Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca
Boarding Myths Busted is adapted from the CAIS video, Boarding Myths Busted.
About CAIS
Canadian Accredited Independent Schools (CAIS) is an association of Canada’s best independent and private schools that meet the highest international standards of educational excellence. CAIS schools undergo a rigorous National Standards accreditation process.
About King’s-Edgehill School
King’s-Edgehill School is proud to be a CAIS Boarding School. Our school is located in Windsor Nova Scotia.
With 300 motivated and university bound students from across North America and the globe, King’s-Edgehill School maintains the highest standards of education while offering outstanding programming in athletics, the arts, academics, and leadership.
An International Baccalaureate World School, we have adopted the motto “Be More” and challenge each student to achieve the highest level of achievement and excellence in all areas of life and personal conduct. An extensive English as a Second Language program provides exceptional support for international students. Differentiated instruction and an integrated academic success program assure that right from Grade Six through to graduation each student receives the attention and training required to achieve success.
Founded in 1788, King’s-Edgehill School is Canada's first independent school. An International Baccalaureate School since 1979, King's-Edgehill School equips our students for university life around the globe, not only by developing academic rigour, but also by inspiring athletic and artistic excellence, strength of character and community leadership.
Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca Boarding School Myths Busted
Are boarding schools only for society's elite? Are they for the children of wealthy families? Or are they for parents looking to outsource their child's upbringing? we bust boarding school myths and misconceptions once and for all and reveal the truth behind how CAIS Boarding Schools offer more to parents, students, and our entire global community.
Myth. Boarding schools are dark, dank, somber institutions worthy of a Charles Dickens novel.
Walk into any CAIS Boarding School today and you will find a vibrant, highly energized student body housed in first-rate surroundings and engaged in more activities than you can imagine. Quite simply, boarding students work harder and play harder.
According to a survey of 2,700 US and Canadian high school students commissioned by The Association of Boarding Schools, or TABS, boarding students spend an average of 17 hours a week on homework, compared to 9 hours for private day students and 8 hours for public school students.
Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca
Of course it's not only about academics. Boarders also engage more frequently in sports, the arts, community service, and other co-curricular pursuits. So if your view of a boarding school is Oliver Twist holding up an empty bowl and asking, "More, please?" be assured there's plenty of more to be found at today's CAIS schools, not the least of which is more delicious, nutritious food.
Myth. Boarding schools are only for the wealthy.
A survey of parents with boarding students found that over 20 percent were firmly middle-class. In other words, they are families with a combined household income of less than $100,000.
Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca
So how do these parents afford to send their kids to a boarding school? The first, simple answer is that virtually offer CAIS Boarding Schools offer needs-based financial assistance and entrance scholarships. As a matter of fact, over $15 million worth of support is provided to CAIS families annually. For promising students, these programs ensure a CAIS Boarding School is well within reach.
Across the board what these families have also told us is that they couldn't afford not to send their child to a CAIS Boarding School. The question remains, can you?
Myth. Parents send their kids to boarding schools because they don't want them around.
Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca The reality is that boarding parents are in fact very involved in the lives of their children and are committed to providing them with the best opportunities. They choose a boarding school environment because they know it gives their son or daughter the chance to gain powerful, 21st-century learning skills. Specifically: initiative, collaboration, resilience, and independence of thought and action.
These are skills best nurtured out from under the wing of even the most caring and well-intentioned parent; skills that give boarding students an invaluable advantage not only later at university, but throughout their lives.
Let's not also forget that the majority of parents send their children to boarding schools because the children themselves want to go. Our more vocal advocates for CAIS Boarding Schools are current boarders who tell or tweet their friends about the great experiences they are having.
In today's world of helicopter parents and grown children who can't ever seem to leave mom and dad, or mom and dad's home, boarding schools serve as an
Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca invaluable social and emotional bridge in a student's developing sense of independence.
In fact, our graduates report that they emerge from the boarding school experience much more self-confident and self-assured. In a TABS survey, 87 percent of boarding students reported that they were very well-prepared for the rigors of university life, compared to only 39 percent of public school students. You can be certain the first people our graduates thank are mom and dad.
So now that we've busted three of the most common myths about boarding, what is the underlying truth? That it's today's boarding students who stand the absolute best chance of success in navigating tomorrow's world.
There has been much attention in recent years on the need for kids to gain resiliency and what some call grit, especially in the face of ongoing school reforms that favor a one-size-fits-all approach to learning.
In Madeline Levine's book "Teach Your Children Well" she argues that what kids need most is an education that will lead them to becoming independent, well- rounded, and successful, without compromising their joy and health. Boarding schools appreciate the value of rigorous preparation for university with a healthy dose of fun.
In this regard, Case Boarding Schools have never been more relevant, more beneficial, and more necessary to the education of our children. The academic and
Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca life skills learned at our schools offer a unique and invaluable advantage.
We are tirelessly committed to the growth of each and every student, and in creating future legacies of bright, capable, open-minded members of our global community. It's why we say at CAIS Boarding Schools: “Students and their families experience more.”
Learn more about the advantages your child will have with a CAIS education at King’s-Edgehill School.
www.kes.ns.ca
Canada’s First Independent School, Founded 1788
33 King’s-Edgehill Lane, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada B0N 2T0 tel 902.798.2278 fax 902.798.2105 www.kes.ns.ca