There are different types of alternative schools accepting students. The one most commonly found is the alternative high schools that appeal to highly specialized segments of the student population. A good example for this kind of school is the Harvey Milk High School, the first ever all gay school. Home school cooperatives as well as a variety of K through 6 elementary schools--Montessori and Waldorf facilities in particular--also fall under the heading of alternative schools. Other alternative schools specialize in helping students who may have behavioral problems and suffered expulsion for a variety of infraction.
Alternative education began around the time of the women's suffrage movement, when fearless suffragettes opened schools for girls who were not permitted attendance to the mainstream educational institutions. In the 19th century the shift of educational models led to the setup of alternative education establishments based on the philosophy of their founders. Examples are the schools following the teachings of Rudolf Steiner and Maria Montessori.
Alternative schools distinguish themselves by the low student to teacher ratios. Other features that initially make them quite attractive to parents are the subjects taught, the early introduction of foreign languages, the child-centered teaching approach, the autonomy fostered in the students and of course the focus on gifted children and their special talents. In some cases, ideological and religious indoctrination is part and parcel of the learning experience.
Children visiting alternative schools that cater to their talents find themselves very validated and focus more on these talents. This may be seen in the schools aimed at musical prodigies. In the case of the gay high school, the children who attend are no longer subjected to potential taunts, sneers or disparaging remarks by those who do not share their lifestyle. The ultimate effect, of course, is the child's adjustment to the alternative learning environment.
Enrolling a child in an alternative school may appear like a good idea; however, the very traits that are fostered in this learning environment may be detrimental to the child's success when he returns to a traditional classroom. For example, Montessori students have a notoriously difficult time fitting into a traditional classroom that does not permit for their own choices of classroom activities or teacher led tasks, as is discussed in a parent blog about this setting (see Resources). Graduates of the gay high school will have to reenter the standard educational system when they attend university, and shifting from the protective environment of the high school to the open environment of college is bound to be a difficult transition.
The two most common misconceptions about alternative schools go hand in hand: the first suggests that alternative schools only cater to the gifted, while the second promises an easy transition for an excelling student to a non-alternative setting. Instead, the switch to a learning environment that fails to cater specifically to a child's disposition, disability, talent or interests tends to leave him frustrated, potentially acting out and earning lower grades. This is brought home within the confines of a study conducted by the National Center on Secondary Education and Transition that identified 32 percent of alternative school students--in polled school districts--to be suffering from a disability, while 30 percent declared that some of the students in their care actually were referred to them because of having been expelled from another school. (A link to the findings is included in the Resources section) Of these schools, only about 67 percent stated that they offered some form of transition services, showcasing that other students did not receive the assistance required to successfully transition into a mainstream environment, in which they might have previously failed to excel.