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The concept of a “school-within-a-school” stems from the belief that large public schools need to be broken up into smaller schools in order to maximize student achievement and well-being. The smaller schools have their own staff, students, and budget. This independence is meant to foster a more personalized education for students alongside more innovative teaching. These subunits of the larger school can especially engage students and teachers when they focus on specific interests. Schools-within-schools have been supported by both the federal government and philanthropists, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. A school-within-a-school has lower start up costs than a stand-alone small high school and is seen as being more practical. Some research has shown that schools-within-schools can result in greater student self-esteem and higher attendance rates. However, stand-alone small schools have proven to be more beneficial learning environments than schools-within-schools. When a large school is broken up into subunits, resources and academic options should be allocated equally. In practice, however, schools-within-schools can result in increased racial and socioeconomic stratification.

Works Cited

Dewees, Sarah. 1999. "The School-Within-A-School Model. ERIC Digest.". Ericdigests.Org. https://www.ericdigests.org/2000-4/school.htm.

"Schools-Within-Schools Model Seen Yielding Trade-Offs". 2007. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/schools-within-schools-model-seen-yielding-trade-offs/2007/09.

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1. What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school? (General overview)

What makes Multi-Cultural schools different from normal ones is that they incorporate a vast variety of different cultures into their learning. They focus on different cultures’ beliefs, values, histories, and texts of the different cultures. Usually, their student includes a vast range of different culture and ethnicities.

2. Where did this type of schooling come from? (origin story)

The idea originally stemmed from the Civil Rights Movement, and Ethnic Study Movement.

3. How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?

In class the teachers are expected the recognize and respect the presence of all diverse groups in an organization or society. The students are taught to acknowledge the different values of their own individual cultures. This ideally creates a very interconnected environment of learning.

4. What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks?

I would say the general education of different cultures in schools is very important and most definitely is very beneficial to children. They create less distance between cultures and a general feeling of interconnectedness with one another through their cultures which I think is great.

I wouldn’t  say there is anything specific that these schools that do that are setbacks or harmful. I would say to make sure the children are also educated in different subjects as they would in normal school and be aware of a good balance in education.

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1. What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school? (General overview)

Special education schools “comprehensive special education services for students with disabilities. Many are created around students within certain disability groups, for example, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), or with special learning, behavioral, or emotional needs”. These schools are created to help aid it’s students, both in academics, and behavioral and social skills/goals throughout the school day.

2. Where did this type of schooling come from? (origin story)

Can be traced back to 1954

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

While this case was against racial injustice, it was one of the first very big cases fighting for equal education

From there, rights and funding for special education schools followed

1966- amendment made provides federal funds for public education for families for children with disabilities

1973- The Rehabilitation Act ensures those with disabilities cannot be denied funds

1975- Education for All Handicapped Children Act was signed

1982-  Board of Education of Hendrick Hudson Central School District v. Rowley had a court ruling that provided specialized education

1997- Amendments made to IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)

2004- No Child Left Behind Act improved special education programs, getting qualified teachers in the programs

One school that came out of this history is the Cotting School, which I visited with my middle school. The Cotting School (1893), was the nation's first school for children with disabilities.

3. How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?

Like mentioned above, the environment is changed to assist kids and teens (for example, it’s an environment where those to get overstimulated/overwhelmed easily can learn), as well as the staff/teachers being specially trained.

4. What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks?

For many obvious reasons, special education schools can greatly benefit those who have disabilities, but it can also isolate them. Unfortunately, sometimes this is required to ensure the student will have the best possible shot at life.

Works Cited:

https://www.wgu.edu/blog/special-education-history-resources-advice2001.html#:~:text=The%20exact%20nature%20of%20special,segregation%20violated%20equal%20educational%20opportunity.&text=1975%3A%20The%20Education%20for%20All,Act%20was%20signed%20into%20law.

https://www.carautismroadmap.org/specialized-special-education-schools/#:~:text=Specialized%20special%20education%20schools%20provide,%2C%20behavioral%2C%20or%20emotional%20needs.

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Montessori schools are student driven schools which rely on 5 core components. The first is having teachers trained in the Montessori method. Teachers at Montessori schools need to understand what the Montessori method is, as well as how to nurture students and create a psychologically and physically supportive environment. The second core component is the multi-age classroom. Montessori classrooms often contain students of different ages and grades because they believe that young students have much to learn from older students and older students can reinforce their own learning by teaching concepts themselves. The multi-age classroom also prepares students for real world collaboration. The third core component is the Montessori materials. Hands on learning is key in the Montessori method, and as a result, textbooks are seldom used. The fourth core component is child-directed work. Students are able to choose their own meaningful and challenging work based on their interests, while teachers encourage students to pursue their learning passions. Finally, the fifth core component is uninterrupted work periods. Students have large blocks of time during the day to work on individual tasks without interruptions. During this time, teachers can provide small group lessons or individual help to students.

