Providing Optional Learning Environments in New York State Schools.

Overview & Synopsis

New York State schools have adopted a variety of alternative schools and programs. The schools and programs include free schools, community schools, open education schools, street academies, schools without walls, minischools within schools, minicourses in the curriculum, and alternative programs that bridge the gap between schools and colleges, the world, and work. This document considers the factors behind the movement toward alternatives, the differences between current alternative schools and the traditional alternatives, the relationship of alternative schools to open education and to career education, the effective alternatives for college-bound students in the later years of high school, and the relationship between the development of alternatives and the processes and goals of New York State's redesign effort. The publication also examines whether alternatives contribute to change in the total system and whether this contribution accelerates the change process. (Author/DN)