Final Essay

1420 Words6 Pages

Introduction & Aims
The number of alternative schools in the United States has increase significantly since the 1960s and as of 2013 forty-three states, including Michigan, have developed formal definitions of alternative education programs (Porowski, O’Conner, & Luo, 2014). As states make strides to include alternative education in states’ legislation, it is imperative that formal evaluations follow to insure the quality and efficacy of these programs. Moreover, alternative education programs should be evaluated on the basis that they are meeting both the educational and non-education (i.e., mental health, social, behavioral) needs of their students. It is important that students in alternative education programs are receiving rigorous training and education so that they are just as prepared as their counterparts, in traditional education programs, to persist after receiving their diploma. Utilizing a needs assessment would create a foundation, for …show more content…

In an effort to provide equitable high quality education for minority students Freedom Schools were developed and ran outside of the public school system (Lange & Sletten, 2002). During this time, the Free School Movement emerged, which focused on individual achievement and fulfillment, it also operated outside of the public school system (Lange & Sletten, 2002). The idea of flexible education options to meet the needs of students began to find its way into the public school system. Alternative education and programs within the education systems has evolved over the years. Generally, these schools were, and still are, designed to (1) serve those who have been disenfranchised by the traditional education program and (2) depart from standard structures and programs (Raywid, 1994). For the purpose of the paper, the term alternative education and alternative program will be used

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