High-scoring KIPP and its mysterious ways
The KIPP San Francisco Bay Academy, run by a national (San Francisco-based) charter chain that's widely hailed by pundits and the press, is in the news for a sharp gain in test scores. It now posts a higher API than almost all other SFUSD middle schools.
Though I'm a charter skeptic, I'm not going to try to interpret or debunk that result. I hope it's legit and that those kids really are learning and achieving at the high level those scores would indicate. Maybe I'll see the light and become a charter supporter after all.
Naturally, I'm curious. I have acquired the school's 2006-2007 Parent Handbook, which gives an interesting view of the school culture. Here are some impressions and quotes.
KIPP appears to be very aggressive about retaining kids based on achievement. That does make me wonder about the actual age levels of the kids tested as being in certain grades — are 13-year-olds taking the 5th-grade STAR tests? I don't know what the requirements are in this area. (Of course, they could be skipping kids ahead too, and testing them ahead of grade.)
KIPP has a lavish "paycheck" system that rewards kids with credits at the student store for basically everything. It's clearly a driving force, a huge part of the school culture. I don't know what's available at the student store.
Though I'm a charter skeptic, I'm not going to try to interpret or debunk that result. I hope it's legit and that those kids really are learning and achieving at the high level those scores would indicate. Maybe I'll see the light and become a charter supporter after all.
Naturally, I'm curious. I have acquired the school's 2006-2007 Parent Handbook, which gives an interesting view of the school culture. Here are some impressions and quotes.
KIPP appears to be very aggressive about retaining kids based on achievement. That does make me wonder about the actual age levels of the kids tested as being in certain grades — are 13-year-olds taking the 5th-grade STAR tests? I don't know what the requirements are in this area. (Of course, they could be skipping kids ahead too, and testing them ahead of grade.)
KIPP has a lavish "paycheck" system that rewards kids with credits at the student store for basically everything. It's clearly a driving force, a huge part of the school culture. I don't know what's available at the student store.
Parent Handbook:
Parent Handbook:
Naturally there are strict uniform rules and requirements that students walk in the hall in a silent line.
There's a "volume meter" in each classroom. "Teachers are expected to inform students as to which voice level is appropriate for various activities," ranging from 0 (silent) to 4 (chants, songs etc.). There's more about all this.
Also, on the wall of the school were posters about incentives for bringing in new students. Students get a $25 Old Navy/Gap certificate for successfully bringing in a new student, and there are school store incentives for even bringing in an inquiry. The class that brings in the most new students gets an incentive too.
I stopped by the facility that houses that KIPP school and also Gateway Charter High School this morning. The doorbell-type "call bell" is "broken," so there's no way to enter unannounced — or at all, for that matter. A passing high-schooler let me in. I wonder if that's the normal procedure.
Interesting and mysterious place. I look forward to learning more about it.
— Caroline
By the end of a regular 5 day week, students will have had the opportunity to earn up to $200 Bay dollars, which they can then spend at the student store.There's a punitive designation called YET for students whose paychecks fall below $170 or $180, depending on grade level.
Parent Handbook:
YET is designed as a consequence for students who aren't making the best decisions yet. The YET group's consequences will be determined by the grade level, but might include the following, effective for the week following a low paycheck:So the norm would be for each kid who doesn't mess up to get $180-$200 in store credit per week. Without seeing the store and the prices, we don't know how powerful an incentive that is.KIPP's punishment system is called The Bench, and is basically shunning. It's for violations from physical aggression and vandalism to untucked shirt, chewing gum or talking to a benched student. It lasts for two days if they do everything right.
- Silent lunch in a classroom.
- Loss of extra privileges (i.e. field trips, assemblies, school store, etc.).
- Reflection/goal-setting assignment signed by parents. Students in YET earn their way off at the end of the week as long as their goals have been signed by their parents.
If a student makes one of the poor choices [listed infractions], he or she must be "off the team" and is subjected to the following until earning his/her way off:There are also time-outs, with a time-out space in each classroom.[If the SDC and/or asst. principal so decide, the student is benched until another review the following week.]
- No talking, except to staff (freshmen and sophomores) [KIPP refers to its students, who are in grades 5-8, as freshmen through seniors, and the student body as a team].
- Wearing a bench sticker
- Loss of all privileges
- Silent lunch away from the team
- Detention from 5-5:30
- Grade level appropriate letter explaining why s/he should be accepted back to the team
- Participation in a family meeting [it's not clear whether this means the student's family or is referring to the school community as a family; there is another use of the latter] (in all cases except talking to bench student, gum, and untucked shirt)
- One or more logical consequences as decided by teacher/admin...
- Public apology at Grade Level Team and Family (juniors and seniors)
- Meeting with Student Discipline Committee (SDC) where they review the student's apology letter and decide whether s/he should be off the bench...
Naturally there are strict uniform rules and requirements that students walk in the hall in a silent line.
There's a "volume meter" in each classroom. "Teachers are expected to inform students as to which voice level is appropriate for various activities," ranging from 0 (silent) to 4 (chants, songs etc.). There's more about all this.
Also, on the wall of the school were posters about incentives for bringing in new students. Students get a $25 Old Navy/Gap certificate for successfully bringing in a new student, and there are school store incentives for even bringing in an inquiry. The class that brings in the most new students gets an incentive too.
I stopped by the facility that houses that KIPP school and also Gateway Charter High School this morning. The doorbell-type "call bell" is "broken," so there's no way to enter unannounced — or at all, for that matter. A passing high-schooler let me in. I wonder if that's the normal procedure.
Interesting and mysterious place. I look forward to learning more about it.
— Caroline
Labels: Charters
2 Comments:
Here's what I wonder:
Would we, as a society, as people who think critically about education, would we accept that KIPP's means to justify its ends if the kids were white?
Would we allow white kids to be screamed at, marched around like prisoners, forced to stand in corners, do jumping jacks, sit on the floor, and be publically shamed?
Why wouldn't we? There are plenty of white kids that fall into the same category of difficult to teach kids.
There are, or at least used to be, plenty of parochial schools that used similar techniques with a few generations of children, mostly white children.
If the object is to educate them, and since classroom management is a prerequisite to learning, then KIPP is one successful method of educating using an effective classroom management technique.
It's not the only way, but it does work for many kids.
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