as semi-boarding schools or day boarding schools. Some schools also have students who board during the week but go home on weekends: these are known as weekly boarders, quasi-boarders, or five-day boarders.

Other forms of residential schools

Schloss Torgelow, a Gymnasium boarding school in Germany, that leads to the Abitur exams Schloss in Torgelow, direkt am See.JPG
Schloss Torgelow, a Gymnasium boarding school in Germany, that leads to the Abitur exams
Traveling boarding schools, like THINK Global School, partner with an IB school in each country they visit. THINK Global Students at BISS.jpg
Traveling boarding schools, like THINK Global School, partner with an IB school in each country they visit.

Boarding schools are residential schools; however, not all residential schools are "classic" boarding schools. Other forms of residential schools include:

Applicable regulations

In the UK, most boarding schools are independent schools, which are not subject to the national curriculum or other educational regulations applicable to state schools. Nevertheless, there are some regulations, primarily for health and safety purposes, as well as the general law. The Department for Children, Schools and Families, in conjunction with the Department of Health of the United Kingdom, has prescribed guidelines for boarding schools, called the National Boarding Standards. [8]

One example of regulations covered within the National Boarding Standards are those for the minimum floor area or living space required for each student and other aspects of basic facilities. The minimum floor area of a dormitory accommodating two or more students is defined as the number of students sleeping in the dormitory multiplied by 4.2 m2, plus 1.2 m2. A minimum distance of 0.9 m should also be maintained between any two beds in a dormitory, bedroom, or cubicle. In case students are provided with a cubicle, then each student must be provided with a window and a floor area of 5.0 m2 at the least. A bedroom for a single student should be at least of the floor area of 6.0 m2. Boarding schools must provide a total floor area of at least 2.3 m2 living accommodation for every boarder. This should also be incorporated with at least one bathtub or shower for every ten students.

History

Boarding schools manifest themselves in different ways in different societies. For example, in some societies children enter at an earlier age than in others. In some societies, a tradition has developed in which families send their children to the same boarding school for generations. One observation that appears to apply globally is that a significantly larger number of boys than girls attend boarding school and for a longer span of time. The practice of sending children, particularly boys, to other families or to schools so that they could learn together is of very long-standing, recorded in classical literature and in UK records going back over 1,000 years.

In Europe, a practice developed by early medieval times of sending boys to be taught by literate clergymen, either in monasteries or as pages in great households. The King's School, Canterbury, arguably the world's oldest boarding school, dates its foundation from the development of the monastery school in around 597 AD. The author of the Croyland Chronicle recalls being tested on his grammar by Edward the Confessor's wife Queen Editha in the abbey cloisters as a Westminster schoolboy, in around the 1050s. Monastic schools as such were generally dissolved with the monasteries themselves under Henry VIII, although Westminster School was specifically preserved by the King's letters patent, and it seems likely that most schools were immediately replaced. Winchester College founded by Bishop William of Wykeham in 1382 and Oswestry School founded by David Holbache in 1407 are the oldest boarding schools in continuous operation.

United Kingdom

Charterhouse School Charterhouse School, Godalming, Surrey, June 2013 (3).jpg
Charterhouse School

Boarding schools in Britain started in medieval times when boys were sent to be educated by literate clerics at a monastery or noble household. In the 12th century, the Pope ordered all Benedictine monasteries such as Westminster to provide charity schools, and many public schools started when such schools attracted paying students. These public schools reflected the collegiate universities of Oxford and Cambridge, as in many ways they still do, and were accordingly staffed almost entirely by clergymen until the 19th century. Private tuition at home remained the norm for aristocratic families, and for girls in particular, but after the 16th century, it was increasingly accepted that adolescents of any rank might best be educated collectively. The institution has thus adapted itself to changing social circumstances over 1,000 years.

Boarding preparatory schools tend to reflect the public schools they feed. They often have a more or less official tie to particular schools.

The classic British boarding school became highly popular during the colonial expansion of the British Empire. British colonial administrators abroad could ensure that their children were brought up in British culture at public schools at home in the UK, and local rulers were offered the same education for their sons. More junior expatriates would send their children to local British-run schools, which would also admit selected local children who might travel from considerable distances. The boarding schools, which inculcated their own values, became an effective way to encourage local people to share British ideals, and so help the British achieve their imperial goals.

