Most of us went to what most people think of as a ‘regular’ school. Whether public or private, there were classrooms, teachers, and courses like history and language arts. The fact is, though, that some students don’t benefit from a typical school. They do best with alternative education. For instance, students who’ve been in trouble might go to such a school rather than go into juvenile detention. Others might go to an alternative school because they’re pregnant, or they don’t have a guardian, or for some other reason.
I’ve done a bit of looking into this sort of school because one of my series protagonists, Joel Williams, studies alternative education. Like many people, he sees the benefits and the problems with alternative schools.
Alternative education has a history. For example, Agatha Christie’s They Do it With Mirrors takes place at Stonygates, a former private Victorian home which now houses a school for delinquent boys. The school is run by Carrie Louise Serrecold and her husband, Lewis, and both are devoted to their cause. But Carrie’s sister, Ruth Van Rydock, is less sanguine. In fact, she has come to believe that someone is trying to kill Carrie. Ruth tells her friend, Miss Marple, about her concerns, and Miss Marple becomes worried, too. Carrie has been a friend of hers for a long time. So, she visits Stonygates to see things for herself. During her stay, Christian Gulbrandsen, who is a trustee of the foundation that funds the school, also visits. One night, he is shot. The police are called in, and they begin an investigation. But this isn’t nearly as clear-cut a case as it seems on the surface.
Ross Mcdonald’s The Far Side of the Dollar features Laguna Perdida, a boarding school for ‘troubled students.’ Dr. Sponti, who is head of the school, hires PI Lew Archer when one of the students, seventeen-year-old Tom Hillman, goes missing. Sponti is hoping that Tom’s parents won’t have to be involved, and that Tom will be returned quickly and quietly. He and Archer are discussing the matter when Tom’s father, Ralph Hillman, bursts into the office claiming that Tom has been abducted and there’s been a ransom demand. He hires Archer to find the boy, and Archer agrees. It’s not an easy case, though. For one thing, the Hillmans don’t seem to be as helpful as they could be in finding their son. For another, it soon becomes clear that Tom left of his own accord and doesn’t want to come back. Now, Archer has to deal with family dynamics as well as a missing child.
Angela Marsons’ Silent Scream is the first of her series featuring Detective Inspector (DI) Kim Stone. In the novel, school principal Teresa Wyatt is found drowned in her bathtub. The police are investigating this when Tom Curtis, who’s been working in an elder care home, is murdered. Then, Arthur Cannop is killed in a hit-and-run incident. The only thing that the victims have in common is that all of them worked at one time at a girls’ home called Crestwood, which is now closed. Stone, who herself is a product of the care system, has a lot of sympathy for the girls who lived at Crestwood. As she and her team look into the case more deeply, they learn about things that went on there, and that leads them to the truth.
Y.A. Erskine’s The Brotherhood introduces readers to seventeen-year-old Darren Rowley, who lives in a run-down part of Hobart. He’s not exactly from a supportive family, and he’s decided school is not for him. In fact, he hasn’t been there for years. He’s been in and out of trouble with the law, too – a good example of the sort of student who might benefit from an alternative education. Instead of looking at those options, Darrell engages in petty theft and other crimes. One afternoon, he’s committing burglary when Sergeant John White and probationer Lucy Howard arrive at the house Darren is looting. They’ve been tipped off that there’s a crime in progress and are investigating. Tragically, White is shot and killed. It’s assumed that Darren is responsible, but he claims innocence. The police are especially eager to catch the person who killed one of their own, so they’re not in the least interested in anything Darren has to say. And yet, since he’s part Aboriginal, the police have to handle the case with extreme care, so as not to appear racist. The police certainly are against the boy, but many believe that Darren Rowley is the sort of young person who might have benefited greatly if he’d had support and perhaps an alternative education.
Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch could also have benefited from some support. He was raised in care after the murder of his mother and went to a residential school, McLaren Hall, when he wasn’t in foster care. He didn’t end up in prison, though. Instead, he served in Vietnam, straightened his life out and became an LA police detective. Still, he bears the scars of his earlier life.
There are some young people who don’t do well in ‘regular’ school. Sometimes, alternative education is a solid solution for them, and they make productive lives for themselves. Other times it doesn’t work well. For many who attend those schools, though, it’s ‘better than juvey,’ as one of my characters has said.
*NOTE: The title of this post is a line from the Beatles’ Getting Better.
Crime Writer Margot Kinberg 
What a great topic, Margot. I was especially interested because my son attended the Open Alternative School in Santa Barbara from Kindergarten through 8th grade. It provided a different, more cooperative atmosphere and encouraged parent participation. It wasn’t perfect but it was a good experience for my son.
