What Do Microschools Look Like These Days

Microschools are a small but important piece of the privatization argument. And some reporting shows just how unaccountable for educating they are.

A microschool is a simple thing. All you need is a handful of students, probably a computer, and some adult. Doesn't have to be a teacher--the teacher's in the software--but just some "coach" to keep things organized and on track. It's a super-modern iteration of a on e-room schoolhouse. It's a homeschooling co-op. It's also a version of the distance learning that so many people hated during the pandemess, but you won't hear that mentioned often. The Microschools Network website defines it this way:

An intentionally small student population,
An innovative curriculum,
Place-based and experiential learning,
The use of cutting-edge technology, and
An emphasis on mastering or understanding material

Microschools are a big business, particularly if, like industry giant Prenda, you can get an entire state to give you a contract. The Koch-topus loves micro-schools. Reformster Travis Pillow wrote a legitimately strong response to one of my microschool pieces. Betsy DeVos says nice things about them. And Prenda itself got a healthy shot of investment money from a newish Koch-Walton initiative called VELA Education Fund. Headed up by Meredith Olson (a VP at Koch's Stand Together) and Beth Seling (with background in the charter school biz), the board of VELA is rounded out by reps from Stand Together and the Walton Foundation.

Why the microschool love? Because they help plug a big hole in the privatization argument. Are you opposed to taxpayer-funded school vouchers because there are no private schools in your neighborhood that will accept you child (or just none at all)? Never fear, comes the argument-- you can have a microschool! Anybody can have a microschool! So taxpayer-funded school vouchers really do serve everyone, even if it seems as if they actually don't.

But who are they serving, and how well are they serving them?

Nobody is collecting a ton of data about microschools, but in April of 2024, Don Soifer and Ashley Soifer, CEO and Chief Innovation Officer of the National Microschooling Center did a little sector analysis that sheds a little light. They looked at 400 microschools in 41 states. That's a small sample size-- Dan Soifer told The Hill that he figures there are about 95,000 microschools serving 1.5 million children. Still, the report does paint a bit of a picture.

One third of microschool founders are currently licensed educators, one third are formerly licensed educators, and one third are neither. About half are starting their first business. 85% of the schools are serving 5-11 year olds, 66% 12-14 year olds, and 37% older teens. Only 40% of students came from public school; 33% were home schooled, and 14% were from private or charter schools. 

18% were serving 51 or more students, which strains the definition of a microschool considerably. 55% are set up as a center serving home schooled students, and 37% as a licensed non-public school; these designations have a lot to do with state regulations. Only 16% are state accredited. 32% get state school choice funds, with 63% tuition-based funding. Families self-report as 60% above or at the average income for their area.

41% operate in commercial business space, 25% in a church, and 20% in a residence. 

60% use a self-directed approach, and 60% use project based. 52% use Social-Emotional Learning. 27% are religion based. 54% use self-created curriculum, and 50% use online learning tools.

There's a lot of room for less-than-stellar schooling in this model. Like most private schools, microschools generally don't answer to the state for issues of discrimination. There are, as with most taxpayer-funded school voucher programs, plenty of state funding going to people who don't particularly need it. And states like Florida allow microschools to skip health and safety regulations imposed on schools.

The Soifer's report covers many details, but not a central question-- are the students learning anything? Many microschools make a big deal out of the centrality of the computer in the model-- "education for the 21sr Century!"

Microschools were having a big moment last year, but more recently things have been quiet in that sector. The 74 just ran a piece about how microschools can empower education-flavored entrepreneurial spirit, and the Center for American Progress, a left-tilted outfit that generally loves reformy stuff, just put out a piece warning that microschools need some regulation. They aren't wrong; microschools exist in their own little pocket universe where pretty much anyone can teach pretty much anything in pretty much any way they want (your mileage may vary depending on the state). And while the current administration fast tracks the dream of getting government out of schooling and making every child's education a family DIY project, microschools will have support, whether they deserve it or not.