Harrnett County has four "primary" schools. While most of the county's elementary schools serve grades kindergarten through fifth grade, the primary schools focus only on the first few elementary grades. Anderson Creek Primary School, Gentry Primary School, and North Harnett Primary School each focus on kindergarten through the second grade; while Harnett Primary School serves grades kindergarten through third grade. According to the Harrnett County school Web page dedicated to primary school education, primary school classrooms "are organized for active exploration and a high level of interaction," as opposed to having large blocks of time set aside for focused learning on specific subjects as is the general philosophy of higher grade levels. The North Carolina State Board of Education also requires that individualized assessments and evaluations be performed for each student enrolled in kindergarten through the second grade.
The average school size of North Carolina elementary schools is currently 497 students. With the exception of Boone Trail Elementary, many of Harnett County elementary schools have a larger than average student population including: Benhaven Elementary, Buies Creek Elementary, Coats Elementary, Highland Elementary, Johnsonville Elementary, LaFayette Elementary, Lillington-Shawtown Elementary, and Overhills Elementary. Despite the above average school population, the class size averages of each of these schools are generally very close to state averages. The average Kindergarten class size in the state of North Carolina is 19; the first grade average class size is 20; in the second grade it's 19; for the third grade it's 20; in the fourth grade it's 21; and the average fifth grade class size is 21 as well. The remaining Harnett County elementary schools serve only the higher elementary grade levels. Angier Elementary, Erwin Elementary, and South Harnett Elementary each serve grades three through five; while Wayne Avenue Elementary School focuses on the fourth and fifth grades.
The largest middle school in Harnett County is Harnett Central Middle School which as of 2011 has a student body of around 1,200 students. "Home of the Cardinals," Western Harnett Middle School comes in second with an average student body size of 1,000. Rounding out the five Harnett County middle schools are the Coats - Erwin Middle School, the Dunn Middle School, and the Overhills Middle School.
The four high school serving Harnett County are Harnett Central High ("Home of the Trojans"), Overhills High ("Home of the Jaguars"), Triton High, and Western Harnett High, where around one out of four students who attend the school are connected to a military family.
Star Academy is Harnett County's alternative public school. The school serves grades 6 through 12, catering to high risk students with severe behavioral issues. Star Academy is Harnett County's alternative to long-term suspension or expulsion. Each student sent to Star Academy has a Personalized Education Plan designed specifically for him. The purpose of the PEP is to help Star Academy students eventually transition back to their regular schools.