@libaya - Greetings!
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. Regarding your observations of the “super-structured” school, I suspect that every situation is unique. I believe that with the right people in the right positions, most any approach can yield favorable results. And every kid has his or her own comfort level regarding structure. My younger daughter was comfortable enough in what struck me as a highly structured junior boarding school, though she was clearly ready for considerably more freedom and responsibility in high school.
With my elder daughter’s “unhappy” school, I tend not to think that the amount of structure was the issue. Indeed, I’m not sure I would call the school super-structured–though I suppose it might have been so. If I had to describe the school environment, I would call it “authoritarian”–which, I feel, is distinguishable from highly structured. I think we need to be clear about exactly what super-structured means. Perhaps you could provide some specific examples of the sort of structure that manifestly worked at the school you spoke of.
In the end, schools are about people. My daughter’s school seemingly hadn’t grasped that the overall quality of one’s day-to-day experience is largely determined by the quality of one’s relations with others. It didn’t see that a student’s personal relations with peers and faculty are arguably more critical to one’s future success than even the formal instruction that takes place in the classroom. For why, otherwise, would the school manifestly strive to corrupt these supportive and nurturing relationships at every turn, inevitably leaving students feeling alienated, alone, and distrustful?
The most important factor, I feel, in operating an effective school is that the faculty and administration have respect for the both the students and themselves. For all of its reverential talk of respect as a “core value,” this unhappy school didn’t seem to be able to translate that talk into action. Whether we call it common courtesy, respect for others, empathy, or kindness–it’s an essential element in creating the sort of healthy, supportive atmosphere that promotes everyone’s happiness, well-being, and success. Indeed, it’s the very foundation upon which a benevolent educational community is built.
Overall, the school seemed to be stuck in defeatist patterns that had become calcified and sanctified through years of practice. Societies change, and schools should endeavor to reflect that change; what might have been educationally valuable seventy-five years ago might not be so valuable today. Even schools that are strongly traditional cannot afford to become complacent and unreflective. Like people, schools are not perfect, and can’t be expected to be. Accordingly, a school that feels the need to hold itself up as infallible and beyond criticism would seem to have taken a terribly wrong turn.