Microschool
Microschooling is the reinvention of the one-room schoolhouse, where class size is typically smaller than that in most schools.
Historical antecedents
[edit]Microschooling has been described as a modern incarnation of the one-room schoolhouse.[1] In the United States, approximately 150,000 single-teacher schools operated in the early 1930s, but fewer than 400 operated as of 2005; school sizes became larger throughout the 20th century, driven by increased urbanization, the popularization of the school bus, and education professionalization and standardization.[1]
21st-century United States
[edit]In the 21st-century United States, microschools are very small forms of private schools; they are often registered with the state as homeschooling operations.[2] U.S. microschools typically enroll fewer students than in a single traditional-school classroom.[2] Enrollment varies from a handful to several dozen.[1] Many emerge from collectives of homeschooling families that pool resources to hire a teacher.[1] Other microschools, often those led by a single educator, various emphasize different topics or approaches, such as project-based learning, the arts, or the Socratic method.[1] About two-thirds of U.S. microschools are operated by licensed or formerly licensed schoolteachers.[2] Some microschools are Christian, while others are secular.[2] Some microschools meet in homes, churches, or storefronts.[2]
The National Microschooling Center is an advocacy group for the movement; it estimated that as of the 2023–24 school year there were 95,000 microschools and homeschooling "pods" in the U.S. nationwide, with more than one million students participating.[2] A survey by the group found that 40% percent of microschool students were previously enrolled in public school, while another third were previously homeschooled.[2] The popularity of microschools increased sharply in the 2020s for several reasons, including disruptions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, more government funding through school choices initiatives, and the increase popularity of education savings accounts.[2] As of 2023, about one-third of microschools received public funding as part of school voucher-type programs.[2]
Many microschools are unregulated; in some states, curricula is not overseen, facilities are not inspected; and background checks are sometimes not done for staff.[2] However, some microschool operate four or five days each week, have full-time teachers and formal curricula, and use standardized tests.[2] Because microschools are often considered homeschools, most microschools do not require accreditation.[3] However, some microschools have sought and received accreditation as private schools.[2] In a National Microschooling Center survey of 400 microschools, shared with the newspaper The Hill in 2024, 16% of microschools reported that they were accredited.[3] A few microschools have grown large enough to no longer be considered "micro."[2]
A 2014 NPR article cited Brightworks of San Francisco, the Brooklyn Apple Academy and Austin, Texas's Acton Academy as examples of microschools.[1] The startup AltSchool aimed to operate microschools,[1] while CottageClass, a Brooklyn-based startup company established in 2018, supports the creation of microschools through an Airbnb-type platform connecting parents and teachers.[4] The Beekman School in Manhattan, which has classes of six or seven students, has been called a microschool.[1]
Some microschools have emerged from more traditional schools. For example, in 2024, the Purdue Polytechnic High School Lab School established a microschool in Indianapolis for 20 of its high school students who were identified as students who could benefit from a personalized curriculum and greater social-emotional resources.[5]
Outside the United States
[edit]In 2007, a UK Conservative Party task force headed by Iain Duncan Smith recommended that the party propose "Pioneer schools" (jointly led by parents and charities) as a policy.[6]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h Anya Kamenetz (July 2, 2014). "The Return Of The One-Room Schoolhouse". NPR.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Dana Goldstein, A School With 7 Students: Inside the 'Microschools' Movement, New York Times (June 17, 2024).
- ^ a b The US is experiencing a boom in microschools. What are they?, The Hill, Nexstar Media Group (2024).
- ^ "Brooklyn's new thing is taking your kids out of school and using this startup instead". Technical.ly Brooklyn. 1 March 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
- ^ Aleksandra Appleton, Inside a unique public microschool in Indianapolis, Chalkbeat Indiana (April 16, 2024).
- ^ Brendan Carlin (6 July 2007). "Tories propose parent-run 'pioneer schools'". The Telegraph.