One of the reasons sometimes stated for sending children to boarding schools is to develop wider horizons than their family can provide. A boarding school a family has attended for generations may define the culture parents aspire to for their children. Equally, by choosing a fashionable boarding school, parents may aspire to better their children by enabling them to mix on equal terms with children of the upper classes. However, such stated reasons may conceal other reasons for sending a child away from home. [9] [10] [11] These might apply to children who are considered too disobedient or underachieving, children from families with divorced spouses, and children to whom the parents do not much relate. [10] [11] These reasons are rarely explicitly stated, though the child might be aware of them. [10] [11]

In 1998, there were 772 private-sector boarding schools in the United Kingdom with over 100,000 children attending them all across the country. They are an important factor in the British class system. About one percent of British children are sent to boarding schools. [12] [13] [14] Also in Britain children as young as 5 to 9 years of age are sent to boarding schools. [15]

United States

Phillips Academy Andover, MA Phillips Academy, Andover, MA - Samuel Phillips Hall.JPG
Phillips Academy Andover, MA

Before the advent of universal public education in the United States, boarding school was often the only secondary school option for students in rural New England communities. [16] [17] Some states, especially Massachusetts, sponsored and subsidized semi-public boarding schools, often called "academies," to educate students from the surrounding rural areas. [18] [19] Some of the oldest remaining academies include West Nottingham Academy (est. 1744), Linden Hall (est. 1756), The Governor's Academy (est. 1763), Phillips Academy (est. 1778), and Phillips Exeter Academy (est. 1781). [20]

The market for semi-public academies narrowed in the second half of the nineteenth century as local governments began establishing free, public secondary day schools. Some academies joined the public school system, and others shut down. [21] [18] Towards the turn of the twentieth century, a new generation of boarding schools was established. These schools generally followed the British public school model [22] and focused on preparing students aged roughly 14–18 for college entrance examinations. [23] Because of their college-preparatory approach, they were dubbed prep schools, although most American prep schools educate only day students. At the turn of the twenty-first century, 0.5% of U.S. school children attended boarding schools, about half the percentage of British children. [12] [13] [14]

In recent years, various governments have established public boarding schools. Some provide additional resources for academically promising students, like the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (est. 1980). [24] Others provide a more focused environment for students from at-risk backgrounds. [25]

Boarding schools for students below the age of 13 are called junior boarding schools, and are relatively uncommon. The oldest junior boarding school is the Fay School in Southborough, Massachusetts (est. 1866).[ citation needed ]

Native American schools

Students at Carlisle Indian Industrial School, Pennsylvania (c. 1900) Carlisle pupils.jpg
Students at Carlisle Indian Industrial School, Pennsylvania (c. 1900)

In the late 19th century, the United States government undertook a policy of educating Native American youth in the ways of the dominant Western culture so that Native Americans might then be able to assimilate into Western society. At these boarding schools, managed and regulated by the government, Native American students were subjected to a number of tactics to prepare them for life outside their reservation homes. [26]

In accordance with the assimilation methods used at the boarding schools, the education that the Native American children received at these institutions centered on the dominant society's construction of gender norms and ideals. Thus boys and girls were separated in almost every activity and their interactions were strictly regulated along the lines of Victorian ideals. In addition, the instruction that the children received reflected the roles and duties that they were to assume once outside the reservation. Thus girls were taught skills that could be used in the home, such as "sewing, cooking, canning, ironing, child care, and cleaning" [26] (Adams 150). Native American boys in the boarding schools were taught the importance of an agricultural lifestyle, with an emphasis on raising livestock and agricultural skills like "plowing and planting, field irrigation, the care of stock, and the maintenance of fruit orchards" [26] (Adams 149). These ideas of domesticity were in stark contrast to those existing in native communities and on reservations: many indigenous societies were based on a matrilineal system where the women's lineage was honored and the women's place in society respected in different ways. For example, women in native society held powerful roles in their own communities, undertaking tasks that Western society deemed only appropriate for men: indigenous women could be leaders, healers, and farmers.[ citation needed ]

While the Native American children were exposed to and were likely to adopt some of the ideals set out by the whites operating these boarding schools, many resisted and rejected the gender norms that were being imposed upon them.[ citation needed ]

Canada

Columbia International College, Hamilton, Ontario Northcliff Campus, Columbia International College.jpg
Columbia International College, Hamilton, Ontario

In Canada, the largest independent boarding school is Columbia International College, with an enrollment of 1,700 students from all over the world. Robert Land Academy in Wellandport, Ontario is Canada's only private military-style boarding school for boys in Grades 6 through 12.

