Microschool: Difference between revisions
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==21st-century United States== |
==21st-century United States== |
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In the 21st-century United States, microschools are very small forms of [[private school]]s; they are often registered with the state as [[homeschooling]] operations.<ref name=Goldstein2024>Dana Goldstein, [https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/17/us/public-schools-education-voucher-microschools.html A School With 7 Students: Inside the 'Microschools' Movement], ''New York Times'' (June 17, 2024).</ref> U.S. microschools typically enroll fewer students than in a single traditional-school classroom.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> Enrollment varies from a handful to several dozen.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> Many emerge from collectives of [[homeschooling]] families that pool resources to hire a teacher.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> 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]].<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> About two-thirds of U.S. microschools are operated by licensed or formerly licensed schoolteachers.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> Some microschools are [[Christian school|Christian]], while others are secular.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> |
In the 21st-century United States, microschools are very small forms of [[private school]]s; they are often registered with the state as [[homeschooling]] operations.<ref name=Goldstein2024>Dana Goldstein, [https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/17/us/public-schools-education-voucher-microschools.html A School With 7 Students: Inside the 'Microschools' Movement], ''New York Times'' (June 17, 2024).</ref> U.S. microschools typically enroll fewer students than in a single traditional-school classroom.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> Enrollment varies from a handful to several dozen.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> Many emerge from collectives of [[homeschooling]] families that pool resources to hire a teacher.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> 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]].<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> About two-thirds of U.S. microschools are operated by licensed or formerly licensed schoolteachers.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> Some microschools are [[Christian school|Christian]], while others are secular.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> Some microschools meet in homes, churches, or storefronts.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> |
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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.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> A survey by the group found that 40% percent of microschool students were previously enrolled in [[public schools in the United States|public school]], while another third were previously homeschooled.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> 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 choice]]s initiatives, and the increase popularity of education savings accounts.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> As of 2023, about one-third of microschools received public funding as part of [[school voucher]]-type programs.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> |
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.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> A survey by the group found that 40% percent of microschool students were previously enrolled in [[public schools in the United States|public school]], while another third were previously homeschooled.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> 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 choice]]s initiatives, and the increase popularity of education savings accounts.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> As of 2023, about one-third of microschools received public funding as part of [[school voucher]]-type programs.<ref name=Goldstein2024/> |
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A 2014 NPR article cited Brightworks of [[San Francisco]], the Brooklyn Apple Academy and [[Austin, Texas]]'s Acton Academy as examples.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> The startup [[AltSchool]] aimed to operate microschools,<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> while CottageClass, a [[Brooklyn]]-based [[startup]] company established in 2018, supports the creation of microschools through an [[Airbnb]]-type platform connecting parents and teachers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://technical.ly/brooklyn/2018/03/01/cottageclass-homeschooling-startup|title=Brooklyn's new thing is taking your kids out of school and using this startup instead|work=Technical.ly Brooklyn|date=1 March 2018|publisher=|accessdate=26 July 2018}}</ref> [[The Beekman School]] in [[Manhattan]], which has classes of six or seven students, has been called a microschool.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> |
A 2014 NPR article cited Brightworks of [[San Francisco]], the Brooklyn Apple Academy and [[Austin, Texas]]'s Acton Academy as examples.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> The startup [[AltSchool]] aimed to operate microschools,<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> while CottageClass, a [[Brooklyn]]-based [[startup]] company established in 2018, supports the creation of microschools through an [[Airbnb]]-type platform connecting parents and teachers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://technical.ly/brooklyn/2018/03/01/cottageclass-homeschooling-startup|title=Brooklyn's new thing is taking your kids out of school and using this startup instead|work=Technical.ly Brooklyn|date=1 March 2018|publisher=|accessdate=26 July 2018}}</ref> [[The Beekman School]] in [[Manhattan]], which has classes of six or seven students, has been called a microschool.<ref name=Kamenetz2014/> |
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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 learning|social-emotional]] resources.<ref>Aleksandra Appleton, [https://www.chalkbeat.org/indiana/2024/04/16/indianapolis-charter-school-creates-microschool-to-customize-education/ Inside a unique public microschool in Indianapolis], ''Chalkbeat Indiana'' (April 16, 2024).</ref> |
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==Outside the United States== |
==Outside the United States== |
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Revision as of 23:04, 17 June 2024
Microschooling is the reinvention of the one-room schoolhouse, where class size is typically smaller than that in most schools.
Historical antecedents
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
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] Some microschools have gained formal status by seeking accreditation as private schools, and a few 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.[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.[3] 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.[4]
Outside the United States
In 2016, the UK Conservative Party alluded to the concept of microschooling in 2007 with their concept of Pioneer schools.[5]
References
- ^ 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 Dana Goldstein, A School With 7 Students: Inside the 'Microschools' Movement, New York Times (June 17, 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.