What is the difference between an alternative school and a special school?

Question

What is the difference between an alternative school and a special school?

Answer 1

An alternative school is usually a school for students who violate school rules to a great degree. They can also be schools that provide a different type of environment and instruction for students who have difficulty with "normal" campus interactions and traditional educational. These are not considered punitive.

A special school is for students with disabilities that are so profound that they cannot be maintained on a regular campus. These days, many students with disabilities are maintained on regular campuses because of the Least Restrictive Environment rule. They may be in a special class or fully included in regular education.

So this means that students in special schools are either medically fragile, severely or profoundly retarded or both. Before LRE, there were a lot more schools for moderately mentally retarded kids, but for the most part, those kids are now on regular campuses.

The other type of school is for students with an Individualized Education Plans (IEP,) who have behaviors that are so dangerous, destructive or disruptive that they cannot be maintained on a regular campus. They are often labeled educationally as Emotionally/Behaviorally Disordered, but not always. They tend to be of average or better intelligence.

The difference between a special behavior school and an alternative school is that you must have a documented disability to attend the special school and a team of professionals and parents have placed you there.  A student can be administratively assigned to an alternative school with or without parent aprroval.

Answer 2

Usually, an alternative school is simply for a person who is not in special education and wants to earn a high school diploma, but who cannot go or does not want to go to regular school at the regular time.  Sometimes the person is pregnant, sometimes the person has poor behavior not related to a disability, or some similar reason.  A "special school," is for a student who is identified as having special learning needs, such as autism.

Answer 3

nothing.keep moving forward and dont worry about it.my son makes seven million a year,he once asked me this question.