Other Commonwealth countries

The Doon School, Dehradun, India The Doon School India.jpg
The Doon School, Dehradun, India

Most societies around the world decline to make boarding schools the preferred option for the upbringing of their children. However, boarding schools are one of the aspirational modes of education in some former British colonies or Commonwealth countries like India, Pakistan, Nigeria, and other former African colonies of Great Britain. For instance, in Ghana the majority of the secondary schools are boarding. In some countries, such as New Zealand and Sri Lanka, a number of state schools have boarding facilities. These state boarding schools are frequently traditional single-sex state schools, whose ethos is much like that of their independent counterparts. Furthermore, the proportion of boarders at these schools is often much lower than at independent boarding schools, typically around 10%.

Malaysia

Russia and former Soviet Union

Boarding School of Humanities, Aktanysh Boarding school of humanities,facade.jpg
Boarding School of Humanities, Aktanysh

In the former Soviet Union these schools were sometimes known as Internat-schools (Russian: Школа-интернат) (from Latin: school-internat [27] ). They varied in their organization. Some schools were a type of specialized schools with a specific focus in a particular field or fields such as mathematics, physics, language, science, sports, etc. For example, in the 1960s Soviet official established a new type of boarding school, an AESC - Advanced educational scientific center (Russian: СУНЦ - Специализированный учебно-научный центр) (SESC - Specialized Educational and Scientific Center [27] ). Those schools were parts of some major universities and prepared students to study there. Now, only a few exist in Russia - in Moscow, Novosibirsk, and Yekaterinburg, though several boarding schools still operate in former Soviet republics, and even some new ones are being opened (e.g. MSU Gymnasium in Moscow, Russia, or Nazarbayev schools all over Kazakhstan). Other schools were associated with orphanages after which all children enrolled in Internat-school automatically. Also, separate boarding schools were established for children with special needs (schools for the blind, deaf, and others). General schools offered "extended stay" programs (Russian: Группа продленного дня) featuring cheap meals for children and preventing them from coming home too early before parents were back from work (education in the Soviet Union was free). In post-Soviet countries, the concept of boarding school differs from country to country.

Switzerland

Institut auf dem Rosenberg Rosenberg Main Building.jpg
Institut auf dem Rosenberg

The Swiss government developed a strategy of fostering private boarding schools for foreign students as a business integral to the country's economy. Their boarding schools offer instruction in several major languages and have a large number of quality facilities organized through the Swiss Federation of Private Schools. In 2015, a Swiss boarding school named A+ World Academy was established on the Norwegian Tall Ship Fullriggeren Sørlandet. Some of the most expensive boarding schools in the world include the Swiss schools Institut auf dem Rosenberg, Institut Le Rosey, [28] Beau Soleil, Collège du Léman, Collège Champittet and Leysin American School.

Japan

NUCB International College Guo Ji Liao Zi Xi Shi .jpg
NUCB International College

In Japan, there are several international boarding schools operated by private institution. Notable examples of privately-run institutions include NUCB International College [29] and Hallow International School. These boarding schools are affiliated with various educational boards, such as the IB (International Baccalaureate), A-Level, and Article1 of the Japanese School Education Law. English is predominantly used as the primary medium of instruction in these institutions.

China

As of 2015 there were about 100,000 boarding schools in rural areas of Mainland China, with about 33 million children living in them. [30] In China some children are sent to boarding schools at 2 years of age. [31] The majority of boarding schools are in western China, which generally is not as wealthy as eastern and central China. [32] Many migrant workers and farmers send their children to boarding schools. [33]

India

Boarder students at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Barabanki Student hostel (Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Barabanki).jpg
Boarder students at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Barabanki

In India, there exists a variety of boarding schools, which are operated by both private entities and governmental bodies at the state and central levels. Some notable examples government run institute include are Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Ekalavya Model Residential School, and Ashram Schools. Boarding schools in India are affiliated with various educational boards such as CBSE, ICSE, IB, NIOS, and AISSCE. Those institutions predominantly use English as the primary medium of instruction.

