irise paper for aera

8/14/2019 Irise Paper for Aera

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And Still IRISE: Effectively Instituting Effective Schools

Research to Improve the Academic Achievement

of African American Youth

Donna TrousdaleDepartment of Research, Planning, and Evaluation

San Francisco Unified School District

Michael Chappie GriceI.R.I.S.E. Program DirectorDepartment of Integration

San Francisco Unified School District

Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational ResearchAssociation meeting, April 24-28, 2000. New Orleans, Louisiana.

Questions or comments can be directed to [email protected], 555 Franklin Ave.,Program Evaluation and Research Office, San Francisco, CA 94102, (415) 241-6041.


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Introduction

It has been a belief among those involved in urban school reform for the last 20years that childrens achievement potential derives from the nature of the school rather

than the family background or neighborhood (Edmonds, 1979; Lezotte, 1985; Levine,Levine, & Eubanks, 1985). The I.R.I.S.E. Initiative (Infusing Responsibility ForIntellectual and Scholastic Excellence) was born out of this philosophy. Now in its fifthyear of existence in the San Francisco Unified School District, I.R.I.S.E is a professionaldevelopment program designed using the effective schools model and other researchthat focuses on methods for improving the academic achievement of African Americanyouth. The programs goals are centered on equipping educators with the skills necessaryto successfully implement strong, research-based strategies for teaching urban youth sothat the school performance of all children will improve.

IRISE began four years ago when representatives from African Americanorganizations and other national organizations, associations, local and national grass rootsinstitutions called a meeting to discuss the status and future of African American youth.The result of this meeting was the formation of the National Council on Educating BlackChildren (NCEBC). Together the Council put together a framework for change calledABlueprint for Action, which was based on effective schools research pioneered by Dr.Ron Edmonds in the late 1970s. The IRISE program started as a plan developed in 1994by the San Francisco Alliance of Black School Educators (SFABSE) who hoped toconverge African centered education andA Blueprint for Action by implementing asupplementary educational program specially designed to improve the education ofAfrican American students.

During its first year of implementation, SFUSD funded the IRISE Initiative toconduct professional development seminars during the 1995-96 school year. IRISEcontracted with the Center for Applied Cultural Studies, an educational and professional

development program based at San Francisco State University, to conduct the workshopseries. The workshops introduced participants to the notion of an African-centeredcurriculum and trained them to use cultural precepts as tools for literacy skill mastery.The program has since expanded to include about 20 elementary and middle schools inthe San Francisco Unified School District.

This paper describes the structure, implementation and outcomes of the SanFrancisco Unified School Districts IRISE Initiative. The structure and content of theworkshop series, how new skills and knowledge acquired from these workshops arebrought into the classroom and curriculum, the effect on teachers, administrators, andschool culture, and last, the effect of the program on African American youths academicperformance will all be discussed.

Research Basis of the I.R.I.S.E. Initiative

I.R.I.S.E. is an educational intervention that stems from effective schoolsresearch (Edmonds, 1979; Levine & Lezotte, 1995). This research outlines severalcorrelates or characteristics of so-called effective schools, that is, schools with a highproportion of students living in poverty whose academic achievement is considerablyhigher than similar schools with similar socio-economic demographics. Some of the


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most frequently cited correlates (Levine, 1994) include:

1. A productive school climate and culture2. A focus on student acquisition of central learning skills3. Appropriate monitoring of student progress

4. Practice-oriented staff development at the school site5. Outstanding leadership6. Effective instructional arrangements for low achievers7. Active and engaged learning8. Salient parental involvement9. High, operationalized expectations and requirements for students10. Multicultural sensitivity

Using these basic ideas, The National Council on Educating Black ChildrendevelopedA Blueprint for Action, a model for implementing these characteristics intoschool programs. The I.R.I.S.E. Initiative was developed from this model and itsstructure is guided by several basis educational assumptions:

1. Schools have the best opportunity and social obligation to mediate learning,and particularly, language and mathematics literacy development.

2. Effective schools research is a powerful intervention. It is especially powerfulwhen implemented in urban schools by people who understand thoroughlyAfrican American and other diverse cultures.

3. Teachers want to see their students succeed, but dont always know how tomake it happen. Professional development strives to equip the teacher withbetter tools.

4. We can, whenever and wherever we choose, successfully teach all childrenwhose education is of interest to us.Ronald R. Edmonds

5. We are savvy enough to design curriculum, build environments and heightenthe quality of teacher student relationships to effectively educate children andgarner support of the stakeholders of school communities in the process.

Implementation of these effective school correlates and educational tenants,became the mission of I.R.I.S.E. However, the effective school model does not providea method or steps educators and/or school systems can take to institute these ideals. Theleaders I.R.I.S.E. turned to other research-supported best practices in education, whichcould help define specific classroom practices that would lead to the desired goals.

The effective school model is geared toward improving the educational outcomesof children living in poverty, but in San Francisco improving the school performance of

African American students, specifically, has been a priority. In developing theimplementation model for I.R.I.S.E., research addressing the education of AfricanAmerican youth was reviewed.

I.R.I.S.E. and Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

Researchers have debated for many years whether conflicts result when AfricanAmerican children are taught and evaluated from an Anglo-centric framework (Delpit,


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1995; Perry & Delpit, 1998; Ogbu, 1999; Michaels, 1998; Hale, 1981,1992,1993; Frisby,1993). This debate was best exemplified in the resent controversy over the notion ofEbonics. School officials in the Oakland School District debated publicly whether thesocial language that African American students spoke was hindering their ability to learneffectively in a school system that did not recognize or value their language practices.

The founders of I.R.I.S.E. believe that language and learning style conflicts arelargely responsible for the disconnect between African American youth and schoolsystems that are structured by white, middle-class values and ideals. One possiblesolution can be found in the controversial literature regarding culturally relevantpedagogy(e.g. Hilliard, 1976; Ladson-Billings, 1995; Hale, 1981, 1992, 1993). Infollowing this line of research, one of the main thrusts of the I.R.I.S.E. Initiative has beento find a way to effectively teach all students by developing a closer fit between studentshome culture and that of school.

