Supporting Students to Reach High Standards

	Based on a Successful Program at: Academy of the Pacific Rim Public Charter School Written by teachers: Nisha Abraham, Jennie Diefendorf, Nora Duane, Nick Krippendorf, Jolinda McLellan, and Elizabeth Weston
Look Inside: Table of Contents Book (109 pp.)

Description of Supporting Students to Reach High Standards

Academy of the Pacific Rim Public Charter School in the Hyde Park area of Boston was founded in 1997. Since that time, APR students have consistently outperformed their peers in Boston’s non-exam middle and high schools on the Massachusetts’ high-stakes MCAS exam. APR prepares each and every one of its students to succeed in college. In order to achieve this goal, teachers collaborate and put school-wide systems and practices in place in order to support students to excel academically.

What Does Success Look Like at APR? One way to answer this question is quantitatively. At this inner-city public school, every graduating student earns at least two college acceptances, and the average is four per student. Last spring, one hundred percent of tenth graders passed the state’s Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) in both English and Math on their first try, with between 80 and 90 percent of students scoring at the Advanced and Proficient levels, well above the state and city average. Draw a graph of students’ MCAS scores from the year they first enrolled at APR and you'll see that they rise noticeably the longer they are at the school.

But success at APR is not only seen in numbers. Success also looks like a student stopping a teacher in the hallway to ask a question or students beginning their Do Now assignment soon after entering the class without having to wait for directions or external motivation. It sounds like tenth-grade students discussing where they want to go to college or a Learning Specialist helping a History teacher to improve a lesson plan. It feels like the pride and determination of a student who receives an 89 after revising a paper for the third time and reflects on what she’ll do next time for the 90.

At APR:

• Students see themselves as professional learners.

• Students can set academic goals.

• Teachers have more time and energy to focus on teaching.

About this book
During the academic year of 2005/6, six Academy of the Pacific Rim faculty members engaged in facilitated discussions to explore their approach to cultivating academic achievement in students and to better understand the specific practices and systems that give each student the support he or she needs to strive for and reach rigorous academic goals. This book documents effective practices identified in that research process and serves to provide educators in any other school or district with guidelines and tips on how to best support students while maintaining a high level of expectation for their ability and academic achievement.

Major Topics Covered
Creating Systems of Academic Support
Building a Culture of Achievement
Establishing Faculty Structures that Encourage Student Achievement

Table of Contents for Supporting Students to Reach High Standards

Introduction - Supporting Students While Helping Them to Reach High Standards
An introduction to Academy of the Pacific Rim Public Charter School, an outline of this how-to guidebook, and three prerequisites to implementing the practices and systems detailed in this book.

1. Creating Systems of Academic Support
Four key systems at APR that prevent students from falling behind and motivate them to set and achieve academic goals.

2. Building a Culture of Achievement
Three practices that have proven particularly effective at APR in fostering a culture of academic achievement.

3. Establishing Faculty Structures
Four ways to support faculty collaboration and communication so that teachers can better assess student needs and support students while challenging them to reach high academic expectations.

Appendix
Sample documents and materials from Academy of the Pacific Rim.

PSI Can Help You Implement These Strategies:

Customized Workshops
Our staff can come to your school to help you implement these school-tested skill-building strategies.

School Visits
We can coordinate a visit to the Cambridgeport School, so you can see their successful strategies first hand.

 

In 2002, teachers at APR wrote Building Character, another PSI publication.