Montessori schools were founded in 1907 by Maria Montessori, an Italian educator. Maria had been hired to take care of children grades 3-7 in more of a daycare format. She spent her first few months at the daycare making observations about how her students absorbed information and then designed her own learning materials and a classroom environment that encouraged their desire to learn.

A day in the life of a Montessori student would likely change from day to day depending on what the student is interested in. One day could be spent completing their own choice project, while the other could be spent working with friends to understand the number line.

The Montessori school has many benefits and drawbacks compared to traditional schooling. On one hand, the student focused learning allows students to become passionate about schooling and really learn what they’re interested in. It also accommodates for student needs and encourages collaboration instead of competition. On the other hand, students could find the lack of structure very difficult to effectively learn in and the price could be a barrier for many students.

Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRHfhP3kXV4&ab_channel=LearningLife

https://amshq.org/About-Montessori

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Kevin

1. What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school? (General overview)
- The main difference between a parochial school and a regular school is that a parochial school is affiliated with a religious organization, and their curriculum also includes general religious education in addition to normal courses like science, math and english.

2. Where did this type of schooling come from? (origin story)
- The first parochial school was built in 1818, named Pratte Warehouse, in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri. It was a fur warehouse that was later sold to the Sisters of Loretto for use as a school.

3. How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?
- My school looks very similar to any catholic school because they work on the same principal, which may include religion courses and events. I have heard that on every Sunday, every student has to go to church to pray, even if they are not religious.

4. What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks
- The main drawback of parochial school for non-religious students is that they will have to pray, even if they feel uncomfortable or don’t want to.

Fun Fact: The largest system of private schools in the United States is operated by the Roman Catholic Church and includes 8,351 schools in 1993-94, serving 2,516,000 students

Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/parochial-education
https://nces.ed.gov/pubs/ps/97459ch2.asp

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1. What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school?

a bilingual language education where two languages are used to educate

used across all subjects (math, science, social studies, etc.)

different from just learning a language in school

completely immerses the student in language + culture

2. Where did this type of schooling come from?

1960’s Canada: parents wanted their children to learn French language and culture in schools

3. How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?

depends on which mode is used:

total immersion: spend 100% of class time spent in the foreign language

partial immersion: 50% of class time spent

two-way (dual) immersion

half the student population speaks two or more languages

split classes in half, and teach in respective languages being learned

FLES immersion: 5-15% of time spent in that language

remaining class time spent learning the language itself

FLEX immersion: 1-5% of time spent in that language

4. What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks?

Benefits

appreciation for culture, fluency in a second language

tested at or above their grade level (grades 4-8): can help with literacy and language arts skills in their native language

faster problem solvers, pick up more nonverbal cues, more attentive to emotion

open up employment opportunities in the future

Drawbacks

difficult to staff, set standards, and balance the languages

making it accessible to diverse learners is extremely difficult

Sources:
https://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/bilingual_ed/langimmersion.html#:~:text=Immersion%20programs%20that%20exist%20today,experimental%20technique%20of%20language%20immersion

https://carla.umn.edu/immersion/documents/ImmersionResearch_TaraFortune.html

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The open-classroom movement originated in British public elementary schools after WWII and was introduced into the US in 1965 as an experimental school architecture. Open classrooms’ focus on “learning by doing” and believe that teacher led classrooms crush students’ creativity. The teacher is the facilitator of learning as opposed to the dispenser of knowledge. The open classroom school generally has an architectural configuration of large pods containing six to twelve classrooms, each with an outside access and no interior walls. There are no whole-class lessons, no standardized tests, no assigned seating, and no detailed curriculum in an open classroom. Children come in contact with books and their peers at 'interest centers' and learn at their own pace with the help of the teacher. Two drawbacks are that the construction of open classroom schools are noisy and they have not significantly improved learning, but did not impede achievement. One benefit is that children in open classroom programs scored higher than traditional classroom students in self-concept, attitude, and creativity.

Sources:
https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2302/Open-Classroom-Schools.html

https://www.educationnext.org/theopenclassroom/

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1. What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school? (General overview)

Schools without walls are schools that use the community as a base and resource for all the students’ work. What makes it different from traditional school is that it can be implemented anywhere. Online school would even be an example of “schools without walls” because you can access it and “go to school” anywhere.

