Putting a thousand or two thousand or three thousand teens into the same school disconnects the majority of teens from any adults and leads to alienation and boredom and conflict. In personalized schools, every single child or teen is known and cared about as an individual by several teachers. Or personalized schools are small programs that function with a lot of independence and separateness within a larger school organization. Elementary schools often use multiage classrooms, while middle and high schools prefer looping, in which the same teachers teach students for two or more years in a row. Teachers and students build strong relationships, and teachers can help students learn more effectively because they know their students as individuals.
Students also develop strong relationships with each other and learn a great deal from each other.
In addition parents and teachers create stronger partnerships in personalized schools, because they have the time and opportunity to build trust and communication with each other. Finally personalized schools are communities. Students, teachers, and parents know each other personally, and they work together to help young people to learn and succeed. In personalized schools, young people are cared for, nurtured, and supported. Because we already have examples of personalized schools in our society, we have a significant research record that supports the effectiveness and value of this paradigm.