21st century boarding
Araba Sagoe, Rhega-Mai Ward, Jessica Neville
Location: Wiltshire
Case Study: St Mary's School Calne
Three sixth form boarders at St Mary’s Calne, one previously at school in Nigeria, one joining from a co-ed state school and one previously a day girl at the school, describe their different experiences of enjoying boarding for the first time.
Araba Sagoe: Going to a day school wasn’t an option when I was choosing a Sixth Form because I do not live in the United Kingdom. Boarding schools like St Mary’s Calne give international students like me the opportunity to study in a new environment and acquire a sound education. My experience as a boarder over the last three months has been fantastic. I didn’t expect to get so much support from the staff and students of the school but everyone has been very helpful and encouraging. One of the things I’ve found very useful is the unlimited access to facilities such as the gym and libraries. Boarding school has also given me the opportunity to try new things such as the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Young Enterprise which I very much enjoy. I also find my dorm room very comfortable and, although it is not as big as my room at home, it has everything I need and gives me my privacy. Since becoming a boarder, I think I have become more independent and I’ve also learnt to manage my time efficiently, which is good preparation for university.
Rhega-Mai Ward: Starting boarding school at the age of 16 has influenced me in ways which college could not have, and all of these influences have been positive! At first it was a slight shock to the system – there was not a parent immediately there when I felt I needed them, and I could not arrange to meet friends in the evenings like I used to be able to. Yet after a few weeks of settling in, I came to realise that the Housemistresses are there to help if you need them, and I did not need to arrange to meet up with friends, as they were all there all the time. My parents were only a phone call away, but since coming to St Mary’s my independence has doubled… and the phone calls have halved! I chose to come to boarding school for further education as I felt it offered broader opportunities for me, and I have not been proved wrong; I definitely made the right when I chose to go to boarding school.
Jessica Neville: I began boarding this year in UVI Form. This was a new and exciting experience for me because I had been a day girl at St Mary’s for six years. I had always wondered what boarding would be like, spending more time with friends and doing fun weekend activities with the whole House. I never felt excluded from my year as a day girl but as it was my final year, I wanted to spend as much time as possible with my friends. I also felt it would help me to adjust to university life when I go next year. Now that I am into my second term of boarding, I can tell it was the right choice for me. I love spending time with my friends and chatting to the Housemistresses in the evenings. It is a very different experience from being a day girl and I feel very much part of the school now; it has become a second home. I have found that I have improved in my studies because I can pop over to different houses to see my teachers and spend time working with them on my subjects. I have also made a stronger bond with my year and the other years because I now know exactly what it means to be a boarder.
Article first published in Boarding School, the magazine of the Boarding Schools’ Association
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