Education critic Benjamin Riley explains why he's not betting on Alpha School's future
benjaminjriley · x · 2026-09-23
Benjamin Riley, founder of Cognitive Resonance, published an op-ed in Education Week arguing that Alpha School's wave of positive media coverage doesn't match its educational merits.
- Alpha School's signature claim is the 'two-hour learning' model: students spend two hours each morning on laptops using ed-tech products for core academics, with afternoons free for other activities
- Riley, who has previously done investigative reporting on the school, notes Alpha School is really 'three different things' that observers tend to conflate
- The piece comes amid unusually high media attention, with even prospective grandparents asking about enrolling grandchildren
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