Examines the achievement results and operations of five Knowledge Is Power Program middle schools to assess the program's effectiveness, the role of leadership, implementation of the KIPP culture, design of curricula and instruction, and lessons learned.
- Successful Strategy: In most grades and cohorts, Bay Area KIPP students make above-average progress compared with national norms, and they outperform their host districts.
- Successful Strategy: Bay Area KIPP schools have large and statistically significant effects on the academic achievement of fifth-grade students and new sixth-grade students.
- Successful Strategy: Bay Area KIPP students are aware of teachers' high expectations for their success, and most report positive caring relationships with their teachers and peers.
- Observation:Bay Area KIPP teachers attribute student success to the combination of high expectations and consistency in the behavior management system.
- Observation: Bay Area KIPP schools do not appear to attract higher scoring students.
- Challenge: Teacher turnover poses an ongoing challenge for Bay Area KIPP school leaders.
- Challenge: In California, low funding and high costs necessitate substantial fundraising.
- Challenge: Student attrition rates are high, and those who leave Bay Area KIPP schools start out lower performing and benefit less from their time at the schools than those who stay.