Boarding School

Education is the most powerful weapon
which you can use to change the world 

• Nelson Mandela – 

 

It most certainly is kind of exciting. 

We have to spend the last few weeks in England to find a boarding school for my daughter. 
An exciting time. 
Boarding schools in England are enormously different from the ones in Germany. 

The way of teaching in England differs a lot from how I am used to children being taught in German schools. 

Going to a boarding school in England is seen as a privilege. 
On the contrary, in Germany people watching from the sidelines ask themselves whether the reason behind that might be the parents not coping with their kids. Or the children not being capable of going to a ‚normal school‘. 

There’s a completely different style of learning in English schools. 
They focus a lot more on the strengths and weaknesses each student holds. To a great extent teachers focus on encouraging their strengths and supporting them with their weaknesses. 
Quite often this happens thanks to the teachers’ interest in helping each individual student. 
The choice of subjects in English schools is a great deal higher and unbelievably broad. 
One is not bound to 10-12 subjects but rather has the choice to decide the subjects according to their abilities and their desired career. 
The range of physical activities is immense since sports training is a significant part of the school-life. They train frequently and very hard since regular competitions between different schools take place. 

Generally, great importance is attached to the community, discipline, mutual support, and team spirit. 
Obviously, students have to strictly follow the rules that they agreed on at the beginning of the school year. From my point of view, this is a great advantage to the students’ future. Additionally, it will help them unbelievably much in their private and working life. 

Clearly, it also is a matter of cost. 
Therefore families in England start saving for this very early. 
As a result expensive brands, a bigger house, or a second car fall victim to the savings for their Childs degree. 
Nevertheless, do many germans think differently? Even though many families would most certainly have the financial stability to spend more money on their Childs education, they would rather not. 

But why not? 

I continue to believe that it is important to give our children the best possible education to the extent possible. 

But I guess us germans are different from English in this aspect. 

Whilst visiting the different boarding schools I noticed how much joy, enthusiasm, and discipline the kids are taught whilst still growing up like ‚normal children/teenagers‘ do. 

I’ve been amazed by the educational offer they had. 
Let it be music, languages, art, design, physical education, sciences, career planning… Nearly anything is possible. In case a school didn’t offer a subject someone would want to do, they did their possibly best to find a way that students can be taught that subject.  

Furthermore, the personal connection between teachers and the students is incredibly important to me. 
Especially, because students are away from their families. 
There’s always someone to talk to about their worries, problems, homesickness, or let it be anything else. 
And this person is available twenty-four-seven. 

I think it will be a great experience and we’re unbelievably excited to hear about her adventure. 

 

There is only one thing, in the long run, more expensive than education:
no education‘ 

– John F. Kennedy –

 

This post is also available in: Deutsch (German)