One way this has been done is through recognition and understanding of certaincultural learning styles, particularly those of African American youth. Although theconcept of black cultural learning styles is controversial (see Frisby, 1993), it remains apowerful component of I.R.I.S.E. Research has suggested that cultural learning styles,which include differences in both cognitive and affective approaches to learning,develops based on the socialization by families and friends (Cohen, 1971). It is arguedthat these differences in socialization create learning styles that can be potentiallyproblematic once children enter a school community where their learning styles areincongruent with the Anglo mainstream.

Some elements of black cultural learning styles that have been identified werefirst discussed by Hilliard (1976) and Akbar (1975). Hilliard (1976) states that AfricanAmericans tend not to be word dependent, but are proficient in nonverbal as well asverbal communication. Similarly, Akbar (1975) describes the African American child ashighly affective, socio-centric, preferring oral-aural modalities for learningcommunication and spontaneity.

In designing the structure and content of I.R.I.S.E. professional development,much of the research discussed was drawn upon. Using this research the I.R.I.S.E.program attempts to teach educators how to tap into black students learning styles, todignify their language and cognitive experience, and to transmit and support culturalvalues while maintaining a demand for academic excellence.

I.R.I.S.E. Strategies, Resources, and Activities

I.R.I.S.E. trains and encourages teachers to implement the strategies,resources, and learning activities that research has suggested to be effective intapping into African American learning styles and helping to improve academic

achievement and overall student success.One of the ways in which this is done is through what Augusta Mann calls

Touching the Spirit. Mann and others (see also Hale, 1981; Tedla, 1992) make theclaim that the basis of African and African American culture is spirituality orsoulfulness. Tapping into this aspect of culture will help bring about educationalexcellence. This can be done by designing curriculum and instruction that draws uponthe strong oral, musical, and communal traditions of African culture (i.e. Health, 1983).It is through this idea that the five African and African American Teaching and Learning


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Patterns (Mann, 1998, Workshop Handout) were identified.The five African and African American Teaching and Learning Patterns (5 Rs)

include:

1. Ritual (such as affirmations and/or performances)

2. Rhythm (in the form of music, speech, and movement)3. Recitation (oral performances, memorization)4. Repetition (such that it enhances meaningfulness)5. Relationships (love, respect, belonging, recognizing ties between humans and

nature, making connections between school work and students lifeexperiences).

It is intended that these patterns be infused into every aspect of the typicalI.R.I.S.E. curriculum, especially in language arts. Teachers are trained to use tools suchas rhythm, oral recitations, memorization, dance, and rap to help students developlanguage skills. For instance, I.R.I.S.E. provides teachers with a list of the 1,000 mostcommonly used words in the English language. Teachers are instructed to use variousoral recitation strategies that incorporate the 5 Rs to help students master wordanalysis, spelling, vocabulary acquisition, and phonemic awareness. Also, I.R.I.S.E.encourages teachers to make use of learning activities that help students buildrelationships, the last of the 5 Rs. These activities include, but are not limited to,cooperative learning, reading aloud, storytelling, research projects that use interviews,role playing, and oral reporting,

One of the more essential strategies integrated into the I.R.I.S.E. model, is astrong emphasis on building cultural awareness by instilling knowledge and pride intoones cultural heritage while also providing basic tenets for positive social interaction.I.R.I.S.E. teachers are encouraged to teach their students cultural precepts such as theVirtues of MAATand the Seven Principles of Nguzo Saba. The Virtues of MAATare

derived from the ancient Egyptian 42 Virtues of MAATand are used for the purpose ofbuilding community, and the Seven Principles of Nguzo Saba are derived from theprinciples of Quanza and are used for the purpose of building character (see Table 1below). Teachers are taught the significance of these precepts and are encouraged to referto their meanings and practicality throughout the school year.

Table 1: Components of the Virtues of MAAT and Nguzo Saba

Virtues of MAATTruthStatement of fact or a life that exemplifies virtueJusticeThe quality of being just and fair

ProprietyTo behave and speak in an appropriate wayBalanceMentally steady, emotionally stable, evenReciprocityThe Golden Rule: The things you do, come back to youHarmonyAt peace with yourself, doing your part, being a friendOrderFirst things first, work then play

The Seven Principles of Nguzo SabaUmojaUnity


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KujichaguliaSelf determinationUjimaCollective work & responsibilityUjamaaCooperative economicNiaPurposeKuumbaCreativity

Imani-- Faith

These precepts emphasize virtues such as community, fairness, and spirituality.I.R.I.S.E. provides teachers with posters and charts to display throughout the classroomoutlining these concepts which help to create a stimulating learning environment. Oftentimes, in an I.R.I.S.E. classroom, the Virtues of MAAT and the Principles replaceclassroom rules. For instance, if a student speaks out of turn or is speaking while theteacher is speaking, they are reprimanded for not showing propriety. Or if is student isnot doing their part in a group project, they are reprimanded for not showing Ujima.Students in a I.R.I.S.E. classroom memorize these terms and understand their meaning,and teachers often say that their students feel a communal obligation to acting responsiblyas opposed to having to obey rules.

The I.R.I.S.E. professional development workshops also encourage teachers topractice these virtues within a context of effective educational practices. I.R.I.S.E. hasdefined these practices as theNine Supportive Practices. They include:

1. Expectations of excellence2. Continual search for patterns3. Insistence on working toward mastery4. Teacher modeling of skills and processes5. Intensive, direct instruction and practice6. Creative and symbolic deep thought7. Focus on discourse and inquiry

8. Using knowledge for social criticism and community action9. In depth study and performance of African and African American culture

In relation to the last of the supportive practices (#9), teachers are provided withbooks and displays of pictures and artifacts that are representative of African Americanculture. I.R.I.S.E. offers each teacher African cloth (kinte cloth) as well as posters offamous African Americans in history. Teachers are not expected to just display theseartifacts, but to use them as teaching tools and weave them into their basic curriculum.

