Flexible Micro-Schools in Today’s Environment

Change is difficult in large schools with heavy top-down decision-making. Just one of the benefits of a micro-school in the wake of COVID-19 and coronavirus is that we are able to quickly shift and adapt to do what’s best for our students without missing a beat.

Why Micro-Schools Form

Micro-schools are born because a parent or educator sees a better way to serve our children. They’re tired of teaching to the test and giving or grading hours of homework (or watching their children suffer through it). Ultimately, they want learning to be more relevant so children grow to love learning rather than avoid it.

Why We Need Micro-Schools Today

Small schools can specialize in hands-on and project-based learning that include community collaboration. And in today’s climate of school closures to minimize the spread of illness, micro-schools are able to shift gears quickly so students don’t miss valuable learning time.

Typically large schools, whether public or private, must jump through hoops and cut red tape in order to ensure learning goes on as usual. Change takes time and is often challenging at best to implement. Larger schools don’t know their students as intimately as administrators and teachers at micro-schools, something that can have a big impact on a child’s ability to learn and thrive.

Micro-schools allow for more flexibility with students, allowing them to be innovative and learn at their own pace, in their own style. This is a unique approach when it seems that standardized tests rule the report cards, all while growing anxiety weighs on students and parents alike.

Another benefit that makes micro-schools vital today is an opportunity to throw traditional education out the window and allow students to guide the learning process. There are many different kinds of micro-school models, just one of which being a flipped classroom where teachers provide pre-learning at home, usually in a short video, and guide students in the class rather than direct them. Educators let students engage in higher-level thinking activities and manage the quality of learning across many channels and technologies.

Small class size allows the educators to loosen the reins on the students and aid them in learning to direct, pace, and control themselves and their use of time. And even better, it allows teachers to guide students remotely, in a distance learning model that keeps students engaged and on target no matter what is going on in the world at large.

The future of education needs to happen today, in a micro-school model. It’s a powerful way to ensure each student continues to thrive in today’s environment and continues to grow and learn amid school closures and an uncertain future.

We encourage you to find a micro-school near you or contact us today to find out more about starting a micro-school of your own.