How to Thrive at Boarding School
With the BSA recently launching its article on 'How to Thrive at Boarding School', As a Housemaster, I was understandably interested in what they thought the core principles behind 'thriving' would be'.
The article tries to highlight how boarding is a great experience but it also offers hints and tips as to how to make the whole experience a little smoother, especially if you are a first time boarder.
The article tries to highlight how boarding is a great experience but it also offers hints and tips as to how to make the whole experience a little smoother, especially if you are a first time boarder.
“Most teenagers yearn for a degree of
independence as they seek to develop
their own identity. Boarding provides this
opportunity and much more; there are
significant advantages for pupils at a
boarding school.”
The full article can be found here and it is printed in an easy to read format that will make your first investigation (and investment) in boarding a little easier to feel at ease about.
For me it is that 'feeling at ease' element that is crucial to the whole process. My previous Boarding House at Rugby School had very few pupils or parents that were 'first time boarders' and the whole process was generally seen as a migration from a prep school boarding House into the Senior School one. The only real concern for parents was whether they had picked correctly between Oundle, Uppingham, Repton or Oakham or whether they should have really given Eaton a shot after all. This does not mean the pupils did not experience the same anxieties as others but it meant that the initial move was not a brand new idea.
My current school sees boarding as a new idea and concept for many. I have boys from local primary schools making that first step into the boarding world. They are full or questions and boys being boys, most of those questions go unsaid; Is it like Hogwarts? Is it full of bullying? Do you really have to do things for the older boys?
That first step through the doors (the back doors, as they front doors are reserved for the older boys) is a scary one - this is where the BSA booklet comes in handy. The booklet sells the idea of boarding and the strengths of boarding. One area that it highlights is More responsibility, respect and resilience - Each of these aspects are something that I try to keep as core values within my own boarding house. Resilience will be a major part of this blog over the coming months and trying to understand whether this is an area where schools are currently in need of strengthening.
The other 2 areas: Responsibility and Respect are words that are widely touted around by Headmasters and Housemasters/Housemistresses/Houseparents in the boarding world but are they actually achieved?
I would say that in the Houses that work well, where the House and its pupils are all working together, the 3Rs are core to the House, they drive the House and they end up achieving the expectations of the parents. The important part os that this is about more than just exam results. incorrectly, 'more than exam results' is seen as meaning that the school is not academically strong or that it is a magic trick where the Rs are distracting you from the fact that your child has underperformed. The reason that I say 'incorrectly' is that a successful boarding school will achieve achieve and drive the academic potential of a child whilst also ensuring that the child is also resilient, can show respect and take on responsibility. The idea of the 'snowflake generation' is mentioned about today's youngsters and a successful boarding school and boarding House should firm up those snowflakes, offering a scaffolding through which the child can grow, develop and graduate into today's modern world.
Give the booklet a read - it has perspectives from young boarders ( a very small % of today's boarders in the UK), the state boarding sector, as well as advise on dealing with stress in boarding.
The full article can be found here and it is printed in an easy to read format that will make your first investigation (and investment) in boarding a little easier to feel at ease about.
For me it is that 'feeling at ease' element that is crucial to the whole process. My previous Boarding House at Rugby School had very few pupils or parents that were 'first time boarders' and the whole process was generally seen as a migration from a prep school boarding House into the Senior School one. The only real concern for parents was whether they had picked correctly between Oundle, Uppingham, Repton or Oakham or whether they should have really given Eaton a shot after all. This does not mean the pupils did not experience the same anxieties as others but it meant that the initial move was not a brand new idea.
My current school sees boarding as a new idea and concept for many. I have boys from local primary schools making that first step into the boarding world. They are full or questions and boys being boys, most of those questions go unsaid; Is it like Hogwarts? Is it full of bullying? Do you really have to do things for the older boys?
That first step through the doors (the back doors, as they front doors are reserved for the older boys) is a scary one - this is where the BSA booklet comes in handy. The booklet sells the idea of boarding and the strengths of boarding. One area that it highlights is More responsibility, respect and resilience - Each of these aspects are something that I try to keep as core values within my own boarding house. Resilience will be a major part of this blog over the coming months and trying to understand whether this is an area where schools are currently in need of strengthening.
The other 2 areas: Responsibility and Respect are words that are widely touted around by Headmasters and Housemasters/Housemistresses/Houseparents in the boarding world but are they actually achieved?
I would say that in the Houses that work well, where the House and its pupils are all working together, the 3Rs are core to the House, they drive the House and they end up achieving the expectations of the parents. The important part os that this is about more than just exam results. incorrectly, 'more than exam results' is seen as meaning that the school is not academically strong or that it is a magic trick where the Rs are distracting you from the fact that your child has underperformed. The reason that I say 'incorrectly' is that a successful boarding school will achieve achieve and drive the academic potential of a child whilst also ensuring that the child is also resilient, can show respect and take on responsibility. The idea of the 'snowflake generation' is mentioned about today's youngsters and a successful boarding school and boarding House should firm up those snowflakes, offering a scaffolding through which the child can grow, develop and graduate into today's modern world.
Give the booklet a read - it has perspectives from young boarders ( a very small % of today's boarders in the UK), the state boarding sector, as well as advise on dealing with stress in boarding.
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