The “Bubble” of Chilean Elite Schools and the Societal Consequences

March 31, 2025

Throughout the interview analysis process one of the overarching themes that came through was how students at the Croft School felt as though their school was a “bubble” separating them from the outside world. Aside from the figurative “bubble” that Croft School students described, the physical location of the school also serves as a means of isolation from people from different socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds. The effects of socioeconomic and ethnic diversity between the Croft School and the rest of the community has resulted in societal divides. These societal consequences have been felt not only within the student body at the Croft School, but within the larger community as well. There were two main societal consequences that were caused by the school and students being closed-off from the outside community. The first was a lack of opportunities for Croft students to interact with people from different class or ethnic backgrounds. This led to the second impact: a misunderstanding of the value of money and hard work.

The homogenous nature of the school led the students to express a lack of opportunities to interact with people from different class or ethnic backgrounds. Often the students recounted how their first interactions with people from different class backgrounds were when they went to exchange programs abroad or when they went to university. One of the main reasons why students were not exposed to socioeconomically or ethnically diverse students was the exclusionary nature of their school.

The exclusionary nature of the Croft School is a result of the fact that it does not offer scholarships. If a student is unable to pay the tuition then they are unable to attend. It seems clear that The Croft School is attempting to create an isolated and exclusive school environment for its students. If there was a true desire by the school to have a diverse student body then it would offer tuition scholarships to give disadvantaged students who otherwise would not be able to afford the lofty tuition the opportunity to attend.

Being set apart from students from different class backgrounds leads to a larger misunderstanding about the value of money for Croft students. In many of the interviews analyzed students expressed how they were unsure how much they spent in a week. For many students going out to eat and spending money was a daily occurrence. There wasn’t a need to consciously think about how much money they were spending and how it was going to affect them. This misconception about the value of money brings to light a larger question about whether these students understand the relationship between money and hard work. Many students do not work outside jobs so they can focus on their academics. As a result, many students do not know the larger value that money holds as coming from hours of hard work. I attribute this lack of understanding of the value of money and hard work to the larger isolation of the school and its students from the greater community.

The inability for students of The Croft School to experience socioeconomic and ethnic diversity as a result of the school’s exclusionary practices leads to larger misunderstandings of the value of money and hard work. It is not until these students meet peers from different socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds that they start to gain this appreciation. However, I worry that by the time these students get to high school or university it is too late. If the Croft School and its students continue to limit interactions with people from different backgrounds it won’t only lead to this misunderstanding of the value of money and hard work, but it will also lead to a superiority mindset and further class reproduction in Chile.