Methods for Evaluating I.R.I.S.E. in Action

Methods for Classroom Visits

Site visits were made in the middle of the year to classrooms suggested by theprogram director. These classrooms were suggested because the teachers have attendedmost of the professional development workshops provided by I.R.I.S.E. and have beenidentified by the program director as fully implementing the I.R.I.S.E. model. About 10classrooms were identified. From the suggested list the evaluator randomly chose threeteachers with whom to visit and conduct an extensive interview. One teacher was an


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African American male who was relatively new to I.R.I.S.E. professional development aswell as new to the teaching profession. At the time of the visit he was in his third year ofteaching in a 2nd grade classroom. The 2nd teacher was also an African American malebut a veteran teacher for over 30 years in an urban middle school who has been withI.R.I.S.E. since its beginning. The third teacher was a Hispanic/Anglo female and also a

veteran middle school teacher of 13 years and a veteran of I.R.I.S.E. About 90% of thestudents in these classrooms were African American.These sites visits were structured using a format used in cognitive coaching

(Garmston et al., 1993), a method that supports teacher self-assessment and professionaldevelopment. The format of cognitive coaching is threefold: (1) a pre-session in whichthe evaluator asks the teacher what the objectives and activities are for the session, (2) theobservation, in which what students are up to in the classroom is recorded, and; (3) apost-session, in which the evaluator asks the teacher to assess the session for itsrepresentativeness and its success in meeting the objectives defined for the session. In thiscase, the post-sessions included a formal interview.

When visiting classrooms, in addition to taking the teachers own perceptions ofthe session into account, the evaluator looked for successful implementation of thefollowing planned activities outlined previously while conducting site visits at eachsite:

Use of the 5 Rs. Teachers should be incorporating ritual, rhythm, recitation, andrepetition into their curriculum.

Use of the Nine Supportive Practices. The evaluator should see evidence thatteachers are making use of the practices (outlined previously) in their curriculum.

Display and use of Virtues of MAAT and Nguzo Saba. Teachers should not onlyhave these principles displayed in their classroom, they should try to infuse them into

their daily practice.

Overall creation of an I.R.I.S.E. classroom. Teachers should have created anenvironment that is indicative of all the previously outlined I.R.I.S.E. principles.

Methodology for Teacher Interview

In addition to seeing evidence of planned activities, the evaluator also lookedfor evidence of culturally relevant practices. In Gloria Ladson-Billings book

Dreamkeepers (1994), she attempts to profile the characteristics of effective teachers ofurban youth. In so doing, she identifies attributes that successful teachers of African

American children possess. She calls these special attributes culturally relevantpractices.

Using the site visits and an interview protocol developed by Ladson-Billings (seeAppendix A), an attempt was made to identify these attributes in I.R.I.S.E. teachers.After the site visit, at a time that was convenient for the teacher (usually recess orlunchtime), the evaluator conducted the open-ended interview, which was tape recorded.The tapes were later transcribed and analyzed for evidence of culturally relevantpractices as defined by Ladson-Billings (1994).


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Implementation of I.R.I.S.E. and Culturally Relevant Teaching Practices

After analyzing information from the site visits and the interviews, three emergentthemes were identified that exemplified the teaching practices of I.R.I.S.E. teachers. In

describing these themes, the method of social science portraiture (Lawrence-Lightfoot &Davis, 1997) is employed. Portraiture aims to capture the complexity and dynamics ofhuman experience and organizational life by telling a compelling story about what takesplace in the classroom or program activity. It is an aesthetic as well as scientific form,focused on a thick description of the context, the persons in the activity and theirrelationships to one another, and on the themes that emerge from those relationships

Teachers utilize culture as a vehicle for learning and provide the opportunity forstudents to develop and maintain cultural integrity

One of the main aspects of I.R.I.S.E. professional development is to provideteachers with skills and strategies for integrating African American culture and culturalprecepts into their classrooms and curriculums. The materialization of this goal wascompelling at each of the classrooms that were visited. In order to fully describe the rolethat culture played in the teaching practices of the three teachers, 3 areas will bediscussed: (1) classroom environment (2) discipline; and (3) curriculum.

Classroom EnvironmentThe first thing that is noticed when one steps into these classrooms is that the

environment is much different than then average elementary or middle school class. Itusually consists of very rich visual displays with African themes. The following aredescriptions of two of the I.R.I.S.E. classrooms that were visited:

Classroom 1:On the walls of the classroom there were many African American artifacts,

photographs, and inspiring messages. There was a section of the wall dedicated tofamous African American Achievers. This consisted of a series of colored photographswith people such as Jessie Jackson, Alvin Ailey, Jr., Bill Cosby, Florence Griffith Joyner,etc. From the ceiling hung arts and crafts representations of the Virtues of MAAT. Each

Virtue was represented accompanied by a drawing depicting its meaning. For instance,Reciprocity had a picture of people exchanging gifts, and so forth. There was a giantkinte cloth that covered one of the walls and several covered tables throughout the room.On the opposite side of the room there was a large display of a collection of stories andessays written by the students. The series was entitled, Who is Dr. Martin Luther King?

Classroom 2:

In huge letters on the wall to the right was a mural with I.R.I.S.E. printed on itand with Infusing Responsibility for Intellectual and Scholastic Excellence writtenbeneath it. On the far wall was another giant mural dedicated to the Virtues of MAATand the Nguzu Saba outlined in kinte cloth. On the opposite wall were more postersoutlining these principles and concepts. Towards the back of the room was a walldisplaying a series called, Africa, the motherland with maps and pictures of differentpeople and countries of Africa. There was also a small mural in the corner of the roomcalled, Noted African Americans. Above that there was a poster of Malcolm X andMartin Luther King. Directly behind me were some photographs of different African

countries such as Mali, Ghana, Egypt, and Songhal.


