Excellence, elitism, and individuation : towards a theoretical understanding of independent boarding schools

The purpose of this study was to provide a proscriptive model through which to examine the major features of independent boarding schools. A selective history of male boarding schools in England, Canada, and the United States identified the major concerns of the study. Three concepts, excellence, elitism, and individuation were employed to focus the study, and balance issues related to contemporary developments and trends in society and those pertaining directly to the internal workings of independent boarding schools. The first major theme examined the Christian elements inherent in the founding vision of boarding school education, particularly its roots in the Church of England, and the way these forged a powerful ideology of service and sacrifice. The concept of a Christianization of excellence represented an attempt to demonstrate the way Amoldian principles provide an enduring education paradigm, one that is capable of responding to pressure from contemporary ideologies of achievement and competitive success but also of moving substantially beyond them in articulating a vision for a democratic way of life. The purpose of the second line of inquiry was to examine the recruitment and admissions practices of boarding schools in order to determine their overall commitment to a principle of social diversity. An expanded democratic mandate introduced the idea that boarding school education might be a viable option for an increasing number of students. This line of inquiry was pursued to determine what scope was available for independent schools to make a substantial contribution to the quality of education in North America. The third major theme of the study explored the concept of individuation in order to examine the relationship between the individual and the community. Boarding school philosophy of community, theories of parenting, and principles of supervision were analyzed to establish the connection between individual growth and community. The concept of individualism was rejected as a possible model because it was determined that individual, disconnected kinds of autonomy lead to alienation and despair. The concept of community provided a way to evaluate the degree to which boarding schools enlighten, empower, and emancipate the individual in providing a model of democratic education.