The major cause of stress in private schools is ambiguity, according to this administrator, including ambiguity about teachers' status, roles, and commitment as well as about alumni attitudes, academic curricula, educational change, standardized tests, the purposes of a private education, and tuition tax credits. (RW)

Sources of teacher stress in private boarding schools include the expectations placed on teachers, poor administrative leadership, the physical environment, time pressures, and age differences or similarities with colleagues and students. Coping with stress may involve lowered expectations, better personal health care, consistent supervision,…

Because boarding schools resemble "total institutions," offering no escape from failure or low self-esteem, private school students feel great stress. Both good and bad students feel stress, as do new, minority, or emotionally troubled students, especially from lack of privacy, lack of control over life, and demanding schedules. (RW)

Trustees evaluating their private school should know the school and its staff. They can use objective evaluation methods, such as standardized test results or college placement of graduates, but they should also incorporate the opinions of recent graduates and the community and utilize staff presentations to the board. (RW)