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April 16, 2008
Research on Alternative Schools
The 2001 “District Survey of Alternative Schools and Programs,” conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics is the first national study of public alternative schools and programs to provide data on topics related to the availability of public alternative schools and programs, enrollment, staffing, and services. There are 10,900 public alternative schools serving at-risk students in the U.S. during 2000-2001, the latest year with available data.
The focus of the study is on alternative schools and programs that serve students who are at risk of educational failure, as indicated by poor grades, truancy, disruptive behavior, suspension, pregnancy, or similar factors associated with early withdrawal from school. The study presents a snapshot of alternative schools and programs for at-risk students during the 2000–01 school year.
Remember, this is for labeled at-risk students. There are other types of alternative schools. Furthermore, we question the emphasis on the "deficits" of the student and ought to raise questions on the deficits of a system that did not adequately respond to student needs and turned to separating students into programs serving at-risk youth.
Posted by Wayne Jennings at April 16, 2008 02:04 PM
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