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Civic Engagement and Urban School Improvement: Hard-To-Learn Lessons from Philadelphia

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Civic Engagement and Urban School Improvement: Hard-To-Learn Lessons from Philadelphia Civic Engagement and Urban School Improvement: Hard-to-Learn Lessons from Philadelphia Jolley Bruce Christman, Research for Action Amy Rhodes, Research for Action June 2002 © Copyright 2002 by the Consortium for Policy Research in Education Civic Engagement and Urban School Improvement: Hard-to-Learn Lessons from Philadelphia iii CONTENTS List of Tables, Figures, and Sidebars........................................................................................................... iv About the Children Achieving Challenge..................................................................................................... v Evaluation of Children Achieving ................................................................................................................. v Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................................ v Children Achieving’s Theory of Action........................................................................................................ vi Additional Reading on Children Achieving ................................................................................................. vi Authors’ Note .............................................................................................................................................. vi Children Achieving Evaluation 1995-2001: Research Methods ..................................................................vii Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................1 Why This Report is Important Now...........................................................................................................2 Organization of the Report.......................................................................................................................4 Philadelphia and its Schools .......................................................................................................................11 The City ...................................................................................................................................................11 The Schools .............................................................................................................................................12 Civic Infrastructure and Community Groups ..........................................................................................14 Perceptions of the Schools .....................................................................................................................14 Powerful Messages with Many Interpretations ..........................................................................................17 The Children Achieving Plan: “Comprehensive” and “Common Sense” ..............................................18 Multiple Interpretations of Children Achieving ......................................................................................20 Managerial ...........................................................................................................................................22 Redistribution of Resources.................................................................................................................25 Democratic Revitalization....................................................................................................................26 Teaching and Learning ........................................................................................................................27 Market..................................................................................................................................................27 Discussion................................................................................................................................................29 Children Achieving: A Calculated Risk .......................................................................................................33 A Calculated Risk ....................................................................................................................................33 Strategy 1: Align Resources ....................................................................................................................34 Strategy 2: Improve Student Performance ............................................................................................37 Test Scores Went Up BUT… ...............................................................................................................40 Strategy 3: Seek Increases in City and State Funding Through the Political Process............................41 Strategy 4: Build a Coalition of Support Among Business Elites ...........................................................45 Strategy 5: Build a Grassroots Movement of Parents and Community Members .................................49 Strategy 6: Use Legal Action to Push for Equitable Funding.................................................................53 The Missing Strategy: Engage Frontline Educators ...............................................................................54 Discussion................................................................................................................................................55 Lessons for the Future ................................................................................................................................57 Common Ground ....................................................................................................................................57 Lessons About Coalition Building...........................................................................................................60 Appendix A. Research Methods.................................................................................................................61 iv Civic Engagement and Urban School Improvement: Hard-to-Learn Lessons from Philadelphia LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES, AND SIDEBARS Table 1. Competing Theories of Action .....................................................................................................23 Figure 1. Percent of Students Scoring at or Above Basic in Math by School Level, SAT-9, 1996-2000...38 Figure 2. Percent of Students Scoring at or Above Basic in Reading by School Level, SAT-9, 1996-2000 ....................................................................................................................................................................38 Figure 3. Percent of Students Scoring at or Above Basic in Science by School Level, SAT-9, 1996-2000 ....................................................................................................................................................................39 Figure 4. Sources of Information About the Philadelphia Public Schools .................................................48 Sidebar 1. Children Achieving Timeline .......................................................................................................5 Sidebar 2. The Children Achieving 10-Point Action Design ......................................................................18 Sidebar 3. School Choice as a Theory of Change: Governor Ridge’s Education Reform Proposals ........28 Civic Engagement and Urban School Improvement: Hard-to-Learn Lessons from Philadelphia v ABOUT THE CHILDREN EVALUATION OF ACHIEVING CHALLENGE CHILDREN ACHIEVING In February 1995, shortly after the School In 1996, the Consortium for Policy Research Board of Philadelphia adopted Children in Education (CPRE) at the University of Achieving as a systemic reform agenda to Pennsylvania and its partner, Research for improve the Philadelphia public schools, Action (RFA), were charged by the Children the Annenberg Foundation designated Achieving Challenge with the evaluation of Philadelphia as one of a few American Children Achieving. Between the 1995- cities to receive a five-year $50 million 1996 and 2000-2001 school years, CPRE Annenberg Challenge grant to improve and RFA researchers interviewed hundreds public education. of teachers, principals, parents, students, District officials, and civic leaders; sat in on Among the conditions for receiving the meetings where the plan was designed, grant was a requirement to raise two debated, and revised; observed its matching dollars ($100 million over five implementation in classrooms and schools; years) for each one received from the conducted two systemwide surveys of Annenberg Foundation and to create an teachers; and carried out independent independent management structure to analyses of the District’s test results and provide program, fiscal, and evaluation other indicators of system performance. An oversight of the grant. In Philadelphia, a outline of the research methods used by business organization, Greater Philadelphia CPRE and RFA is included in this report. A First, assumed this responsibility, and with listing of the reports on Children Achieving it, the challenge of building and sustaining currently available from CPRE is found civic support for the improvement of public below. There will be one additional education in the city. summary report released in the coming months. It will be available when it is Philadelphia’s Children Achieving was a released on the CPRE web site at sweeping systemic reform initiative. www.cpre.org. Systemic reform eschews
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