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Although these descriptions give only a limited visual of the physical atmosphereof the classrooms which were visited, it is possible for one to get a feeling for how deeplyeach room was imbued with a sense of African culture and heritage. Each classroom wascolorfully decorated in African fabrics called kinte cloths and displays of the Ki-Swahili

Virtues and Principles (described earlier). It is also possible to get a sense of theattempt to build positive ethnic identities for youth by visibly displaying various arrays ofAfrican American role models throughout the classroom.

Classroom DisciplineAnother area in which culture was being utilized to facilitate learning was through

classroom discipline. All three of the teachers interviewed expressed that their previouslist of classroom rules had been replaced with the Virtues of MAAT and the Principles ofthe Nguzo Saba. These teachers also made a point to reference these concepts whenreprimanding students. In conversation with one I.R.I.S.E. teacher she explains thefollowing:

The use of the Virtues of MAAT and the Principles of the Nguzo Saba have reallybecome [the basis of my classroom]. I still have [my classroom rules] up there on thewall(pointing) those are my 7 classroom rules, but they are old and some of them fadedbecause I have been using them for over 17 years. But there isnt anything up there thatisnt support by the Virtues and the Principles. So I always, whatever the activity is, Ialways highlight the Virtues and the Principles and that kind of becomes moreit helps

identify what behaviors are needed to be successful.

In addition to explicitly stating that the average classroom rules had been replacedwith the Virtues and the Principles, it was also seen in action during one site visit. Inthe following portraiture, a 2nd grade teacher invokes the Virtues in order to quiet hisclass:

It is now 10 am and the students have just finished a phonics lesson. Mr. Tanish*

calls the students to the front of the room. They take this moment to give their teacher a

hug. Mr. Tanish proudly obliges his students and reciprocates their affections. He thenasks them to take a seat. He begins to explain the next lesson. He informs the studentsthat in honor of the upcoming Dr. Martin Luther King Day holiday, they as a class will bewriting a rap song based on the essays they had written entitled, Who is Martin LutherKing. Mr. Tanish goes on to describe the logistics of the project to the students. Afterexplaining the project to the kids, he orchestrates a classroom discussion refreshing thestudents on basic facts of Dr. Kings life. The students are asked to raise their hands andtell the group any facts they can remember from the papers they had written. A rich

conversation ensues around Dr. Kings birth, college, relationship to Rosa Parks, etc. Thestudents become extremely excited to impress their teacher with their knowledge and

begin to speak over on another. Mr. Tanish quickly jumps in and asks the students toshow heshima (Ki-Swahili for show respect). He then states, Do you know which ofour Virtues we loose when more than one student speaks at the same time? A studentraises her and responds, Order.

This teacher, who is often viewed as a role model for incoming I.R.I.S.E. teachers,has infused every aspect of his teaching with cultural precepts and his students, who arealmost all African American, seem to respond positively to his style. In addition to usingthe Virtues and Principles as classroom rules, he refers to his students as Watoto which


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is intelligent children in Ki-Swahili. He also teaches them a new Ki-Swahili wordeveryday.

CurriculumLastly, the I.R.I.S.E. teachers whose classes were visited have also permeated

many aspects of their curriculum with cultural relevancy. A major concept that teacherslearn in the professional development workshops is the potential effectiveness of teachingstrategies such as recitation, repetition, ritual, and relationship. As mentioned earlier,researchers have suggested that these strategies may tap into certain cultural learningstyles of African American children (e.g. Hale, 1981). Use of all of these strategies wasseen at every site visit. Ritual and relationship were often exhibited at the beginningof the class and seemed to manifest itself as a formal opening and/or closing ceremony.The following is a description of one such ceremony:

At 7:45 Mr. Franklin arrived and guided his students into the classroom. After

students arrive and take a seat, a young boy named Donny asked the class to gather in thecenter of the room. The class did as he requested. The students gathered in the middle of

the room and Donny lead the morning mantra, which consisted of the group repeatingphrases such as, Im here to do great things, I will respect myself, my family, myfellow classmates, Im here to learn, and I will respect my heritage and my culture.The students then pass a kinte cloth to one another and say, I wish you good will andhappiness throughout the day.

At 9:25 students began to put their things away and are asked to move into the

center of the room by another student. The students kept talking and horsing around andMr. Franklin says, There is no point in doing this task if you are not going to internalizeit. It is just words otherwise. The students quiet down and perform the dismissal ritual.They hold hands and repeat a mantra that begins as, the circle binds us as a people

The students, although wound up by the end of the class, understood the ritual andparticipated willingly. It not only provided them with a moment to calm down before and

after class, but also gave them the opportunity to make a connection with fellowclassmates that they might not make otherwise.

A striking example of how rhythm was integrated into the curriculum was seen inMr. Tanishs classroom. Every day the students participate in a spelling lesson, which isdescribed below:

The students sit on the floor in the front the class and Mr. Tanish takes out a flip

chart with about 14 words written on it. He then turns on the tape recorder, which beginsto lightly play a slow, rhythmic beat. The students sit for a moment swaying to the beat.Pointing to the first word on the flip chart, Mr. Tanish begins the spelling rap. To the

rhythm of the music, he says, The word..is..outfit..Spell it! The students respond inunison, O.U.TF.I.T. They quickly move on to the next word. Mr. Tanish begins,

The wordismachine..Spell it! Again the class chimes in perfect accord to thebeat of the music, M..A..C..H...I..NE. The group works through all 14 words.

In addition to the students appearing to respond favorably to this method ofstudying spelling, the effectiveness of this technique was further supported by responsesprovided in an interview. After this class was dismissed for recess, Mr. Tanish was askedto discuss some of the things he has done in the classroom that have facilitated theacademic success of his African American children. He states:


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Well, again, going back to the I.R.I.S.E. strategies, in terms of using rhythmparticularlybecause again, talking about relating to what African American childrenhave historically and culturally have been able to connect with as well as their currentevery day situation, we know that African American children love music, they love tomove, they love to sing along. You know, they love the rhythm. I really, really try to

infuse in a lot of that. One strategy in particular, I started to rap the spelling words. Istarted last year and immediately saw instant improvement in the scorestheir spellingscores. It was instantaneous because they just love the rhythm.

