Intordution

1. Alternative School? Alternative Education?
    Have you come to know about alternative schools? If you are aware of them, what is your idea about them? Maybe you think, 'Why do they refuse compulsory education which is served for free by the government? They waste both time and money,'or 'Why do they send their beloved children to the school which seems to have an insecure quality of education?' The existing schools have not embraced each student's individual character and thus revealed some problems. In addition, some teachers and parents feel the need of another type of school to realize education in respect of a new paradigm. That is the adoption of an alternative school, which will realize 'alternative education.' Since March2006, alternative schools have been approved as accredited schools after being authorized by the Ministry of Education. Now there are many alternative schools in Korea - 21 alternative high schools and 8 alternative middle schools - which obtain sanction of the Education Ministry.
    As mentioned above, people's general viewpoints can result in a misunderstanding about alternative schools. However, you can reduce your misapprehension about alternative schools and come to know about other educational ways after reading this article

1. Children in Alternative School 
Children who Attend Alternative School and Home Schooling
    Who are the children who go to an alternative school? The initial type of children, who chose an alternative school, belonged mostly to teenagers who dropped out of existing public schools. As time goes on, the number of students, who leave public school by their own free will or choose an alternative school from the beginning, has been increased higher than before. Also, there are some students who choose home schooling. Alternative schools are not solely for a group of maladjusted students as an alternative to institutional schools. They simply choose alternative schools for an 'alternative' to overcome existing institutional schools' limitation; because, those traditional schools place the academic record before students' personalities and personal skill development. 
    Traditional education's primary purpose is the field of infinite competition. However, the objective of alternative education is contrary to it. Alternative education attaches great importance to 'freedom' and 'sharing.' An alternative elementary school showed the result of their education program through the students' ocarina performance and market of Anabada which means saving, sharing, exchanging and recycling, as opposed to standardized testing. Alternative schools supply and prepare various forms of alternative education, since they exist for students to have a dream as well as study.

2. Common Nature of Education and Alternative Education
Uncertainty and New Paradigm
    It is true that existing institutional education cannot accept whole responsibility for ensuring the necessary abilities required in the information-oriented age. Education that disregards studentpersonality and emphasizes grades is limited. Of course there are some efforts to abolish these limitations in the existing educational world, but they center around investment in equipment and form. That is, they maintain educational frame of emphasis on grade and record. Now, our society does not want standardized knowledge through formal school education. Our society asks us to have the ability to survive in a fluid situation on a set of basic knowledge, and adapt to new tasks and make them as their own work. In other words, our society has need of many-sided applicable abilities.In this point, alternative schools indicate a different paradigm from existing education. Alternative schools have the ultimate purpose of reducing competition caused by excessive educational enthusiasm. Parents' private zeal for their children changes according to educational interest and the will of thecitizens. It is the core, and aftereffects that will reduce the gap of scholarship, which is generated by economic power, and public property of education will increase naturally when society adopts a more mature form of learning.

3. Interesting Programs that Stimulate Education, Result of Entrance to University and Recent Tendency
Studying Project
    Then, how does alternative schools' education progress? Alternative school constitutes of studying projects and gives students various experiences. The field of alternative education emphasizes movement. Educational programs beyond the school's traditional boundariesare very active and these indicate stimulus and guide to public education. There are some projects such as meditation, ecology, community service, cultural arts, journey, and internship programs. Meditative programs help students strengthen both body and mind. Students can have a mutual understanding with nature through the ecologic program and volunteer activity that helps poor neighbors in region through community service program. Cultural art programsemphasize students' personalities and thoughts out of art in textbooks or conventional lesson, and students can improve their humanity through such journeys. Also, they can find illumination by being the mentor for each other through an internship program.

