There's a sad, Victorian, "children are little adults" feel to these archaic school systems, with their bell-ringings and regimentation. I remember even in high school missing the "second bell" for class, which is when your ass had to be touching the seat, and getting a detention. Unfortunately this was always with the Gym Teacher, who was born with an army brush cut and no pupils in his eyes, like a Little Orphan Annie villain. Learning was rote, every subject sucked dry of interest, anything "artistic" deemed "extra-curricular" (i.e., for girls or sissies, that would be me).

A friend of mine in Britain recounts being sent to Cheltenham School, a posh private boys' school, flying alone from Malawi in central Africa to England at the age of five. Five! It's sink or swim, you survive the bullying, usually by becoming a bully yourself, or you're toast. There the point of schooling is to remember who you are, i.e., to despise the working class. Mission accomplished!

Schools in the British / Canadian / US tradition have this idea you need to toughen them up, as others have remarked, to be ready for the rat race, punching a time card, and submitting to your authoritarian boss. No longer in a coal mine... though in a coal mine, at least you produced something of value.

Glad you and your family have found a congenial place to call home.