Why do you send your kids to boarding school?

panpacific
Thu, 19 Nov 2015 19:18:45 +0000

There is no evidence I can see that boarding schools provide a better education than a peer public school or much lower cost parachocial school, not one bit.

What kind of evidence are you looking for? Unless you have had substantial personal experience with all these school options you have mentioned, how can you say there’s “not one bit” of quality difference among them? And even when you do have experienced all options, it only says the schools you happen to be familiar with didn’t indicate the difference. Many boarding school families do have substantial experience with their public schools (a sibling of their boarding school student may still be there), so I think it’s fair to say relative speaking they know better than those who never attended a boarding school. Why do you think they have to be defensive just because they are paying the tuition? It’s a choice. Wouldn’t it make more sense to be defensive for something one has no control but has to accept? Wouldn’t that be a more typical situation where one needs that kind of “self re-assurance”?

I will give you that not ALL boarding schools are better than ALL private day/public/charter schools. There are excellent and mediocre ones in every category. Whether you feel your kid can benefit more from one type or another is a personal decision, but to say there’s “not one bit” of difference is irresponsible and flatly wrong.

BTW, what NJ boarding school are you talking about? Lawrenceville? And you are saying attending Lawrenceville doesn’t help with college admission. I’d suggest you take another look. It’s not helping everyone getting into tippy top schools of course since every one has a different baseline, but no help at all? Hmm.