More city charter schools meet goals

A larger share of Philadelphia charter schools met state standards in the last academic year than did district schools, state data released yesterday show.

Seventy-three percent of Philadelphia charters met benchmarks of the federal No Child Left Behind law, compared with 41 percent of district schools.

Schools Superintendent Arlene Ackerman praised the charters' successes and said she hoped the district would be able to emulate their strides.

"We know that our charter schools are doing well, and they're also making dramatic gains at a faster rate than we are in the district," Ackerman said yesterday.

Why the disparity? Ackerman said it was because charter schools have flexibility in assigning teachers and making curriculum changes - flexibility that she would like to see the district win in the teacher contract being negotiated.

"They have a longer day; they are able to select their teachers, and stay very true to a curriculum course of action," Ackerman said. "Those are things that I want to make sure happen in all of our schools across the district."

An Inquirer analysis of school-by-school test results that the state Department of Education released found that some charters are still plagued by low test scores, though individual charters recorded some of the largest year-to-year gains.

The charters at the center of district and federal investigations had mixed results.

The embattled New Media Technology Charter School, which has campuses in Stenton and Germantown, met the federal academic standards. But its fifth-grade math scores plunged 34 points, even as 11th-grade reading results climbed 21 points and eighth-grade math jumped 35 points.

The district, which is investigating allegations of financial mismanagement and nepotism at the school, has ordered New Media's board to step down and called for a new chief executive officer. The school ignored a Sept. 1 deadline and argues that the CEO has been crucial to its academic success.

Only 21 percent of fifth graders at the now-shuttered Germantown Settlement Charter School performed at grade level in math.

And at the Philadelphia Academy Charter School in the Northeast, the number of fifth graders performing at grade level in math dipped from 79 percent to 74 percent.

But there was plenty of good news for the 60 charter schools whose students took state tests in the spring.

Fifth-grade math scores at Discovery Charter School in West Philadelphia increased by 31 points; 11th-grade math scores at Freire Charter School in Center City recorded a boost of 28 points.

Kelly Davenport, chief executive officer at Freire, said her school was so determined to improve its math scores that it hired new teachers and expanded its math classes from 90 minutes to two hours.

"And the kids this year were more determined than ever before," she said.

Imhotep Institute Charter High School in East Germantown also had a 28-point jump in 11th-grade scores.

"We really spent a lot of time working on this because math was our weakest area," said M. Christine Wiggins, Imhotep's CEO.

Struggling students, she said, were strongly encouraged to take advantage of help, including in before- and after-school sessions.

Despite the push for improved math scores, Wiggins noted that lower reading scores prevented her school from meeting state benchmarks.

First Philadelphia Charter School in Bridesburg had a 33.4-point drop in fifth-grade math scores and a 30-point jump in seventh-grade math results.

That combination allowed the school to meet the standards.

Principal Kristine Magargee said the drop in the fifth-grade scores resulted from two factors: The previous class was especially strong and 34 percent of students in the tested class were receiving special-education services.