School charts different course
By Sarah Peterson, The State Pilot

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Charter schools across the nation have found themselves on the defensive, trying to convince others that their students are keeping up with public school counterparts.

Roger Bacon Academy, located in the Maco community of northern Brunswick County, dismisses last month's article in The New York Times that said test scores reveal charter schools are lagging behind.

"That was just one snapshot," said headmaster Mark Cramer. "There are more studies that show charter schools are effective."

Cramer recently sent a letter to school trustees explaining why he thought the article was misleading. Roger Bacon's student composite score of 86.5 percent this past school year was higher than Belville Elementary School (76.7 percent) and Leland Middle School (79.6 percent) in the ABCs of Public Education annual report.

Results of The New York Times study were disseminated by the American Federation of Teachers, an organization that opposes the existence of charter schools.

The study used one sample from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which tested less than one percent of charter schools in seven states. It found that fourth-graders who attend charter schools performed about half a year behind students in public schools in both reading and math.

It concluded only 25 percent of fourth-graders in charter schools were proficient in reading and math, compared to traditional public schools, where 30 percent of students were proficient in reading and 32 percent were proficient in math.

The article contended a predominance of children in these schools were those who turn to charters after having severe problems at their neighborhood schools. Charter schools often have been at the center of controversy. Some people accuse them of taking the best students from the poorest schools.

Many students come to Roger Bacon Academy because they have not found success in the public school system.

"Most students reenroll," Cramer said.

Every year there is a waiting list for most grades.

Both of Tonja Osborne's children began attending the school in 2003 after several years on the list. She credits the school with her children's newfound success.

"My children's performance has gone up," she said. "With my youngest child, his attitude has come around. It was well worth the wait."

The school opened in 2000 with 68 students from five area counties in grades K-2. This year, enrollment was at 516 for grades K-6. The plan is to add a new grade each year to eventually serve elementary through high school students.

What local scores say
The first year of state testing was in 2001-02 when the composite score was 51.5 percent.

"I was surprised by those initial results," Cramer said. "On pre-EOG (end-of-grade) tests the score was 92 percent in math and 86 percent in reading."

To better prepare students, extra materials were provided.

"We do not teach to the test," the headmaster said. "We give them good test-taking strategies."

Hard work on the part of teachers and students paid off the next year, based on results. For 2002-03, the composite score was 82.5 percent proficiency. The large jump qualified Roger Bacon Academy as a North Carolina School of Distinction.

Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which also oversees charter school performance, the academy met adequate yearly progress.
The score was 86.5 percent for the 2003-04 school year. Again, it was a school of distinction and met adequate yearly progress.

The results are similar for charter schools across the state. In North Carolina public schools, 70 percent of students are at or above grade level. For charter schools, 78 percent of students are at or above grade level.

"Charter schools are having great success in this state," Cramer said.

They are not just successful in North Carolina. There are more than 2,000 charter schools in 38 states serving approximately 500,000 students. The first charter schools legislation was a parent initiative in the Minnesota in 1991. Arizona has the highest number of charter schools, followed by California, Michigan, Texas, Florida and North Carolina.

In California, charter schools produce stronger student achievement among low-income students than traditional public schools by a margin of nearly five percent, according to statistics.

Charter schools in Michigan showed greater gains than the statewide average in all but one of ten grades and subjects tested on the 2003 state test.

Directing success
Cramer credits the school's teaching method for the continuing growth of student achievement.

Roger Bacon Academy uses direct instruction in all of its classrooms.

"I would directly relate the success at this school to direct instruction," the headmaster said. "There are three things that we do: Reward good behavior; teach to mastery so every child will learn; then we trust the child."

The goal of the method is to accelerate learning by maximizing efficiency in the design and delivery of instruction. It requires intense and constant student interaction.

"It's a great curriculum," Cramer said. "The data is overwhelming in support of D. I. I can't say why more people aren't using it."

In Brunswick County Schools, some classrooms have used the teaching method but it has not been used across the board.

