Alternative Schooling

State laws require that school-age children attend approved schools or other educational settings; they do not require that this be in a public school. While over 80 percent of Americans attend public schools, the nation has a rich history of diversity in the ways it provides education to children and youth. Private schools (including religious schools), home schooling, and variations on public schools are all quite legal and occupy distinct niches in the educational system.

Charter Schools

Charter schools are public schools that have been turned over to local parent and community groups, who receive a charter making them responsible for the operation and success of the enterprise. Successful charter schools manage to avoid most local and state administrative regulations while being free to try out new curricula and teaching approaches.

About Charter Schools is a site sponsored by the Center for Educational Reform that explains the concept of Charter Schools.

U.S. Charter Schools provides information on this popular alternative movement and links to existing charter schools.

School Choice

School choice is an educational reform expression that can mean anything from more flexible ways for parents to enroll their children in public schools besides the one in their neighborhood all the way to voucher experiments whereby families receive tax refunds or allocations based on need to send their children to private schools. The intent of good school choice plans is to increase healthy competition among local schools to improve what they offer and attract students. About School Choice is a site sponsored by the Center for Educational Reform that explains school choice and provides information on the different versions of this approach that are being tried and debated.

Home Schooling

Home schooling, which also encompasses private tutoring, has a long history in the United States. As with many frontier societies, this was often the only practical way to educate children scattered over vast rural distances, and a number of U.S. states have always had offices that oversaw the licensing of parent instructors and the progress of home schooled children. Home schooling has recently become more popular and now is estimated to be the method used to educate as many as one percent of children (estimates vary). Sites for National, State, and Local Support provides links to U.S. home schooling information and resources.

Private Schools