Sociological issues

Some elite university-preparatory boarding schools for students from age 13 to 18 are seen by sociologists as centers of socialization for the next generation of the political upper class and reproduces an elitist class system. [34] This attracts families who value power and hierarchy for the socialization of their family members. [34] These families share a sense of entitlement to social class or hierarchy and power. [34]

Boarding schools are seen by certain families as centres of socialization where students mingle with others of similar social hierarchy [34] to form what is called an old boy network. Elite boarding school students are brought up with the assumption that they are meant to control society. [34] Significant numbers of them enter the political upper class of society or join the financial elite in fields such as international banking and venture capital. [34] Elite boarding school socialization causes students to internalize a strong sense of entitlement and social control or hierarchy. [34] This form of socialization is called "deep structure socialization" by Peter Cookson & Caroline Hodges (1985). [34] [35] This refers to the way in which boarding schools not only manage to control the students' physical lives but also their emotional lives. [34] [35]

Boarding school establishment involves control of behavior regarding several aspects of life including what is appropriate and/or acceptable which adolescents would consider as intrusive. [34] [35] This boarding school socialization is carried over well after leaving school and into their dealings with the social world. [34] Thus it causes boarding school students to adhere to the values of the elite social class which they come from or which they aspire to be part of. [34] Nick Duffell, author of Wounded Leaders: British elitism and the Entitlement Illusion – A Psychohistory, states that the education of the elite in the British boarding school system leaves the nation with "a cadre of leaders who perpetuate a culture of elitism, bullying and misogyny affecting the whole of society". [36] According to Peter W Cookson Jr (2009) the elitist tradition of preparatory boarding schools has declined due to the development of modern economy and the political rise of the liberal west coast of the United States of America. [34] [35]

Socialization of role control and gender stratification

The boarding school socialization of control and hierarchy develops deep rooted and strong adherence to social roles and rigid gender stratification. [34] [37] In one studied school the social pressure for conformity was so severe that several students abused performance drugs like Adderall and Ritalin for both academic performance and to lose weight. [34] [37] The distinct and hierarchical nature of socialization in boarding school culture becomes very obvious in the manner students sit together and form cliques, especially in the refectory, or dining hall. This leads to pervasive form of explicit and implicit bullying, and excessive competition between cliques and between individuals. [34] [37] The rigid gender stratification and role control is displayed in the boys forming cliques on the basis of wealth and social background, and the girls overtly accepting that they would marry only for money, while choosing only rich or affluent males as boyfriends. [34] [37] Students are not able to display much sensitivity and emotional response and are unable to have closer relationships except on a superficial and politically correct level, engaging in social behaviour that would make them seem appropriate and rank high in social hierarchy. [34] [37] This affects their perceptions of gender and social roles later in life. [34] [37]

Psychological issues

The aspect of boarding school life with its round the clock habitation of students with each other in the same environment, involved in studying, sleeping, and socializing can lead to pressures and stress in boarding school life. [34] This is manifested in the form of hypercompetitiveness, use of recreational or illegal drugs and psychological depression that at times may manifest in suicide or its attempt. [34] Studies show that about 90% of boarding school students acknowledge that living in a total institution like boarding school has a significant impact and changed their perception and interaction with social relationships. [34]

Total institution and child displacement

It is claimed that children may be sent to boarding schools to be given more opportunities than their families can provide. However, that involves spending significant parts of one's early life in what may be seen as a total institution [38] and possibly experiencing social detachment, as suggested by social-psychologist Erving Goffman. [38] This may involve long-term separation from one's parents and culture, leading to the experience of homesickness [39] [40] [41] and emotional abandonment [10] [11] [15] and may give rise to a phenomenon known as the 'TCK' or third culture kid. [42]

The celebrated British classicist and poet, Robert Graves (1895–1985), who attended six different preparatory schools at a young age during the early 20th century, wrote:

Preparatory schoolboys live in a world completely dissociated from home life. They have a different vocabulary, a different moral system, even different voices. On their return to school from the holidays the change-over from home-self to school-self is almost instantaneous, whereas the reverse process takes a fortnight at least. A preparatory schoolboy, when caught off his guard, will call his mother 'Please, matron,' and always addresses any male relative or friend of the family as 'Sir', like a master. I used to do it. School life becomes the reality, and home life the illusion. In England, parents of the governing classes virtually lose any intimate touch with their children from about the age of eight, and any attempts on their part to insinuate home feeling into school life are resented. [43]

— Robert Graves

Some modern philosophies of education, such as constructivism and new methods of music training for children including Orff Schulwerk and the Suzuki method, make the everyday interaction of the child and parent an integral part of training and education. In children, separation involves maternal deprivation. [44] The European Union–Canada project "Child Welfare Across Borders" (2003), [9] an international venture on child development, considers boarding schools as one form of permanent displacement of the child. [9] This view reflects a new outlook towards education and child growth in the wake of more scientific understanding of the human brain and cognitive development.

Data have not yet been tabulated regarding the statistical ratio of boys to girls that matriculate boarding schools, the total number of children in a given population in boarding schools by country, the average age across populations when children are sent to boarding schools, and the average length of education (in years) for boarding school students. There is also little evidence or research about the complete circumstances or complete set of reasons about sending kids to boarding schools. [14]

Boarding school syndrome

The term boarding school syndrome was coined by psychotherapist Joy Schaverien in 2011. [45] It is used to identify a set of lasting psychological problems that are observable in adults who, as children, were sent away to boarding schools at an early age.

Children sent away to school at an early age suffer the sudden and often irrevocable loss of their primary attachments; for many this constitutes a significant trauma. Bullying and sexual abuse, by staff or other children, may follow and so new attachment figures may become unsafe. In order to adapt to the system, a defensive and protective encapsulation of the self may be acquired; the true identity of the person then remains hidden. This pattern distorts intimate relationships and may continue into adult life. The significance of this may go unnoticed in psychotherapy. It is proposed that one reason for this may be that the transference and, especially the breaks in psychotherapy, replay, for the patient, the childhood experience between the school and home. Observations from clinical practice are substantiated by published testimonies, including those from established psychoanalysts who were themselves, early boarders. [45]

Scharverien's observations are echoed by a boarding schoolboy, George Monbiot, who goes so far as to attribute some dysfunctionalities of the UK government to boarding schools. [46] British psychotherapist Nick Duffell refers to adults who have gone through boarding school separation as 'Boarding school survivors'. He has described some of these individuals to exhibit behaviors such as a sense of detachment from any relationships, workaholism, compulsive behavior, and a penchant to control. [47]

Books

Boarding schools and their surrounding settings and situations became in the late Victorian period a genre in British literature with its own identifiable conventions. (Typically, protagonists find themselves occasionally having to break school rules for honorable reasons the reader can identify with and might get severely punished when caught – but usually, they do not embark on a total rebellion against the school as a system.)

Notable examples of the school story include:

The setting has also been featured in notable North American fiction:

There is also a huge boarding-school genre literature, mostly uncollected, in British comics and serials from the 1900s to the 1980s.

The subgenre of books and films set in a military or naval academy has many similarities with the above.

Films and television

Video games

See also

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The school story is a fiction genre centring on older pre-adolescent and adolescent school life, at its most popular in the first half of the twentieth century. While examples do exist in other countries, it is most commonly set in English boarding schools and mostly written in girls' and boys' subgenres, reflecting the single-sex education typical until the 1950s. It focuses largely on friendship, honour and loyalty between pupils. Plots involving sports events, bullies, secrets, rivalry and bravery are often used to shape the school story.

Huyton College or Liverpool College for Girls, Huyton, as it was also known, was an independent day and boarding school for girls founded in England in 1894 as the sister school to Liverpool College with which it merged on 27 July 1993, a few months short of its 100th birthday. The Liverpool College for Girls, Huyton, as it was originally known, was started in 1894 and intended to be parallel to the Liverpool College Boys School. It catered for girls between the ages of 4 and 18. In its early days, and towards the end of its time based at Huyton Hall before the merger, it also took day boys up to the age of seven. The school is mentioned in the book The Wildcats of St Trinian's by Frank Launder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sonia Shankman Orthogenic School</span> Residential treatment center school in Chicago, Illinois, United States

