Alternative Education
Overview
Research & Reports
Regional Data
State Alternative Education Resources
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Overview
Alternative education has been around for decades. Although the concept of alternative education has evolved over the years, it is widely accepted that alternative schools and programs overwhelmingly serve students who are at-risk for failure within the traditional educational system. There are many characteristics that define alternative schools and programs, including enrollment criteria (e.g. suspension or expulsions or some form of at-risk criteria), extra support and counseling, small enrollments and more personal environments, positive relationships with adults, specific educational and transition goals and educational programs that typically focus on basic academic skills, social services and/or community work-based learning. While the short-term goal of alternative education is to meet the needs of targeted students, the long-term goal is to identify successful alternative education strategies and implement those strategies to improve the learning opportunities for all children. Research studies, including those that document the effectiveness or the number of students being served in alternative schools and programs, remain few and far between.
Recent Trends
Since the mid-1990s, the widespread adoption of stringent discipline policies such as zero-tolerance has led state legislatures to become more involved in crafting alternative education policy and has fueled the creation of an unprecedented number of programs for students who are suspended or expelled or at-risk of education failure. Public school alternative education programs vary nationwide, depending on individual program objectives, goals and scope of program implementation. This Web page is assembled as a research tool for policymakers interested in learning more about alternative education policy, schools and programs and students.
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