A better alternative: a philosophy of educating the whole child and a willingness to experiment with differing instructional strategies is what makes continuation schools work.

Since the 1960s, continuation education has been perceived as providing a "second class" education for students. As a public we seem unable to acknowledge that there is more than one way to accomplish something, and that the alternative might even be better.

Mandated as an option for students who have not been successful in traditional programs, continuation education provides an alternative setting that helps students meet graduation requirements and earn their high school diplomas.

Studies have found that we all learn differently and at varying rates. The students who attend continuation high schools typically have fallen behind in their credits, developed a serious truancy problem and often have issues with large class sizes, where they receive little in the way of teacher assistance.

Continuation high schools are quite successful in helping their students. This is due to their small size (usually 20:1 enrollment), the philosophy of educating the whole child, and the willingness to take a risk and experiment with differing instructional strategies,

Make no mistake: the standards and the rigor are comparable to traditional schools; course requirements for graduation are the same as sister schools; and students must pass the same CAHSEE exam as every other student in California who is awarded a high school diploma.

Model schools exemplify quality

A partnership between the California Department of Education and the California Continuation Education Association established the California Model Schools Award in the early 1990s. Designed to recognize those schools that exemplify the highest quality of education in an options program, the award is given annually to fewer than 5 percent of all continuation schools in California.

Similar in nature to the California…