School nurses represent cost-effective investments in students' health and educational success. Alternative high schools (AHSs) serve an understudied population of youth who are at risk for school dropout and face numerous social inequities, heightening their risk for poor health outcomes. In this two-phase explanatory sequential mixed methods…

Purpose: This study aims to present the experiences with self-determination and taking ownership of life in Sudbury model schools that allow students true choice. Design/methodology/approach: For this qualitative study we used a thematic analysis (TA) methodology. The study is based on semi-structured interviews with 14 adult participants from…

Purpose: From the in-group status as a former homeschool parent, the goal is to problematize the entanglement of neoliberalism within self-directed education (SDE) pedagogies. Further and importantly, this study aims to bring attention to and examine the neoliberal resistant practices found in Black homeschooling. Design/methodology/approach: A…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of former teachers who transitioned into self-directed education (SDE), a K-12 educational paradigm where learning is authentically student-led. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on Ivan Illich's Deschooling Society and qualitative thematic analysis of interviews with educators…

We use the concept of time-space paths (Gordon, Holland and Lahelma 2000) to explore how young people negotiate manageable educational pathways and experience educational engagement in alternative educational settings. For many young people in alternative settings, tight time-space paths (e.g. attending school on time) led to their disengagement…

In Australia coeducation dominates government schooling, with single-sex institutions usually being the preserve of selective government schools and private, often elite, institutions. For marginalised young people who 'drop out' or are forced to leave the coeducational mainstream system, flexible and/or non-traditional schools provide alternative…

This study examines how students' identities are co-constructed through educational experiences. We analyzed narratives of fifth and seventh grade students from two private alternative schools in the Czech Republic. The findings reveal that students identified with friends, had positive relationships with teachers and the school, and experienced…

Ohio has a long history of providing a range of educational opportunities for students, and public community schools offer various instructional models and curricula that contribute to these educational options. Designed to operate independently of a traditional school district, Ohio community schools are authorized by an approved community school…

High school exit exams are meant to standardize the quality of public high schools and to ensure that students graduate with a set of basic skills and knowledge. Evidence suggests that a common perverse effect of exit exams is an increase in dropout for students who have difficulty passing tests, with a larger effect on minority students. To…

This study sought to understand individualized information literacy instruction for first-year students of color in higher education, and the impact of that instruction on student performance and confidence levels. The study was conducted at a four-year doctoral granting higher education institution and was designed as a QUAL+quan convergent…

For reasons explored within the paper, adolescents excluded from mainstream education are more likely to use cannabis regularly. Research into the cannabis use (CU) of adolescents excluded from mainstream school in the United Kingdom (UK) is limited and seldom focuses on what students perceive as effective support. In this exploratory study,…

Flexible learning options (FLOs) that provide access to secondary education for marginalised students tend to sit on the margins of education systems, resulting in pressure to account for their outcomes. This paper employs a conceptual framework based on possible selves theory applied to interview data with students and staff from eight Australian…

Students with Emotional Behavioral Disorders (EBD) exhibit behaviors that interfere with their ability to access instruction and identifying feasible and effective school-based interventions is critical for promoting their academic success. Previous research has shown the positive effects of a self-management package that involved gradually and…

In-school enabling programs are emerging across Australia as an alternative pathway to university for secondary students, with a particular focus on widening participation. The importance of these programs is likely to grow considering the recent Australian University Accord recommendations for equity targets. However, little is known about these…

The objective of this exploratory study is to determine whether teachers in the national system of Second Opportunity Centers of Chile have characteristics similar to those of effective teachers in similar schools in other countries. A nationally representative sample of teachers in 40 centers completed a self-administered questionnaire describing…