Family & Community Alternative Learning
Charter Schools Best Practices

Roxbury Preparatory Charter School

Improving Student Achievement in Mathematics: A School-wide Approach

Topics:	Instructional Practices Developing, refining, and documenting curricula Using school-wide and individual student assessment data to inform curriculum and instruction
Mission:	Roxbury Preparatory Charter School, a public school that serves grades 6-8, prepares its students to enter, succeed in, and graduate from college. Roxbury Prep is founded on the philosophy that all students are entitled to and can succeed in college preparatory programs when: 1) the curriculum is rigorous, engaging, and well-planned; 2) the school emphasizes student character, community responsibility, and exposure to life’s possibilities; and 3) a community network supports student academic, social, and physical well-being. Roxbury Prep helps students gain admission to outstanding public and private college preparatory high schools.
Goals:	Roxbury Preparatory Charter School is a model school for the Project for School Innovation, an organization founded by the Neighborhood House Charter School to encourage the sharing of best practices between charter and district public schools.
Summary:	Calculated Success. Students at Roxbury Preparatory Charter School consistently perform well on the state’s mathematics MCAS exam. Teachers at the school have explored and documented the elements of the school’s successful math program, which is based on a teacher-generated curriculum aligned to state standards that is data-driven, addresses both math procedures and problem solving, and emphasizes literacy in math. As a model school for the Project for School Innovation (PSI), Roxbury Preparatory Charter School participates in various initiatives to support the sharing of effective school practices, including the By Teachers, For Teachers publication series and the PSI Associates program. The By Teachers, For Teachers publication series provides a set of step-by-step instructions and practical advice for implementing researched and documented best practices in today’s schools. The books are written by teachers and administrators at the schools where the practice was originally conceived and implemented with documented success. Roxbury Prep teachers developed a book in the By Teachers, For Teachers series titled Calculated Success. This publication provides educators with specific guidelines and tips on how to create and implement a balanced mathematics program. Chapters in the book include an overview of the program and ten underlying goals; practices for ensuring that teach lesson is aligned with specific skills, standards and benchmarks that address conceptual thinking as well as the development of students’ numeracy skills; a framework for data-driven instruction; and successful practices for incorporating literacy into mathematics instruction. PSI Associates are trained educators and consultants who share their school’s effective practices among colleagues within their own and other schools. Several teachers from Roxbury Prep have been trained as PSI Associates.
Partner(s):
Dates:	01/01/2002
Contact:	Will Austin, Co-Director (waustin@roxburyprep.org/617.566-2361) Ruth Feldman, Project for School Innovation (rfeldman@psinnovation.org/617-825-0703 ext. 3290)
Resources:	Calculated Success (www.psinnovation.org/what_we_do/dissemination/books/calculated_success_2#TOC) Customized Workshops and School Visits facilitated by PSI Associates and the Project for School Innovation
Federal Charter Schools Program Funds?	Yes

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