Definition of Terms

1. Resource center: A facility designed to supplement their current educational model by offering classes, field trips, special events, tutoring, workshops, and other learning support for families. It does not function as childcare. Resource centers typically do not employ full-time teachers; instead, they provide space for freelance instructors and other educational providers to support families. They are generally not accredited, and any credits earned are awarded by the parent or homeschool administrator.

2. Public school: A school funded and operated by the government, open to all students in the assigned district or region. Instruction follows state standards and is typically free to attend.

3. Private school: A school funded primarily by tuition, donations, or private organizations rather than the government. It sets its own admissions, policies, and often its own curriculum.

4. Homeschool: A parent or guardian-led education model where the child is taught at home rather than enrolled full-time in a traditional school setting.

5. Hybrid school: A model that combines in-person learning with at-home or online learning, usually splitting the week between school-based and home-based instruction.

6. Micro-school: A very small, personalized school program, often with mixed-age students and fewer families than a traditional school. It may be privately run and can resemble a small learning community.

7. Learning collective: A group of families, educators, or learners who collaborate around shared educational goals, often with flexible structure and shared responsibility.

8. Co-op community: A cooperative learning group where parents, educators, or students share teaching duties, organize classes, or pool resources for group learning.

9. Tutorial: A small-group or one-on-one instructional model focused on guided teaching, review, practice, or support in a specific subject. Similar to a hybrid in many ways.

10. Umbrella school: An administrative school that covers legal recordkeeping or oversight for homeschool families, depending on state law and local regulations.

11. Charter school: A publicly funded school that operates with greater flexibility than a traditional public school, usually under a charter or performance agreement

Helpful distinctions

• Who teaches: In homeschooling and co-ops, parents often play a major role; in private, public, charter, and micro-schools, staff or teachers usually lead instruction.

• Where learning happens: It may occur at home, on a campus, online, in shared spaces, or through a mix of settings.

• How formal it is: Public and private schools are usually the most structured; collectives and co-ops tend to be the most flexible.

How big it is: Micro-schools and tutorials are usually small; public schools are usually the largest.