Microschooling is the reinvention of the one-room schoolhouse, where class size is typically smaller than that in most schools.
Microschooling has been described as a modern incarnation of the one-room schoolhouse. [1] In the United States, approximately 150,000 single-teacher schools operated in the early 1930s, but fewer than 400 operated as of 2005; school sizes became larger throughout the 20th century, driven by increased urbanization, the popularization of the school bus, and education professionalization and standardization. [1]
In the 21st-century United States, microschools are very small forms of private schools; they are often registered with the state as homeschooling operations. [2] U.S. microschools typically enroll fewer students than in a single traditional-school classroom. [2] Enrollment varies from a handful to several dozen. [1] Many emerge from collectives of homeschooling families that pool resources to hire a teacher. [1] Other microschools, often led by a single educator, emphasize different topics or approaches, such as project-based learning, the arts, or the Socratic method. [1] About two-thirds of U.S. microschools are operated by licensed or formerly licensed schoolteachers. [2] Some microschools are Christian, while others are secular. [2] Some microschools meet in homes, churches, or storefronts. [2]
The National Microschooling Center is an advocacy group for the movement; it estimated that as of the 2023–24 school year there were 95,000 microschools and homeschooling "pods" in the U.S. nationwide, with more than one million students participating. [2] A survey by the group found that 40% percent of microschool students were previously enrolled in public school, while another third were previously homeschooled. [2] The popularity of microschools increased sharply in the 2020s for several reasons, including disruptions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, more government funding through school choices initiatives, and the increasing popularity of education savings accounts. [2] As of 2023, about one-third of microschools received public funding as part of school voucher-type programs. [2]
Many microschools are unregulated; in some states, curricula is not overseen, facilities are not inspected, and staff background checks are optional. [2] However, some microschools operate four or five days each week, have full-time teachers and formal curricula, and use standardized tests. [2] Because microschools are often considered homeschools, most microschools do not require accreditation. [3] However, some microschools have sought and received accreditation as private schools. [2] In a National Microschooling Center survey of 400 microschools, shared with the newspaper The Hill in 2024, 16% of microschools reported that they were accredited. [3] A few microschools have grown large enough to no longer be considered "micro." [2]
A 2014 NPR article cited Brightworks of San Francisco, the Brooklyn Apple Academy and Austin, Texas's Acton Academy as examples of microschools. [1] The now-closed startups AltSchool [1] and CottageClass [4] supported microschools. Prenda is a VC-backed company [5] that has helped more than a thousand people start their own microschools.
Microschool tuition can vary widely. Some, like The Beekman School in Manhattan, which has classes of six or seven students and has been called a microschool, charge tuition of $50,000 or more. [1] However, the recent expansion of microschools has seen lower-cost offerings, with tuition as low as $6,200. [6]
Some microschools have emerged from more traditional schools. For example, in 2024, the Purdue Polytechnic High School Lab School established a microschool in Indianapolis for 20 of its high school students who were identified as students who could benefit from a personalized curriculum and greater social-emotional resources. [7]
In 2007, a UK Conservative Party task force headed by Iain Duncan Smith recommended that the party propose "Pioneer schools" (jointly led by parents and charities) as a policy. [8]