Steem4nigeria Accelerator Contest Week 19: "The boarding school effects on children"
Good morning Friends. It is good to make my entry on the about to be ended contest for the week as time could allow me put pen to paper. Boarding school and Day school are majorly the two mode school entrance we have in Nigeria. Over time, this has brought tension to parents which is the best for their kids and wards. But let us answer some of the contest hints to throw more light on it.
I have a first hand experience on the topic for the week as my two elderly siblings passed through the boarding school process. We were all born in the northern part of the country and it happens we are from the southern part if the country. My parents decided to allow us have a feel of the southern part aside the routine Christmas holidays we spend at the village. They felt that wasn't enough for us to blend to our source.
In line with their thoughts, they decided to send their first two kids who are my elderly siblings to a boarding school in the southern part of the country and to be sure, just at my local council area. This showed that they were even close to the village than any of us. During December period, they didn't need to go anywhere other than head straight to the village while we join them from the north. This also happens after the festive period and school resumption time, they wait at the village and resume from their as well.
Each time they go back to school refreshed and plump, they come back drained as if they have been in the prisons for a while. No matter what they are given to go back to school, they still feel malnourished which shows that the school boarding system isn't doing enough to improving their dieting. Or would I say that the stress that accompanies their every day to day activities leave them looking haggard. It is never a pleasant sight seeing my siblings looking frail when they come back home either during the holidays or mid term breaks.
They also complained about many other vices like bullying, theft, and mal treatment which are mostly melted to junior students by their senior counterparts. It was not an east one because they are bullied and intimated and when they try to talk about it or report cases of such, they are threatened the more. So most times, they are seen to bottle up matters of such nature. There are other uncalled and unheard matters arising which are harmful to our growing up kids.
I am not party to this kind of school system. This is a system that exposes children unguarded to others without chances of correction. Kids of different backgrounds are expected to assemble in a place and parents are lucky to have their kids interact with the best of kids and unlucky when it is opposite. Any of them they meet, they try to learn from them and when it is bad, it is quite detrimental.
There are so much cases of bullying unlike the minimal cases found during the old times. Of recent we've heard of news in relation to the death of kids in different schools. No parent would want his or her child dead because they went to school. It is usually a pain of a lifetime when such incidences occurs.
How about cases of rape or admitting new habits if homosexuality which are high for gender selected schools. Can we really correct this habits when learned by our kids at those period of school boarding? Definitely, near possible to do so. Hence these are my worries of the present day boarding school.
Aside the unhealthy feeding strength of the schools which leaves the kids with a frail look, it is almost impossible to maintain the healthy feeding purpose of our children while away. They are attacked by different ailments because of their poor immune system.
It is usually a difficult task each time there is something different noticed in them. It is going to be another form of training entirely. Bonding them was an easy one because I can say from experience because those two siblings had to take their time to fit in again after years of absence in the general home.
But what matters in them was that they got some basis before leaving for the boarding school otherwise, it would be more tasking to start unlearning what they have already learned in their different boarding schools.
For sure, it has relatively nothing to do with the realities of the world as the people inside the boarding facility also came from.different spheres of life. They are human and exhibited real life situations and behaviors from their different homes.
I personality don't think that boarding schools are far from the realities of life. All that is seen to happen is discipline to be responsible and do the right things. In doing the right thing, they already know the good and the bad which is the typical real world scenario.
Lets also remember that the kids also came from a home at a certain age to be qualified for boarding. This also makes them to have passed through the traditional teachings and training for the age. They also can make decision and discern for themselves.
There is a balance to all that goes on in the boarding facility. Be it at home or school, the child is given the required training that is expected of him or her at their ages. For example, a child at Day school system will also meet friends daily at school and come back home. This is does not remove any form of exposure like the one in the boarding school.
The only difference here is that this other one does not come back home after school period daily while the other does. The proprietors are also parent-like figures who instill some form.of discipline to the children in the boarding facilities.
There maybe some oversights like domestic accidents that occurs that may take the life of a child more than that of a child in the house. That does not mean accidents doesn't happen anywhere.
Remember also that we have, student prefects who are direct representatives of the students and careers. Also are their hostel masters and mistresses who oversees what happens in their hostels.
In general, there are nothing missing out from their developmental stages in life rather they come back with some renewed form of discipline if it is a good boarding facility.
Thank you my good friends. This is my sincere entry for this contest. I hope It serves the required purposes and of value to all readers.
I am inviting all readers of my entry to make their entries too. @hisgeneral, @yakspeace, @joymm, @whizzbro4eva...
Interesting analysis, friends, regarding the concept of education, between boarding and not. But if I may share a little insight, even though I don't know the cultural demographics of Nigerian society. Education with the boarding concept is better for strengthening the character of students.
Very true. If the standards and ethics are fully in place, that is what it suppose to be. But a situations where discipline and focus is far from its everyday activities, it happens to bring doubts among parents.
Boarding school I'll say is a portal of encounter where people experience either good or bad days. Probably, your elder siblings might have a bad time but they learnt something valuable from it. Thanks for the invite
For sure. There is no system or platform that is completely skewed one side. There is always a mix of good, bad and the ugly side. Thank you for adding value to my post.
Thank you @chilaw for publishing this article in the Steem4nigeria community. We have assessed your entry and we present the result of our assessment below.
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