The exceptional children program at Leland Middle School incorporated the method. Virginia Williamson Elementary School has used it most extensively.

"(Virginia Williamson) was one of two schools that got school of distinction," said Faye Nelson, who supervises the elementary and middle schools and staff development. "It works with at-risk kids and kids who need structure."

Nelson said the county school system is currently studying different options, including direct instruction for schools that have not met adequate yearly progress.

"When you look at direct instruction and the research, it shows that if it is used properly, then it is successful," she said. "It's also a program that teachers need to buy into to make it work."

While it can be difficult to teach, the style is something that attracts instructors to Roger Bacon Academy, Cramer said.

Expert visits school
The formation of a school around direct instruction is what brought Dr. Kerry Hempenstall, a senior lecturer in psychology at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia, to the school for two weeks to assist teachers and students.

"Dr. Hempenstall is an authority in direct instruction, and we have scheduled a number of in-service training sessions to help our teachers fine-tune their techniques," Cramer said.

Hempenstall is spending most of his sabbatical year in the United States, visiting schools that have demonstrated effective reading instruction.

"For three months, I have been a wandering academic, trying to contribute to the schools I visit and learn at the same time," he said.

He has been involved in direct instruction for more than 20 years, teaching it at the university level and to parents for use in the home. The data and hard science behind the method is what led Hempenstall to devote his career to it.

"To come here to Roger Bacon where it's all happening is very exciting," he said. "To see it being used here right from day one gives the students a wonderful opportunity to avoid the debilitating effects of failure."

In his native Melbourne schools may adopt the program, but he said it is often too little, too late.

"It's always been evident from the research that you're better off to teach them properly the first time and avoid the problems that come from failure," he said.

There are several school systems across the United States that have implemented direct instruction beyond a single classroom and are seeing results.

In North Carolina, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools use it to teach reading in grades K-5, and it has improved scores.

A handful of elementary schools in Baltimore, Md., also use direct instruction in reading, as well as writing and mathematics. While math scores varied, reading scores show that students taught by direct instruction outscored others in reading.

"It's not magic - it's systematic," Hempenstall said. "It is capable of working when properly implemented. It's not just a flight of fancy. It's really carefully designed and tested."

Schools are trying lots of different things, especially with sanctions that can come from failure under No Child Left Behind legislation.

"Just trying something does not necessarily produce results," Hempenstall said. "Schools leap, but the leap has to have a planned direction. Some may leap into direct instruction without knowing what it involved and without training. When they plan for direct instruction and get some assistance to implement it properly, then the results start to come."

Direct instruction is one-on-one teaching to a class. Students repeat ideas, concepts and answers. The teacher does not move on until everyone masters the lesson.

"I teach, I observe, I give the students feedback and enough practice to make sure they remember," Hempenstall said. "Lessons become cumulatively more complex."

Another component of direct instruction is a positive learning environment.

"It's all about, 'You can do it, Johnny,'" the professor said. "We're confident you can do it, and we'll make sure you can do it. When Johnny begins to think he can do it, he's more confident. Self-esteem comes from a sense of accomplishment."

The initial focus of direct instruction was to improve basic skills, such as reading, writing and math. Research also shows that it works for content areas in history, science, social studies and geography.

During his visit to Roger Bacon Academy, Hempenstall sat in on some classes, giving teachers tips and hints afterwards.

"They've been very open to get some feedback," he said. "One of the principles of direct instruction is if a child is not learning, it's because we aren't teaching properly."

Hempenstall also helped assess all of the school's students. Last week, he was working with kindergarten classes, testing individual students' fluency rate and their ability to read.

"We're looking at the test to predict which students might have problems in reading," he said. "It's better to put a fence at the top of a cliff than an ambulance at the bottom. Vigilance at kindergarten is the fence."

In higher grades, students are tested on their reading speed and accuracy.
Cramer said the school will continue the assessments. At a minimum, students will be tested three times a year. At-risk students can be tested every three weeks to track their progress.

"By doing this, we hope to prevent students from falling into that failure cycle," Hempenstall said.