“I’m About To Send My 10 Year Old To Boarding School But Have Second Thoughts”: Educationist Advises

• A parent is considering sending his 10-year-old son to boarding school for the rest of his basic education
• The parent has been left with second thoughts after a student at Aburi Girls SHS died due to alleged negligence
• Nii Armah Addy, an educationist, offered some advice about how parents can assess the quality of a boarding system

I’m about to send my 10 year old to boarding school but have second thoughts. Because of me and my wife's work schedule, we feel it would be better to send him to a private school, where he can have better supervision and also develop good social skills by spending leisure hours with peers from varying backgrounds.

Our second thoughts are informed by his relatively young age and also concerns about the quality of healthcare he would get in the event of an emergency. He still comes down with serious malaria at least three times a year. The recent death of a student at Aburi Girls SHS also gave us serious cause for pause.

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Educationist Nii Armah Addy has his say

Nii Armah Addy is a lawyer, Chartered Management Consultant (CMC), Chartered Professional Administrator (ChPA) and an educationist. He is the Founder of the Institute of Leadership and Management in Education (InLaME) and the Institute of Professional Event Management (IPEM). Both InLaME and IPEM are management consultancy firms with unique management consultancy practices tailored to improve their clients’ capability and profitability.

It is important to note that the decision ultimately lies with you, the parents, and it will depend on the school you are considering. You should take note of the general conditions of the school and the track record of its staff.

You don’t want to go to a school where staff only give proper care to children whose parents tip them. Because some parents are giving tips to the staff, the staff pay attention to just those children and leave children whose parents do not give any tips.

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You must also take note of the staff-to-children ratio and the level of hygiene and infrastructure in the school, like dormitory facilities. In light of the sad news from Aburi Girls, you must also make sure the school has healthcare professionals on hand all the time.

Look out for quality control

It is also not enough to meet all these standards. You must also ensure the school has consistent monitoring and evaluation to maintain its competence. A school could be doing well today but start deteriorating tomorrow.

Disclaimer: Advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers' decisions. They should seek their own professional advice that takes into consideration their personal circumstances before making any decisions.

Email ask.an.expert@yen.com.gh with any issue you may need advice on.

Source: YEN.com.gh