It would be impossible to detail all of the ways in which these I.R.I.S.E. teachersutilized culture as a learning tool and provided students with opportunities to gainknowledge and pride in their cultural heritage. There were many. However, these fewexamples provide a glimpse into the effectiveness of I.R.I.S.E. professional developmentin providing teachers with specific strategies for harnessing cultural precepts forimproved teaching and learning.

Teachers maintain an attitude and utilize instructional techniques that support the

doctrine that all children can learn

In Ron Edmonds now famous article, Effective Schools for the Urban Poor, hecontests the idea that the children who come from impoverished communities are toblame when they fail to achieve in school. The premise of I.R.I.S.E. is that despite socio-economic or familial challenges, all children are inherently educable. Teachers whoparticipate in I.R.I.S.E. professional development are not only made aware of this notion,but are also provided with solid, research-based strategies that help them make this notiona reality.

One idea that the I.R.I.S.E. teachers seemed to possess, which is emphasized intraining, is that there job as educators is to pull out knowledge rather than put

knowledge in. Students are recognized as coming to the classroom with a breadth ofknowledge and intellect, which teachers are responsible for drawing out of the students.Instructionally, this often manifests itself in scaffolding (Vygotsky, 1978) techniqueswhereby teachers help students to build upon what they already know.

During an interview with Ms. Peterson, a 6th grade I.R.I.S.E. teacher, she explainsstrategies she uses to facilitate the success of students in her classroom, whom are mostlyAfrican American. She states:

Because of the community I teach I know that they bring in their own culture, their ownrich cultural language that is not necessarily mainstream language. I dont assume thatthey are reading and speaking mainstream English and writing mainstream English[so]I do a lot of scaffolding which I think is real important. And I dont ever assume that they

are all going to understand what Im asking them to do I try to help them see that theycan always go back and improve their work. They can always take it to another level. Sothere is a lot of scaffolding that I employ with the students. They all need it. And as anadult, I kind of need that when Im being asked to something. Show me how to get there,dont just tell me to do something, but show me how.

Ms. Petersons use of scaffolding was seen during the site visit. The day beforethe students had been given a creative writing homework assignment. They were asked towrite a short descriptive story describing their bedroom. They were told to be as


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descriptive as possible. The lesson was called, Show not Tell. The next day thestudents brought their stories to class with them and Ms. Peterson discussed the idea ofdescription. The following is a portraiture of this lesson:

Ms. Peterson had made a flip chart with pictures corresponding to each of the 5

senses. The caption on the chart read, Paint a picture with words. The sub-captionsaid, looks like (accompanied by a drawing of an eye), tastes like (accompanied by adrawing of a mouth), and feels like (accompanied by a drawing of a hand). Ms.Peterson then begins a discussion with the group regarding sensory writing. She asks

the class to raise their hands and explain what is meant by sensory. A young girl raisesher hand and responds, It means to use words that describe. Ms. Peterson agrees andbegins handing out a sheet of paper listing many different colorful and descriptiveadjectives. She then instructs the class to look at what they have written and circle all thedescriptive words they can find.

As the class works on this task, several students ask questions. Ms. Petersonmakes a point not to provide straight out answers. Instead, she encourages other studentsin the class to try and answer the questions. After several students have tried to answer,

Ms. Peterson builds on the responses and provides clarification.The class continues to work as Ms. Peterson walks around the room checking in

on each of her students. As she circles the room she announces that these papers wereonly the first draft. She then asks the class, How many of you are satisfied with yourpaper? No one raises their hand. She then explains that they will have a chance to goback and replace their boring adjectives with more complex, descriptive words. Shegoes on to explain that she will not except use of words like stuff big little goodor bad. She asks the class to generate some examples of words that are more interesting

and descriptive that can replace a word such as big. The class eagerly raises their handsto provide examples.

This lesson continues with students examining different adjectives from theworksheets they were given. After a thoughtful discussion amongst the class, Ms.Peterson closes by asking the students to take their essays home with them and replace allthe adjectives they had circled with the more complex words from the handouts.

This lesson is a perfect example of the use of scaffolding. It was assumed that theclass had a basic understanding of how to write descriptively, thus, students were firstgiven the opportunity to write a draft of their stories. Ms. Peterson then provided thestudents with tools, such as worksheets with lists of adjectives, to build upon and improvewhat they already knew. They were then given a chance to write a second draft. Thisinstructional technique is one way for Ms. Peterson to insure that all students in her classhand in completed assignments that are of the quality she expects.

Other evidence that was seen which suggested that I.R.I.S.E. teachers supportedthe doctrine that every child can learn, was found in the teacher-student relationships.Overall, the relationship between teacher and student was exacting but equitable.Excellence was always expected in every aspect of their learning. Evidence of this was

seen in the form of reprimands that the teachers gave students. In almost every case,rather than simply scolding a student for misbehaving or talking, the teachers used theopportunity to foster the students own educational self-determination. They made apoint to emphasize that learning was for their benefit and to articulate their desire for eachstudent to rise to his or her potential.

Mr. Franklin, for instance, took every opportunity he could to let the studentsknow that he cared whether or not they learned. He also tried to instill in his students aresponsibility for their own learning. In the first example, students were expected to


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bring a novel to class every day since the first 15 minutes of class were dedicated to silentreading. During the site visit, several students had failed to bring their books

Mr. Franklin walks around the classroom stopping at each students desk to

examine the novel they had chosen to read. He makes a point to say something positiveabout each students choice. As he speaks to one young boy, he says, that is an

excellence choice. Im sure youll find this book interesting and challenging to read. Ashe continues to check books, Mr. Franklin comes across several students who have failedto bring their novel. Mr. Franklin is extremely disturbed and reprimands these students.He says, This means you are not being responsible and living up to your truecapabilities. I know each one of you had plenty of time and opportunity to get a book.Im extremely disappointed in you.

