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What are boarding schools really like anyway?

Even if you're just starting your boarding school research, there's a good chance you already have an impression of what boarding schools are like. Perhaps you have read or . Or maybe you saw or .

These stories, while entertaining, take place in boarding school settings which are quite different from what you will actually find today. An excerpt from an article about college-preparatory boarding schools in The New York Times summarizes these differences well:

"To generations of students whose syllabuses include J.D. Salinger's "Catcher in the Rye," boarding school represents the winter of their adolescent discontent; a cold, distant place where parents threaten to send their children if they don't measure up. Parents dropped their children off in September, picked them up again in June and let the schoolmasters worry about what went on in between.

If Holden Caulfield were to return to school for Alumni Day 2001, he would find that the world of proctors and prefects, dorm teas and Mr. Chips has undergone a millennial thaw. Most of the approximately 36,000 students at boarding schools packed their bags willingly and are in daily e-mail contact with mom and dad. The ivy is no longer one shade of green. Students are as likely to room with a real prince of Thailand as with the fresh prince of Bel Air, as

Going to boarding school isn't an easy decision. You'll need to adjust to a new environment. The physical separation from your family and old friends can make the decision emotionally difficult. Financial costs are also a consideration. Is it worth it? Couldn't a private day school offer the same education and experience? Or a magnet school? Or a good public high school?

Things you should consider and compare:

Depending on where you live, local schooling options can compare to boarding schools in several ways. Nearby private day schools, magnet schools, or public high schools can naturally have very bright student bodies and qualified faculty. Academic and extracurricular offerings can also be equally challenging and diverse. If you're considering local options besides boarding school, compare these important considerations:

• Attention to students - boarding schools generally have small class sizes that help teachers engage every student in the classroom. Classroom settings are often specifically designed to encourage student participation and eye contact among everyone in class.
• Quality of faculty - most boarding school faculty have advanced degrees in their subject.
• Quality of resources - student resources at boarding schools, such as libraries, arts facilities, and athletic complexes, are often better than those at many colleges and universities.
• Challenging academics - academics at boarding schools operate at very high levels. Students are encouraged to question and discuss a wide array of subject matter in an environment where it is cool to learn.
• Broad and diverse offerings - the academics at boarding schools are diverse, with