A residential school is similar to boarding school where the students live on campus. Since it's a private education, parents pay room, board and tuition. Some residential schools call themselves boarding schools, but their students are academic underachievers, suffer from attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attendtion deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), have emotional or drug problems or are at-risk of dropping out of school. Boarding schools offer students a structured, disciplined environment where troubled children get a college-preparatory education and the counseling they need. Boarding schools teach accountability and help children learn that there are consequences for their behaviors and actions.
As teenagers begin to test their boundaries and seek independence, some experiment with illegal drugs and alcohol. However, when the problem takes over their lives, intervention and treatment is vital. Some parents find the best way to address the problem is to enroll their troubled teens in a boarding school that devotes much of its' resources to helping kids overcome addictions. They employ counselors with drug training and can counsel families on triggers and relapses. Students can keep up with their peers academically, make up past missed work and recover from their addiction simultaneously.
Some schools offer students academic help, in a structured, live-in environment, with a strong focus on religion. Many of these boarding schools teach Christian morals in addition to the standard curriculum. They do this because they believe a strong faith in God allows children to handle the stresses of adolescence and adult life. Many activities are religious or spiritual in nature, including church trips and bible study groups.
Military-based colleges, such as West Point, were the inspiration for college preparatory institutions known as military schools. These are different from other resident schools for troubled children because they do not always offer a therapy program in addition to the educational curriculum. Most offer extracurricular arts and sport activities. Some do not take students with behavior problems and almost all of them will expel students for inappropriate behavior.