Boarding school

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A boarding school is a pre-university level school where most or all of the
students take up residence when school is in session. The word boarding is used
in the sense of room and board, i.e., lodging and meals. Boarding schools are also
known as University or College Preparatory Schools, aka Prep Schools. Some
boarding schools also have day students who attend the institution by day and
return to their families in the evenings.

Many independent (private) schools are boarding schools. Boarding school students
(a.k.a. boarders) normally return home during the school holidays and often
weekends, but in some cultures may spend most of their childhood and adolescent
life away from their families. In the United States, boarding schools comprise
various grades, most commonly grades seven or nine through grade twelvethe high
school years. Other schools are for younger children, grades two through eight. In
the United States and Canada, Boarding Schools generally fall into one of the
following categories Traditional, Co-Ed, All Girl, All Boy, Military, Religious,
Learning Disabled (LD) and Specialty Focus, like Arts Academies. A military school,
or military academy, also features military education and training.[1] Some
American boarding schools offer a post-graduate year of study to help students
prepare for college entrance.

Contents [hide]
1 Description
1.1 Typical characteristics
1.2 Other forms of residential schools
1.3 Applicable regulations
2 History
2.1 United States
2.1.1 Native American schools
2.2 United Kingdom
2.3 Other Commonwealth countries
2.3.1 Canada
2.4 Russia and Former Soviet Union
2.5 Switzerland
2.6 China
3 Sociological issues
3.1 Socialization of role control and gender stratification
4 Psychological issues
4.1 Total institution and child displacement
4.2 Boarding School Syndrome
5 In popular culture
5.1 Books
5.2 Films and television
5.3 Video games
6 See also
7 References
8 Further reading
Description[edit]
Typical characteristics[edit]
The term boarding school often refers to classic British boarding schools and many
boarding schools around the world are modeled on these.[2]

Boarding house of the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney, New South Wales.
A typical boarding school has several separate residential houses, either within
the school grounds or in the surrounding area. 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).

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 Common Wealth 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. See
also House system.

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 needs of different years or classes. In some schools, day students are
assigned to a dorm or house for social activities and sports purposes.

Anderson Hall at Asheville School in Asheville, North Carolina, is one of three

residential halls at the co-ed college preparatory boarding school for students in
grades 9 through 12. Founded in 1900, Asheville School has more than 75% of its
students living on campus.
Each student has an individual timetable, which in the early years allows little
discretion.[3] 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.

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 theatres. 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, e.g. the French
Club, may have meetings and meals together. The Dining Hall often serves 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 additional 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; and may also have a student recreational
center where food can be purchased during specified hours.

Dormitory at The Armidale School, Australia, 1898

British boarding schools have three terms a year, approximately twelve weeks each,
with a few days' half-term holiday 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.

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
students 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.

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.

Traveling boarding schools, like THINK Global School, partner with an IB school in
each country they visit
Other forms of residential schools[edit]

Schloss Torgelow, a renowned Gymnasium boarding school in Germany, that leads to

the prestigious Abitur exams.
Boarding schools are residential schools; however, not all residential schools are
classic boarding schools. Other forms of residential schools include

Therapeutic boarding schools are tuition-based, out-of-home placements that combine

therapy and education for children, usually teenagers, with emotional, behavioral,
substance abuse or learning disabilities.[4]
Traveling boarding schools, such as Think Global School, are four-year high schools
that immerse the students in a new city each term. Traveling boarding schools
partner with a host school within the city to provide the living and educational
facilities.[5]
Outdoor boarding schools, which teach students independence and self-reliance
through survival style camp outs and other outdoor activities.[6]
Residential education programs, which provide a stable and supportive environment
for at-risk children to live and learn together.
Residential schools for students with special educational needs, who may or may not
be disabled
Semester schools, which complement a student's secondary education by providing a
one semester residential expe