Later during the same class, Mr. Franklin explains a project that the class will beworking on for Black History month. He begins to tell the class about a poem that theywill be memorizing and reciting

Mr. Franklin walks around the classroom and hands out the poem to the students.

He then stands at the front of the room and explains the history of the poem they are aboutto read. As he explains this to the class a young girl is chatting with her friend. Mr.Franklin stops and addresses the girl, You realize that you are disrespecting yourself bydrawing negative attention to yourself. Dont you think you deserve better than that?Why do you think some students are more successful than other? Because they are ableto pay attention when new things are being introduced. The girl stops talking and hecontinues with the lesson.

Several minutes a later as Mr. Franklin dissects the poem for meaning and tries todiscuss the historical significance of Homer, the class is reprimanded for talking. Hesays, I want you all to be quiet right now. You must all remember the importance oflearning and respecting yourself enough to gain knowledge when it is presented to you.

Similar instances were seen in Ms. Petersons class. As students began to chatterduring a lesson she stops and says, We dont have time to talk, but we do have time tolearn. Later during the same lesson a young boy is reprimanded for talking. She says,Jose, I want you to know how important it is for you to stay focused while you are here.I want you to have a good year.

Also, in conversation with Mr. Tanish, he further emphasizes the idea that everychild can learn and the importance of high expectations in insuring that this happens. Hestates:

I have to get on [the students] sometimes. I have to raise my voice and I definitely haveto let them know that my expectations are high. You have to let your children know thatyou have high expectations and you have to make sure that you dont lower that

barlower that standard. I have seen it in many instances where teachers have loweredtheir expectations and sure enough the children will act like they can get away withmurder. Whereas if they are in a room with a teacher who has high expectations, thebehavior changes right away. So I really try to let them know that I have high

expectations, I expect them to be able to stand in a straight line, I expect them to walkthrough the hallways quietly, etc. I also try to give them a lot of responsibility forthemselves.

Ms. Peterson shares similar sentiments:


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I dont fool around. I dont compromise. Im consistent with everybody. Its like, sitdown now! and if you cant sit down, these are your choices. I give students choices,like these are your choices, you are going to sit down and do your work or you are goingto have to go to the counseling office. I mean discipline is never a problem because I

dont have time for it and the students dont have time for it.I always let the studentsknow what they can expect from me, and then what their job is in return. If they dontthink I did something fairly, they can come and talk to me after class, but not during class.When students act up, I usually just say it right to the point, this is it and there is noroom for argument. I dont argue and I do believe with African American students, theywant to know that. They want to know that you are in charge and they know exactly whatyou want from them and it needs to be real clear and real direct. No beating around thebush. You know how some teachers might interact with them, its like, well, shouldnt

we all sit in our seats? No! That is not what we are going to do, sit in your seat!! Endof question.

Although it is unknown whether all the participating I.R.I.S.E. teachers haveinternalized these ideas regarding high expectations which are presented in theprofessional development workshops, the teachers described here have definitelydeveloped an understanding of the importance of demanding excellence for all their

students all of the time. In addition, these teachers never let outlying circumstanceschange or determine their expectations of the students. In fact, the backgrounds andcultural styles students brought with them to the classroom were seen as a bonus not adeterrent to learning. All three teachers when interviewed expressed similar beliefs asthose expressed by Mr. Tanish below:

The first thing you have to realize is that [African American] children are very active.They like to move; they like to talk. We are very, very oral people. However, thatdoesnt mean they should be excused from being able to show order, to be able to stand inline, to be able to move from A to B at a given time without being disruptive. You havetoI think you really have to have your routines mapped out, set out, and make sure yougo through that same routine everyday, so they know exactly what they are supposed to

do. Of course, you can throw in some new things here and there, but a set structure isimportant.

It is through these beliefs and the ways in which these beliefs manifest themselves in theteaching styles of these teachers that excellence for all students is achieved in theirclassrooms.

Teachers demonstrate a connectedness with all students and cultivate relationshipsthat extend beyond the classroom by fostering a community of learners thatencompasses both student and family.

As Ladson-Billings (1994) points out teachers with culturally relevant practices

are careful to maintain a connectiveness with each of their students. As she states, [i]nstead of idiosyncratic and individualistic connections with certain students, theseteachers work to assure each student of his or her individual importance (ibid. p. 66).Because of this research-based belief, relationship is an entity highly valued in theI.R.I.S.E. program. It is included as one of the 5 Rs and strategies for developingrelationships are consistently being taught in the professional development seminars.During the site visits and interviews, positive relationship building was continuously seenand explicitly expressed as being important by the three I.R.I.S.E. teachers. During an


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interview, Mr. Tanish was asked to discuss what he would teach teachers in order to bemore effective with African American students. He expressed the importance of makingsure his students knew how much he cared about them. He states:

I think it would be important to really have a very close relationship not only with theAfrican American students, but with all students. And let them know that you are very,

very concerned about them actually learning and making a difference in their lives. Ithink in many instances the lower quartile kids, irregardless of colorthey are lost in theshufflemany because they cannot make that connection or the, the initial connection ofrelationship say between the educator and the student themselves. Once thats done, alldoors open, and they open very, very wide. And the whole idea is to just make adifference in the lives of young people you are working with.

Ms. Peterson, when asked to describe her philosophy of teaching, described the samesentiments toward the importance of relationship. She comments:

I think it is really important there bethat the classroom environment and the culture ofthe classroom be really the foundation for everythingany learning that goes on. For me,its very important to have a repertoire with all of my students, but to be real consistentand firm and to always let them know that Im the teacherbasically I let them know that,Im in charge and my job is to help you to learn and to develop as a whole person, andIm going to do it and were going to do it together because youre going to do your jobwhich is to be a student, and Im going to do my job which is teach because I care aboutyou. And I think really, if a student knows the teacher cares about themI think it is

really important to create an environment thats based on real concern and care, but alsoreal attention to learning and the value of learning, the importance of learning and to alsosupport those who are struggling.

