Parents considering boarding school for their troubled teenagers have a myriad of options from which to choose. Paramount in this decision is the range of behaviors that need to be addressed. Problems with drugs and alcohol require special consideration, as do learning disabilities such as ADD. Take these special needs into account when making any decision.
Military Boarding Schools
Military schools may be the first thing one thinks of when considering boarding schools in the USA. With the reputation for strict discipline, these schools are the obvious answer to parents who believe discipline is all a teenager needs. There is reason to rethink this mindset, however. Military schools are not equipped to handle emotional problems and most don’t have programs for teens with learning disabilities. In a 2004 conference on youth violence, the National Institutes of Health stated that teens are left adrift after leaving military school and the majority return to their old behaviors. They are an option, but not necessarily the best or only one.
Wilderness Therapy Programs
Many boarding high schools recommend sending troubled teens to a 30-day wilderness therapy program before committing them to longer-term private boarding schools. Such outdoor programs focus on emotional and behavioral change, teaching self-reliance, cooperation, and personal responsibility.
ADD & ADHD Programs
Ill-served by public education, students with learning disabilities like ADD and ADHD often fall behind in a traditional school setting. Boarding schools specifically oriented around such disabilities teach students to focus and develop positive patterns of behavior in their academics. Teens are given a great deal of individual attention, tailoring the learning experience to specific needs.
Residential Treatment Programs
Various boarding schools specialize in psychological problems like eating disorders, depression, and drug and alcohol addictions. Most have full-time psychiatrists and counselors on staff. Such programs focus on educational issues in concert with rehabilitating emotional and substance abuse problems. Substance abuse treatment usually incorporates some form of 12-step program. Throughout these programs, teens are taught to overcome self-defeating behaviors and to acquire pro-social ones.
There are many other types of boarding schools: focused on weight loss, based on Christian values, short-term, and many all-boys or all-girls options. Studies of boarding schools have found that parental involvement in teenagers’ progress is essential to effecting lasting change in their behaviors. Boarding school can be a good option for troubled teens, but it is not an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ situation. Active parental participation is key.
