What is a microschool?

In 2020, nearly every governor in the nation shut down schools, tacitly declaring schools to be non-essential. While instruction ostensibly went online, many school districts were ill-equipped for virtual classes.

In places where online portals worked, parents were appalled at what was being taught and what was not. These revelations, in addition to lengthy lockdowns, caused many parents to turn to out-of-the-box educational ideas. Parents initiated one-room schools of several neighborhood children or families. Teachers were hired or parents shared teaching responsibilities in these “microschools” or “learning pods.” Children thrived in the smaller classes and more flexible environments, and many “pandemic pods” continued even after public schools reopened.

While some microschools existed before 2020, they have burgeoned since then. There are now an estimated one to two million students in around 100,000 microschools across the nation. Unconventional microschool models have become essential to the learning of thousands of students.

Microschools are extremely diverse. They range in size from two or three students to over 100 scholars, with an average size of 16 pupils. They meet in homes, churches, office spaces, museums, libraries, community centers, on farms, in public parks, and even in tents. Some are for-profit ventures; others are tuition-free ministries of churches. Some are designed exclusively for special needs students. Some are high-tech with a laptop for every student; others are nature-based where children spend most of the day outside. Some operate on a five-day-a-week schedule, others on a two- or three-day schedule, sometimes called the collegiate model. In collegiate model schools, parents are expected to work at home with the child the other two or three days, so these schools are a mixture of school and homeschool. Microschools operate on a multitude of models and educational philosophies: Christian, Montessori, Waldorf, Classical, un-schooling, forest schooling, and eclectic out-of-the-box models unique to one particular school. Microschool franchises are multiplying, including Acton Academy. Most microschools have multi-age classrooms and curriculum tailored to each child’s needs.

In response to the burgeoning microschool movement, several states, have recently passed or have pending legislation on microschools. North Dakota is on the cutting edge of this movement. House Bill 1472 would reduce state regulations on schools with 50 students or fewer, allowing “edupreneurs” and parents more freedom to choose microschools.

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Christy Oliver is the founder and director of Step Out Summit and Areté Press. She earned M.S. and Ph.D degrees in Animal and Range Science from North Dakota State University in 2004 and 2007, respectively. Subsequently, she was awarded a Congressional Science Fellowship. Christy was home-educated K-12 by parents who were pioneers in the homeschool movement of the early 1980s, and she started a microschool in Virginia where she taught for 11 years.

She is a guest author for American Experiment North Dakota.