The relationships that these teachers try to establish by no means end with theclose of the school day. They extend into the homes of the children and includerelationship building with families and caregivers. Often times this presents a challenge

but all three teachers expressed their tenacity of will to make sure parents play a role intheir childs education. As Ms. Peterson claims,:

The students who really seem to take off are a part of a learning community that involvesa teacher who cares about them, the child, and the parent that is monitoring what they aredoing, asking questions, staying on top of their childs work.

The teachers that were interview each described efforts that they have taken andhave continued to take in order to create and maintain this type of learning communitydespite the challenges presented by the socio-economics of the students they teach.During the interview, Mr. Tanish described his efforts to establish a relationship with thefamilies of his students

Its been very challenging. A lot of parents, a lot of the children I should say, they comefrom homes that have a lot of problemsand many times, its difficult to get the parentsto work with youeven though they mean well, they are not sure of what they should bedoing. What I have tried to do, I have always tried to establish a relationship with them,invite them into the classroom, invite them along on field trips, etc. And whenever I havecontact with them, whether it be personal or on the phone, I try to talk to them about thethings that we are doing, about the things I think they could do as parents to help [their

child].


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A veteran teacher for over 30 years, Mr. Franklin explained that hes well awareof the importance of involving the family and the successful efforts hes made to do so.Mr. Franklin describes this commitment:

I really recognize the importance of teaching the whole child. If kids are coming in withproblems, and if we want to find out exactly what these problems are and how we canhelp, then it means becoming involved at every level. And in order to be totallysuccessful in working with young people today, you really have to have and ongoing

parent relationship if we are really going to reach [kids] and reach them effectively,there has to be an ongoing relationship with the home as well as with the young people. Iinvite parents to come in and I have made it a point to know all of my parents. That iswhy I am very successful in getting my students to Africa [this summer] and things likethat. Because the parents are there and they are with us, they come, and the doors arealways open.

Although, the improvement of parent involvement or techniques for creating moreparent involvement is not a main focus of I.R.I.S.E., it remains a central aspect of

culturally relevant teaching practices. The teachers participating in the interviews, havingworked with diverse populations of students, have developed a keen awareness of theimportance of teaching, as Mr. Tanish states, the whole child. This, on the other hand,is a goal of I.R.I.S.E.to help teachers develop skills and strategies for creatingcommunities and extended families in their classroom. As Ladson-Billings (1994)points out, students who feel connected to their environment and connected to the peoplearound them, have a better chance of succeeding academically. This is particularly truefor African American youth.

As Nobles (1973) claims, African cultural norms support a different worldview ofthe self as compared to the Western view-- The African world view suggests that I ambecause we are and because we are, I am. In so emphasizing, this view makes no realdistinction between the self and others. They are in a sense one and the sameOnesself-identity is therefore always a people identity, or what could be called anextendedself (ibid. p. 11). In other words, developing a learning community that AfricanAmerican youth feel strongly apart of and can relate to is key to their motivation to learnand succeed in school. Overall, it was very obvious that the teachers interviewed had adeep understanding that students need to have a sense of community and that parentsand/or caregivers are integral.

Role of Professional Development Workshops in Supporting Teaching

I.R.I.S.E. professional development over the years has provided teachers with paidopportunities to attend seminars conducted by such education experts as John Ogbu, MeirBen-Hur, Noma LeMoine, and Dr. Orlando Taylor to name only a few that teach teachershow to implement their research in the classroom. Other prominent educators have alsobeen invited to provide workshops around various topics. Some topics have includedeffective schools research and ways in which it can be imbued in schools, methods formaking curriculum materials interesting and accessible to all children, and ways in whichto connect with and/or draw upon students home experiences in the classrooms. Theseseminars are held after school and on Saturdays and teachers are offered small stipendsfor their attendance. I.R.I.S.E. also has provided school-day motivational seminars for


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students, as well as a vast library of model lessons on video-tape, research materials, andclassroom curriculum materials available for teachers use.

For the two veteran teachers, many of the ways in which they interacted with theirstudents, for the most part, did not occur as a direct result of I.R.I.S.E. professionaldevelopment. These teachers already possessed much of their sensitivity to diverse,

urban student populations through their past experiences and through their own naturalproclivity. However, these teachers didbelieve that I.R.I.S.E. professional developmentserved as a support and/or vindication of their teaching techniques. They also felt thatI.R.I.S.E. provided them with more specific, structured ways of doing things, andprovided them with a support system which includes a network of colleagues who have asimilar desire of improving teaching and learning for African American youth. For thenew teacher, I.R.I.S.E. taught him a great dealalmost everything he does in hisclassroom is due to I.R.I.S.E. support.

Ms. Peterson, whoas mentioned earlierhas been teaching in an urbanenvironment for over 13 years, did not believe that I.R.I.S.E. had changed thefundamentals of her teaching. She did, however, believe that the program had given hermore specific strategies and activities for her to employ in her classroom. In her ownwords:

What I have really gained from I.R.I.S.Ethere are a couple of things. One thing is that

it has really supported and validated a lot of the very things that I already believe and do.So for me, that was very important because it is not always out there. And it has actuallyhelped me develop in some areas becausesome of the strategies I have employed withthe students, some of the language development activities actually have names to them.And so I have really been able to look at how I.R.I.S.E. has identified certain types ofactivities so now I can call it somethingAlso, [although] Ive always worked withdiverse students, I think just going through some of the training that I.R.I.S.E. has offeredhas really helped me to be more sensitive, especially to the African American

communitywhat their needs aretheir learning styles, etc.

Mr. Tanish, on the other hand, has only been teaching for three years. For him, a lot ofwhat he knows about teaching has come from I.R.I.S.E. He states:

I would say that the majority of strategies and teaching methods, particularly geared toAfrican AmericansI.R.I.S.E. is where I got my wealth of strategies and information.Even in my classes in the credential program, even though there is a lot of focus ondiversity, etc, etc, there arent many specific strategies, you know, geared toward adiverse population in the classroom.