Separation from Education for Entrance Examination and Limitation of Result, Recent Special Selection

    Separation from Education for Entrance Examination and Limitation of Result, Recent Special Selection.
    In some alternative school, there is estrangement between curriculum and entrance examination, and it becomes the element of difficulty in the school. Students who attend alternative schools also need separate efforts to prepare for the university entrance examination. Watching EBS (Educational Broadcasting System) is a general way, though some students take extracurricular work during weekends and vacations or go to an academy. Alternative schools have interest in whether graduates take an alternative course or not. That is, they are worried about the students' alternative way in respect of entrance to the university or college. This will cease only if the difference between curriculum and pattern of entrance examination disappears.
    After all, alternative schools are also not free from the result of the way to enter university. Alternative schools cannot satisfy every parents' expectation. Parent's dual-desire that aims for entrance to university as well as teach alternative schools' system put alternative schools to the test. Korean parents' educational enthusiasm for sending children to universities are for homework ad it is a dilemma that alternative schools have to solve.
    Realistically, graduates from alternative schools mostly choose to enter a university. Lately, various universities attract alternative schools' students by providing aspecial way of selection. Recently, Inha university and Sungshin women's university established a special selection for alternative schools' students. Sung Kong Hoe university, Soongsil university, and Handong university maintain the former selection style. There are some voices that worry about these special selections for alternative schools. They criticize that such special selection provides excessive privilege to the minority. A university will not carry out this system next year, which is established at first this year, since the students' application fell short of expectation due to increase of universities that selects alternative schools' students. Also, students who pass the entrance to a university but do not apply for them are increasing more and more. Some universities are criticized for their purpose to receive government support by establishing a special selection system..

 

4. Alternative Schools' Problem and Limitation
Alternative Schools' Financial and Conventional Limitation
    Alternative schools' ideal can be appreciated highly, but we should not pass over their exposed limitations. Alternative schools pursue a free school but have a financial limitation. They were approved as a regular school in 2006. Accredited alternative schools are receiving regular support, but some alternative schools cannot be authorized by the Ministry of Education and they are pressed financially.
    Also, they have conventional limitationssuch as people's viewpoint and recognition. Most people are not accustomed to alternative schools and they think only institutional education is stable. People who are accustomed to this circumstance find it hard to understand special students. Surely, students choose an alternative school by their own will, though they cannot ignore the opinions of other people.

 

♧ Information - Foreign Alternative Schools

1) Alternative Schools in U.K.
    There are two types of alternative schools in U.K.: free school and ecological school. Free alternative school criticizes school education that controls and suppresses students excessively, and centers on teachers and adults. Also, free schools have strong belief in students' potential possibility and practice education with faith. Ecological alternative schools can be called 'small schools' since they educate for knowledge and service basic activities to students on a smaller scale. Alternative school's characteristics in the U.K. are people-oriented.

2) Alternative Schools in Germany
    In Germany, alternative schools are recognized within a new trial as they have their own unique conception and different educational structure, keeping a fixed distance with existing public schools' education. So, public schools sometimes find a particular point of trial that alternative schools attempt to adopt, and then reflect them onto their own system. They think that itis natural to offer some rights to alternative schools. They have a careful concern about personal life and individuals, and teachers observe and coach students closely to find students' individual characters and help them in their decision-making for the future. Alternative education in Germany is liberalism.

3) Alternative Schools in U.S.A.
    Alternative schools in U.S.A. have respective characteristics. The minimum feature is to select students with standards from a specific viewpoint and pursue a small-scale school. They emphasize intrinsic value rather than traditional value. They do not pursue stable life guaranteed realistically and they are suitable to students who cannot adapt to formal schools. Alternative schools in the U.S.A. reflects social integration.

 

Conclusion

1. Alternative School's Prospect and Future
More Urgent Affection of School than Financial Problem
    Alternative schools have more urgent problems than simply lack of finance. That is, the aspect of culture within the school system. The culture of the military style is still alive in middle alternative school and the same as a regular school. There are seniors who instruct 'military discipline,' and some alternative schools have strict relations between juniors and senior. Like formal schools, alternative schools also suffer from problems that students neglect others entirely out of their conservation and there is a problem of theft. Only alternative schools do not have these problems. The average school's problem is common such that any type of education system needs to resolve

Emphasis of Problems
    To improve alternative schools, we need to re-think what has gone before and the current failures of the public education programs. Alternative school's only way to avoid public education's failure is to emphasize problems and solve them step by step. Why shouldn't we have interest in alternative education, so as not to be afraid of being hurt and losing in a competitive standardized atmosphere of a traditional schooling system, and instead try to solve problems? If you will, we can find the real 'alternative.'

 

By  Hwang Hyun-mo CP Reporter
denishyun@nate.com

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