I remember the alternative education study that Joel Williams was working on at higher grade levels in your Joel Williams books. I found that subject interesting since I had not heard of that kind of alternative education. I have enjoyed all of the books in the Joel Williams series and they get better with each book.
I have read Agatha Christie’s They Do it With Mirrors and was surprised to find a school for delinquent boys in one of her books. I did enjoy the book. On the other hand, I have not read Ross Macdonald’s The Far Side of the Dollar. I have a goal to read all of the books in his Lew Archer series but I have only read four so far. I will be reading Find a Victim, the fifth book, this summer.
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How interesting, Tracy, that your son went to an alternative school. I’m really glad it was a good experience for him. Sometimes ‘regular’ school just isn’t the best choice.
Thank you so much for the kind words about my Joel Williams novels, too. That really made my day. I find alternative education fascinating and potentially very helpful, so I’m glad Joel studies that topic. I learn from him.
As for the Lew Archer series, I think that’s a very good series overall, and I’ve always liked the Lew Archer character. I give you credit for wanting to read all of the entries in it. I hope you’ll like The Far Side of the Dollar when you get to it. And yes, it is a bit odd that Christie put in a school for delinquent boys in her book. But it works…
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That’s an interesting angle to explore, Margot. We have various kinds of special schools in the UK, and children who don’t cope comfortably with mainstream education often do so much better there. But as always, there’s a lack of funding there. As for crime fiction, there are often suspicions of those who seem different to us, so of course innocent people can very often get blamed for things they didn’t do…
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Thanks, KBR. You’ve got a very well-taken point that alternative schools can be a much more effective choice for young people who don’t succeed in mainstream schools. And that’s all to the good. But you’re right about funding. It’s a big problem here, too. You’ve hit on something really interesting, too. People do get suspicious – even fearful – of those who aren’t like ‘the rest of us.’ And that suspicion often leads to unfair accusations. Thanks for the ‘food for thought!’
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My daughter works as a teaching assistant in a primary (I think you call it elementary) school and is on the front line with children with special needs. As Kaggsy said, there isn’t the funding over here and many that would benefit from alternative education don’t get it, as my daughter would testify. Very interesting topic. I haven’t read They Do it with Mirrors but have seen the drama and it was very well done and thought provoking. Excellent post, Margot.
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Thanks for the kind words, Cath. I’m sure your daughter has some real stories to tell. And I’m afraid her observations about funding are true here, too. There are students who simply don’t benefit from ‘regular’ education, and do best in alternative situations. But it’s hard to find well-equipped programs when funds are lacking. If you get the chance to read They Do it With Mirrors, I do recommend it.
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As you know, I worked in an alternative school for some years – as Kaggsy says we tend to call them special schools over here. But policy changed and ‘inclusion’ has been the watchword for the last couple of decades – keeping kids in mainstream schools as much as possible. Many of us think this is bad policy – it stretches funding in mainstream schools and often leads to disruption, and it doesn’t seem to benefit the kids who would previously have gone to special schools. I expect the wind will change and special schools will be revived in the not too distant future! So I’m always interested when alternative/special schools show up in fiction – including yours!
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Thank you so much for the kind words, FictionFan! 😊 I know you’ve had a lot of experience in special schools, so I’m very glad to get your opinion. I agree that there is a major push to mainstream students, and for some students, it works well. They may need supervision or some other service, but they learn productively. However, there are plenty of students who really don’t thrive in a mainstream situation. What’s worse, as you point out, is that they make it hard for other students to learn. That’s not to mention the strain on teachers. And as for funding, it’s a major issue. Whether it’s funding for mainstream schools or special schools, it’s a big consideration. That’s one reason that decisions about students need to be made thoughtfully, and with the real question of what is best for the students.
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An interesting post Margot. In Melfort there was a one room school in a commercial building downtown for some years where one teacher taught all the classes available in the regular high school. He said he might have 15 students but it was a rare day all made it to school. His students had either been expelled or quit the regular high school. He said it was a good day for many of his students if they got to school. They came from residences, it is hard to call them homes, where family dysfunction was extreme. He said they had to learn at their own pace. I admired the teacher.
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Thanks for the kind words, Bill. And thanks for sharing this story. That teacher sounds like a remarkable person. Some students don’t benefit from a regular, mainstream school setting, and it sounds as those these students really needed a different kind of learning environment. That teacher provided the sort of supportive environment they needed.
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