Elite Rules

School rules are present in both elite and non-elite schools. They aim to establish and promote good behavior and ensure that the school community is a safe place to learn. This week, I found myself curious about the differences that exist between The Chilean School rules and my own public school experience.

The Chilean School rulebook opens “Pupils of the school must obey the following rules based on The Chilean Schools philosophy, and the general standards of behavior expected. When followed carefully they will enable the school to run smoothly, which is in the common interest of both pupils and their parents/guardians to support. We hope that infractions will be few and far between.”  This seems pretty straightforward to me and matches up to other public and private school codes of conduct. The rule book is a relatively short document when compared to my own school’s rule book, which was handed out on the first day of schools and printed in the planners given to each student. I expected The Chilean school’s rules to  be fancy and elaborate.

 

Instead, I find the document focusing more on individual students self-regulation and the school expects students to hold themselves accountable for their actions. This idea of personal responsibility is one I have previously discussed in education classes here at Colby. Elite schooling institutions often give their students more personal responsibility and choice as opposed to other schools, where rules are specific and listed out.

Dress Code

 In my high school experience, the school’s dress code was pretty tame. We could not have holes in our jeans and the bottoms we wore had to extend past the length of one’s finger tip. Some days students would be able to get away with almost anything, while other days the rules were enforced. The Chilean School, however, adheres to a strict uniform policy that communicates their eliteness by marking them as members of a school community.

Tardiness

The rule book of my school claimed to have a strict policy on unexcused absences. I arrived ATLEAST three minutes late every day, and only received a small handful of  detentions as a result. The Chilean school also has a no tolerance policy on lateness. The rule book states that students who have an unexcused tardy must go in front of the school’s administration to explain their lateness before they can return to class. I am curious to see if this rule is enforced as strictly as their policy claims it is.

Water Balloons

One of the highlights of reading the rule book was the lengthy section on the banning of water ballons. Other than the water balloon ban, rules don’t go into explicit detail and are left to the interpretation of the reader. This interest me, and makes me question how big a problem water balloons where to deserve a special section in the rule book.