I was at a day school for quite a while and for reasons I only now understand (25 years down the line) I was sent to boarding for less than half a term.
It was singularly the most terrifying, traumatic and worst experience of my childhood. Utterly hated it, felt like I was an inconvenient spare part in the family for a long time after that.
Thereafter I vowed to never partake in the middle class one-upping bullshit that led to such an occurrence. My eldest is four years old now. I was 9 when I boarded for a short while. There is no way I am knowingly and willingly putting any child through a situation when they are pushed away from the family unit at such a vulnerable age.
For military families etc, I fully understand it but if the home life has a scrap of stability to it, your responsibility as a parent is to look after your kids and make them feel loved and well adjusted.