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Schools, Like Government, Are Best in Small Packages
 [Townhall] It’s nearing Christmas, and everyone knows the best gifts come in small packages. The same can be said of government and of schools, too.Micro-schools are an emerging trend of what Education Next defines as "one-room schoolhouse meets blended learning and home schooling meets private schooling." According to EdWeek, "The definition of a micro school is still being hammered out, but a consensus seems to be coalescing around a few core details: Schools have no more than 150 students in grades K-12; multiple ages learn together in a single classroom; teachers act more as guides than lecturers; there’s a heavy emphasis on digital and project-based learning; and small class sizes, combined with those other factors, make for a highly personalized education." The micro-school movement is spreading like wildfire in some places. Acton Academy, a system of micro-schools based in Austin, Texas, describes itself as, "One-room schoolhouses for the 21st century," and has expanded to a network of more than 50 schools since its inception in 2009. What people seem to like about these tiny schools are the benefits that are also inherent in limited government and all institutions that are small in scope: They’re accessible, easy to manage, give the consumer a say in how things work and are relatively inexpensive. "As we look at our comprehensive high schools in America, they’ve been competing over years to offer more courses, more athletics, and it increases their cost structure," a micro-school parent told EdWeek in 2016. "We see the same thing in higher education. But increasingly, there’s a segment of their market demographic that feels overserved. "With small buildings, few faculty and staff members, and a curriculum built largely around free, online programs, micro-schools strip education down to the bare essentials,"EdWeek also reported. Posted by: Besoeker 2017-12-09 |
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