2. Where did this type of schooling come from? (origin story)

It was founded in the District of Columbia in 1971. The concept of its urban education was to “use the city as a classroom”. It was immediately developed after Philadelphia’s Parkway School and the Chicago Public High School for Metropolitan Studies. The idea was based in a small suite of offices on the 12th floor of the building located on 1411 K St. NW.

3. How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?

At The School Without Walls in Rochester, the curriculum, course, and student experiences are planned, developed, and implemented with the goal to help students become self-sufficient, lifelong learners. There are interdisciplinary classes that have project-based learning, and the community is used as a base and resource for work. At The Hellerup School in Denmark, there are no classrooms, but instead a series of multipurpose spaces centered around a set of stairs. The spaces can work as both social meeting areas or lecture halls, and there is furniture and folding walls that can be moved around.

4. What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks?

Benefits: It is a better way of educating students than simply placing them off by themselves in the same school building everyday. The graduation requirements at The School Without Walls in Rochester include portfolios and senior projects instead of standardized tests. Gives students a special, unique experience that they can use knowledge from to enter undergraduate school and the real-world.

Drawbacks: I imagine it could be chaotic for people who can’t be that flexible with their schedule. There isn’t much school spirit since everything is so spread out. Not a whole lot of intense student and teacher interaction since everything is moving around.

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What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school? (General overview)

Aims to create well rounded students through a broad curriculum

Including academics, art and music education, physical education and social education.

Academic education is de-emphasized

Uses no textbooks until 6th grade

Writing is taught before reading

Where did this type of schooling come from? (origin story)

Nearly a hundred years ago by Rudolf Steiner

Austrian philosopher and scientist

Anthroposophy - the idea that children who consciously cultivate independent thinking will be more ready to handle the important natural and spiritual questions with which philosophers and scientists are concerned.

How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?

A kindergarten classroom is furnished to look more like a home

Use of color and space are used to create a comfortable environment

Furniture and toys are shaped from natural materials like wood

What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks?

Could be a good thing for more artistically inclined students considering they take it more seriously

This can also be a drawback for more academically inclined students

There is little teacher interference so children tend to be independent and learn more skills

Sources

https://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/methods/waldorf/

https://www.waldorfeducation.org/waldorf-education

https://blog.bellalunatoys.com/2010/waldorf-education.html

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Vocational schools focus on students learning trades that include welding, electronics, engineering, cosmetology, cooking, and many others. The original idea for them was “fitting people to their destinies'' or what they were destined to do in their lives. In the early 20th century, they were a way for lower-income students to have schooling that would benefit them since they most likely would not be attending high education or even education past high school. Vocational education became much more popular at that time because factories had a lack of skilled workers and this education model was seen to be the solution. The large increase in immigrant children was considered a way to fill the lack of workers because they were considered to already be going down this path for their life.

Today, vocational schools usually also have a general academic program but their main focus is on the chosen career by the student and to learn the trade. There are trade schools as well which are just a specific type of vocational education that goes into more specific careers. The goals of these schools have shifted to create people ready for employment although many students who go to vocational schools do continue into higher education (past high school). It’s a very hands on practice due to what is being taught. Students spend a large amount of their time actually practicing the skills they need for what trade/career they are studying. Some schools may also have more traditional academic classes as well for general education in math, science, and english.

Vocational schools seem like they’re helpful if a student knows exactly what they want to do with their life but it also can be limiting. I think that they are a good way to get ahead in a career path and also having a more hands-on approach can be more interesting. Originally though I think that vocational schools just were used to write off low-income and immigrant students. This was justified by saying that these students wouldn't go on to higher education anyway but that just built in more inequality in the school system.

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Ayla

Most parents want the most meaningful and engaging learning experience for their children

Worried about the long days at desks, and one size fits all approach in public schools, some parents decide to take matters into their own hands. The homeschooling approach has become increasingly popular in Massachusetts over the past decade. The homeschooling movement started in the 1970’s, with John Holt and Raymond Moore as its primary founders. By now, each state has its own regulations and rules in place for homeschoolers, with Massachuesste’s being some of the strictest and most highly regulated. For homeschooling, a parent or guardian will usually stay home with their children full time and be their teacher. Subjects that need to be taught are orthography, reading, writing, the English language and grammar, geography, arithmetic, drawing, music, the history and constitution of the United States, the duties of citizenship, health education, physical education and good behavior. However there is no requirement for how often these subjects are taught, or at which grade level. The main drawback of the homeschooling approach is how inaccessible it is to most people. It is a huge time commitment for parents, and requires financial stability and a multi-parent household. Parents do not get paid to homeschool, but there are grants and possibly tax deductions available. The main benefit is that the education can be more personalized and done mostly from the student’s house. This is a better option for kids with anxiety or who are way ahead of their peers academically. Homeschooling gives freedom to the families over how the learning happens.