The Sonia Shankman Orthogenic School, also known simply as the Orthogenic School or informally as the O-School, is a therapeutic day school for children and adolescents typically classified as emotionally challenged. The O-School specializes in the treatment of youth and help them with their behavioral and emotional problems. The school is located adjacent to the campus of the University of Chicago (UC). The school works with many schools and universities, and has affiliation with several Chicago area schools including the Family Institute at Northwestern University, the School of Social Service Administration of the UC, and the Jane Addams School of Social Work of the University of Illinois at Chicago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gordon's School</span> Academy in West End Woking, Surrey, England

Gordon's School is a secondary school with academy status in West End near Woking, Surrey, England. It was founded as the Gordon Boys' Home in 1885. It is now one of the 36 state boarding schools in England. It converted to an academy on 1 January 2013. But controversy arose over the school charging £10,494 a year for day-pupil places. It has been argued that makes the state school selective, along with others which charge similar fees. Under the Education Act 1996 it is illegal for state schools to charge for admission or education provided within normal hours. In June 2022, Gordon's was judged Boarding School of the Year by the TES.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyndon Institute</span> Private boarding school in Lyndon, Vermont, United States

Lyndon Institute is a coeducational, nonprofit, independent, day and boarding comprehensive high school located on a 52 acres (21 ha) campus in the village of Lyndon Center, in the town of Lyndon, Vermont. It provides education for grades 9 through 12 for both local students and students resident on campus. Tuition is $45 000 for full boarders and $16,825 for day students. The current head of school is Dr. Brian Bloomfield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newtown School, Waterford</span> Independent school in Ireland

Newtown School is a multidenominational, coeducational independent school with both day and boarding pupils in Waterford, Ireland. It is run by a Board of Management, but owned by the Religious Society of Friends.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Alexandra and Albert School</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Royal Alexandra and Albert School is an all-through co-educational boarding school near Reigate, Surrey. The headmaster as of 2022 is Morgan Thomas. The Royal Alexandra and Albert School Act 1949 united The Royal Alexandra School, which was founded in 1758, and The Royal Albert Orphan School, which was founded in 1864 as a national memorial to Prince Albert, late husband of Queen Victoria. It is one of 32 state-maintained boarding schools in England and Wales, and the only one to educate children from primary school years to sixth form.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murree Christian School</span> School

Murree Christian School was a small private boarding school founded in 1956. It closed in June 2021. It was a founding member of the South Asian Inter-Scholastic Association (SAISA) in 1972, and was a highly regarded educational institution in Pakistan. It was located near the resort town of Murree, Pakistan, at over 7000 ft. elevation in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains in Pakistan. The main high school building, made of stone, is a former garrison Church, serving as a Church of Scotland congregation for British soldiers in training in the hill station of Murree, until the church was given to the Anglican Diocese of Lahore during Partition of India and Pakistan in 1947. It was unused until the newly formed Murree Christian School started renovating and refurbishing the deconsecrated church. Several other buildings are used as elementary classrooms, staff housing as well as boarding hostels (dorms). Until 2011, high school boys were housed at a building which was formerly Sandes Soldiers Home, for convalescent soldiers of the British Indian Army.

Langley School is an HMC private co educational day, weekly, flexi and full boarding school situated near the market town of Loddon in South Norfolk, England. The current headmaster is Simon Cooke, who has been in post since 2024, and the school is a member of the Society of Heads. Termly fees are currently £6,750 for day pupils, £11,395 for weekly boarders and £13,365 for full boarders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Navajo Preparatory School</span> College preparatory school in Farmington, New Mexico, United States

Navajo Preparatory School is a college preparatory school located in Farmington, New Mexico. The school is fully sanctioned by the Navajo Nation since 1991 when the previous Navajo Academy closed due to lack of funding. The campus is currently undergoing a remodelling project for the past few years that includes new dormitories, classrooms, and an athletic sports complex. The school colors are black, turquoise, yellow, and white which represent the four seasons in Navajo Culture and the mascot is the eagle. The previous school colors for Navajo Mission and Navajo Academy were red, white, and blue. In 2021- 2022 school year, the school color will go back to red, white, and blue.

