Alternate Education – Beyond Traditional Schooling

“Alternate Education”, the term itself may sound a bit weird and offensive to many of you at the very first utterance. However, the term though it lacks a definitive meaning, has different approaches to its interpretation. Alternate Education is a special form of education that is beyond the traditional schooling system. It focuses on innovative approaches to deliver education to students’ in schools and colleges based on their interests and capabilities.

Traditional Schooling vs. Alternate Education

1.      Curriculum – The curriculum in this method of education is more innovative and designed as per the students’ interests through special programmes that focus on specialisations right from the early age.
2.    Student Spread – The students in this method of education are school/college drop-outs, people below poverty line, underprivileged youth, mentally gifted students, home schooling etc. as compared to traditional schooling where the same thing is taught to all.
3.      Exams, Tests, & Grades – In this method of education the students do not have the pressure of giving examinations & tests to get good grades and qualify to the next level, which is vice versa to the traditional method of education.
4.    Parental Involvement – Unlike the traditional where the parents are required to visit the schools/colleges only during Parents’ meet or during declaration of results or complaints regarding their children if any; the alternate education method involves the parents during the process of providing education. These are called as, “special learning days” wherein parents participate in the lessons being taught to children.
5.    Infrastructural Differences - The traditional method of desks and benches, merit based qualifications, etc. have been discontinued by many of the alternate educational institutions. The school architecture is often environment friendly with organic shapes & forms such as round walls, woods, jungle, natural habitat, etc.

Alternative education system has proven to be ahead of traditional schools, wherever educational alternatives combine customised learning with collaborative group learning in authentic, inquiry-oriented projects, provide their students with access to diverse knowledge sources and assess them for deeper understanding and further learning. They can serve as meaningful models for the renewal of mainstream education across the globe.

The aim should be to develop the whole human being – “Head, Heart, & Hands”