Military Boarding School Perspectives of Parental Choice: A Qualitative Inquiry

Some parents choose to send their children to military-style boarding schools for a variety of reasons. Abundant scholarly literature addresses traditional boarding schools. Far less is available addressing the choice of military boarding schools as an educational option. This qualitative study investigates why parents send their sons to military boarding schools in lieu of traditional boarding schools. A purposeful sample of parents participated in the study. Data collection and analysis followed from open-ended, semistructured interviews. Findings indicated that parents had desired outcomes for their sons, including discipline, structure, responsibility, self-sufficiency, and college preparation. Themes emerged addressing class, elitism, traditional values, and subculture norming.