“I Live in a Bubble”

March 31, 2025

This phrase is what a student from the Croft school, an elite school in Chile, explicitly mentioned in an interview when asked about their school experience. This student is not alone in these feelings of isolation. In fact, when speaking with students attending global elite high schools this was a common theme. But why is this the case? Elite schools are supposed to give students all of the tools they need to succeed. They pride themselves on being above other schools and even their own geographic communities, creating physical, mental, and emotional separation. While this sense of “eliteness” is coveted, it has certain effects on the students and community of the school. What is the impact of this isolation and separation on those students?

The Croft school lacks socioeconomic and ethnic diversity. As mentioned by many students, the Croft school feels like a bubble. It provides a sense of security for students, but also keeps them away from other parts of society. Student A, a 17-year-old who has attended the Croft School for 12 years, commented that her friend group is entirely made up of similar ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Students at the Croft school are not exposed to people from different social classes, primarily because of the no scholarship policy. The interactions that students have with different socioeconomic classes are either through community service or those that work or clean the school or their houses.

When asked, one student had no idea if there was any diversity at the Croft school, and assumed that everyone there was equally as wealthy as she was. She states, “Croft students don’t have friends in the poorer parts of the city.” There are massive separations between the school, and lower social classes, seen both geographically and through the students’ opinions and perspectives. This creates a strong division between wealthy, elite students, and lower-class citizens. It impacts day-to-day life, separating social life by social class.

Another student mentions the Croft school itself is divided into three main groups, primarily separated by social class, separating the elite among the elite. At the top of the Croft school are the jocks or popular guys and girls. This category is seen as the richest, must play sports, and seem to be at school more for social endeavors than wanting to further their education. In the second group are the “neutrals,” who will accept anybody. This subclass is once again elite in terms of Chilean society, but not wealthy or privileged enough to be in the popular group. Finally on the bottom of the Croft social pyramid are the geeks, made fun of for their commitment to school. The student mentions there is usually some intergroup mingling as they have grown up together, but there are many, primarily in the popular group who refuse to talk to those not in their group. Even though students attending Croft school are almost all in the top 1% of wealth in Chile, there are still sub-hierarchies and similarities between Chilean society and the elite school.

Students seem to be divided into two main categories. The first is happy with the way the Croft school operates and has no desire to interact or explore social class. The second, which is the larger of the two groups, has a desire to break free from this bubble. While most love the Croft School, there are entrenched feelings of isolation from the rest of society. Most of these students have attended the same school with the same people for longer than 10 years. With intense academic pressure and stress, accompanied by social pressure and wealth being a norm and expectation, students have little understanding of the outside world.

Returning to my first question, the impact of isolation and this bubble-like state of living creates an unhealthy dynamic for students in elite schooling. Especially when branding as a “global” school, these institutions must provide opportunities for students to witness and explore social class dynamics outside of the small community they are living in. A few ways to do this are by diversifying the school through scholarship programs, letting students leave the Croft school and enter the city, and having school and class-sanctioned discussions on what social class is and why it exists.