Sources:

Samburg, Bridget. "Our Kids Don't Belong in School." Boston Magazine (Boston,

MA), August 25, 2015. Accessed March 31, 2021.

https://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2015/08/25/homeschooling-in-boston/.

Time4Learning, ed. "Homeschooling in Massachusetts." Time4Learning.com. Accessed

March 31, 2021. https://www.time4learning.com/homeschooling/massachusetts/.

Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). "Massachusetts Homeschool Law at

a Glance." In Massachusetts Laws. HSLDA, 2021. Accessed March 31, 2021.

https://hslda.org/legal/massachusetts.

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The term “magnet school” refers to a public school that has programs designed to attract and teach a very specific targeted group of students. These schools have one main focus or area of study instead of multiple classes for multiple different interests. For example there is a magnet school in Texas specializing in medical science or a school in Baltimore focusing on visual arts. Magnet schools are part of the public school system but are in high demand due to their hands on and intriguing learning environments. “Children are enrolled based on their interest in the school’s theme, not based on where they live.” (Like other public schools.) The first magnet school in the US was declared when Vice President Hubert Humphrey went to John Bartram High School in 1965. The Bartram High School had a main focus on the commercial field and business. Magnet Schools can benefit the students because of the creative and targeted learning environment designed for the students that attend these schools. One of the main sources for complaints about magnet schools is that they draw more gifted students away from public schools.

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Unschooling is the type of learning that positions the students at the one that is also the teacher. Often called “child-led learning,” unschooling removes the teacher out of the equation and instead a parent/instructor becomes present on the sidelines to facilitate the students education and life journey. This form of education positions students to follow their own interests, at their own pace, and spend time in environments of their choice. This can in return help the students in opening their minds to new perspectives and gaining a new understanding/experience across the places, cultures, and environments that their parents enable them to be in. Coined in 1977 by John Holt, unschooling rose to existence from the shortcomings Holt felt that the traditional education system contained. While this type of school learning environment is praised by many in reducing the stress that students face as a result of a more flexible, student centric and motivated approach, the system has also been criticized for the gaps that can occur in certain areas simply due to the children directing themselves into certain areas and not exploring, or even being aware of others. Despite the need for commitment from the parents, and the students to maintain the motivation with this form of schooling, many have remained strong proponents of the education approach and with it being legal across all 50 states it is also a form of education that will remain one key aspect of how some kids will learn in this ever-evolving world.

Sources:

https://www.educationcorner.com/what-is-unschooling.html

https://unschoolingmom2mom.com/legal-requirements/

https://www.parents.com/kids/education/home-schooling/what-is-unschooling-all-about-child-led-home-education/

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1. What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school? (General overview)

Continuation schools are schools for high school students over 16 who haven’t completed high school and are at risk of dropping out or not graduating. Usually, students in continuation schools are behind on high school credits and/or have outside circumstances like family life, economic situation, or jobs that prevent them from attending normal public high school.

2. Where did this type of schooling come from? (origin story)

This schooling was first introduced in California legislature in 1919, along with other schools like opportunity schools for at-risk students.

3. How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?

In order to accommodate students schedules, the schools have a minimum requirement of 15 hours a week, but provide programming for full days. They focus on job skills, financial management, and other useful things for adult life more than traditional subjects.

4. What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks?

These schools are very helpful for students who are motivated to succeed, but have aspects of their lives preventing them from succeeding in traditional public high school. The drawbacks are mainly social. Continuation schools have a reputation of where ‘those students’ go, and are generally looked down upon.

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What is the deal with your school? What makes it different from a regular school? (General overview)

Parents are very involved

Open communication between parents, students, and teachers

Traditional education

“Focused learning environment”

Prioritises responsibility, respect, and behavior

“More structured learning environment than a public school”

Where did this type of schooling come from? (origin story)

First Fundamental school was founded in 1976 in Pinellas County Florida

How does it work in practice? What does your school look like?

Holds all students to the same standards

Makes students be the best they can be

Very strict

Detention is very easy to get

What are some potential benefits to your model as opposed to traditional schooling? What might be some drawbacks?

Benefits

No room for distractions/very focused

School is a place to learn and that is certainly what fundamental schools preach

Students at fundamental schools want to learn

Drawbacks

Not all students may be able to achieve the same things

All students learn differently

Not a lot of individuality

School hierarchy readily enforced