Stanborough School is a coeducational independent day and boarding school in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. Situated in 40 acres of parkland in the village of Garston, it was founded by the Seventh-day Adventist church and remains under the governance of the church. It is a member of the Independent Schools Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queen Anne's School</span> Private boarding and day school in Caversham, Reading, Berkshire, England

Queen Anne's School is a private boarding and day school for girls aged 11 to 18, situated in the suburb of Caversham just north of the River Thames and Reading town centre and occupying a 35-acre (14 ha) campus. There are around 450 pupils. Nearly half are boarders. Some stay seven nights a week; others stay during the working week or two, three or four nights a week. Saturday morning lessons were replaced in 2009 by a programme of optional sport, hobbies and extended learning activities, including rowing, horse riding, textiles and first aid. The school awards scholarships in academic subjects, sport, music, art and drama at ages 11 and 13 and at sixth form entry.

As of 2015 there were about 100,000 boarding schools in rural areas of Mainland China, with about 33 million children living in them. The majority of these boarding schools are in western China, which generally is not as wealthy as eastern and central China, and which often have a high concentration of minority ethnic groups. As of 2015 many migrant workers and farmers in rural China send their children to boarding schools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holyport College</span> Boarding school and free school in Holyport, Berkshire, England

Holyport College is a coeducational state boarding and day secondary school, located in Holyport, Berkshire, England. It opened in 2014 and caters for students aged 11–19 years. It is sponsored by Eton College, which also shares some of its sporting facilities with Holyport College. 40% of its students are boarders.

Gordon's Indian Residential School was a boarding school for George Gordon First Nation students in Punnichy, Saskatchewan, and was the last federally-funded residential school in Canada. It was located adjacent to the George Gordon Reserve.

References

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  2. ↑ Linton Hall Cadet, Linton Hall Military School Memories: One cadet's memoir, Arlington, VA.: Scrounge Press, 2014 ISBN   978-1-4959-3196-3
  3. ↑ "YES Guardians - Premier Educational Guardianship for International Students". YES Guardians. 14 September 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  4. ↑ Story, Louise (17 August 2005), "A Business Built on the Troubles of Teenagers", The New York Times
  5. 1 2 "What is TGS?". Think Global School. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  6. ↑ "Wilderness Therapy Program, Therapeutic Boarding School for Troubled Boys". Woodcreek Academy. Archived from the original on 22 March 2018. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "The Oregon Story. Rural Voices: Three Days at Crane. Crane High School – OPB". Archived from the original on 25 August 2013. Retrieved 24 March 2008.
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  19. ↑ Financial History of Lawrence Academy at Groton, Massachusetts. Cambridge, MA: University Press. 1895. p. 10.
  20. ↑ "Boarding Schools with the Oldest Founding Date (2017–2018)". www.boardingschoolreview.com. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  21. ↑ Orcutt, Leon Monroe (1934). "The influence of the academy in Western Massachusetts". Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Amherst: 51. doi:10.7275/6871421.
  22. ↑ Pitts, Carolyn (July 1985). "Lawrenceville School" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places - Inventory Nomination Form. National Park Service . Retrieved 22 May 2012.
  23. ↑ Fortmiller, Jr., Hubert C. (2003). Find the Promise: Middlesex School, 1901-2001. Concord, MA: Middlesex School. pp. 32–34.
  24. ↑ Sparks, Sarah D. (26 October 2016). "Disadvantaged Students Outnumbered at Top Public Boarding Schools". Education Week. ISSN   0277-4232 . Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  25. ↑ Einhorn, Erin (26 December 2015). "How to Educate Traumatized Students". The Atlantic. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  26. 1 2 3 Adams, David Wallace. Education for Extinction: American Indians and the Boarding School Experience, 1875–1928. University of Kansas Press, Lawrence: 1995.
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  31. ↑ Markus, Francis (10 June 2004). "Asia-Pacific | Private school for China's youngest". BBC News . Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  32. ↑ Zhao, Zhenzhou, p. 238
  33. ↑ Hatton, Celia. "Search for justice after China school abuse" (Archive). BBC. 6 April 2015. Retrieved on 13 July 2015.
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  43. ↑ Graves, Robert Goodbye to All That , chapter 3, page 24 Penguin Modern Classics 1967 edition
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  47. ↑ Alex, Renton (19 July 2014). "The damage that boarding schools do". The Guardian . Retrieved 24 January 2021.

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