For Mr. Franklin, I.R.I.S.E. professional development has taught him to streamline histeaching style and given him a support system for doing what he loves. He states:

With I.R.I.S.E. I have learned in the past three yearsI have learned to work extremelysmart and not hard and to love every minute of it. Absolutely. This is due to myinvolvement in I.R.I.S.E. The wonderful thing is that I have made some great connectionswith other fellow colleagues throughout the District who really pretty much feel the sameway I do in terms of teaching. And its marvelous, I dont feel as if I have two heads.The things that I deem in terms of high standards of excellence, other people feel the

same way and oddly enough, everyone in education doesnt feel this way. But being anexperienced teacher and knowing exactly where I want to go, I am able to glean ideasfrom other people who feel as equally as committed to teaching young people as I do.


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And thats the marvelous thing about I.R.I.S.E. Ive learned very succinctly to workextremely smart and not hard.

In conclusion, after visiting the classrooms and interviewing theseteachers, it became clear that I.R.I.S.E. professional development workshops havebeen extremely effective in providing specific strategies that help insure skilled

teaching and support teacher morale.

Learning Outcomes of Youth in I.R.I.S.E. Classrooms

In order to understand the impact I.R.I.S.E. professional development has had onthe achievement of African American students, African American students enrolled inveteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers classrooms (three or more years of I.R.I.S.E. professionaldevelopment) were compared to a demographically equivalent group of students notenrolled in veteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers classrooms. The comparison group was createdby matching the percentages of the grade, ethnicity, gender, and free/reduced lunch statusfor students for whom academic outcome data were available. Using the District

database, students who were not enrolled in veteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers classrooms, butattended schools in similar urban neighborhoods were then randomly selected so that theabove- mentioned characteristics of the sample of comparison students closely matchedthe sample of students enrolled in veteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers classrooms (see AppendixB for demographics of each group).

Student achievement was measured by assessing change on the Stanford-9Reading and Math sub-tests. Only students with two years of test score (Spring 1998 andSpring 1999) data were included in the two samples. In addition, students GPA andsuspension rates were analyzed.

Reading Growth

By Spring 1999 students enrolled in Veteran IRISE classrooms made significantlygreater gains in Reading compared to students enrolled in the Comparison Groupclassrooms (F=4.13,p


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Table 3: SAT-9 Math NCEs: African American Students Enrolled in VeteranIRISE Classrooms vs. Comparison Classrooms

Spring 1998

NCEs

Spring

1999

NCEs

Difference Veteran vs. Comp

GroupVeteran IRISE

(n=360) 34.68 36.81 2.13*

Comparison Group

(n=185) 36.69 35.14 -1.55

*p


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Conclusions

Many urban school districts continue to struggle with the challenge of insuringthat all ethnicities have equal access to educational opportunities and are able to succeedacademically at national norms. In fact, San Francisco Unified School District, which

implements many programs as part of its Consent Degree (a court mandate from the Stateto improve the academic achievement of youth at risk of school failure), continues towork hard to improve and monitor these programs with varying success. The I.R.I.S.EInitiative is proving to be one of the more successful and popular programs, which, overthe years it has been implemented, has shown positive results in both improvingacademics and building teacher capacity to meet the needs of diverse youth.

The academic data are very compelling in this regard. African American studentsenrolled in Veteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers classrooms have shown significant improvementsin both reading and math (as measured by the SAT-9) as compared to a group ofdemographically comparable students not enrolled in these classrooms. Also, AfricanAmerican middle school students who take classes from Veteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers haveshow more improvements in their GPA than demographically comparable students.There seems to be no difference, however, in suspension rates.

It is believed that these differences are due in large part to the services and supportprovided through I.R.I.S.E. Veteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers have been provided withprofessional development that provides them with research-based techniques thatspecifically tap into the needs of African American youth, but are also overall goodteaching practices for all students. These professional development seminars havebrought in many experts in multicultural education to engage teachers in conversationabout how best to provide instruction and social support to all students and to giveteachers practical ways of enhancing their curriculum to improve the teaching andlearning of their diverse students. I.R.I.S.E. also supports teachers by providing culturallyappropriate materials, including a vast library of audio cassettes of lectures by Linda

Darling-Hammond, Lisa Delpit, and Asa Hilliard, and by offering new teachersopportunities to visit classrooms of veteran I.R.I.S.E. teachers or to view model lessonson video-tape.

Overall, it is in large part due to the support and services provided throughI.R.I.S.E. that I.R.I.S.E. teachers deeply understand the needs of their African Americanstudents, which may be the key to helping all students succeed. As stated by Augustus F.Hawkins, Founder of the National Council on Educating Black Children, Black childrenare the proxy for what ails American education in general. And so, as we fashionsolutions which help Black children, we fashion solutions which help all children.


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References

Akbar, N. Address before the Black Child Development Institute Annual Meeting,October 1975, San Francisco, California.

Cohen, R. (1971). The influence of conceptual rule-sets on measures of learning ability.

In Race and Intelligence. Washington, D.C.: American AnthropologicalAssociation.Delpit, L. (1995). Other Peoples Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom. New

York, New York: W.W. Norton, Inc.Edmonds, R.E. (1979). Effective schools for the urban poor. Educational Leadership,

37(1), 15-27.Frisby, C. L. (1993). One Giant Step Backward: Myths of Black Cultural Learning

Styles. School Psychology Review; 22(3); 535-57.Garmston, R. et al. (1993). Reflections of cognitive coaching. Educational Leadership;

51, 57-61.Hale, J. (1981). Research in review. Black children: Their roots, culture, and learning

styles. Young Children; 36(2), 37-50. (1991). The transmission of cultural values to young African American children.

Young Children; 46(6), 7-15. (1992). Dignifying black childrens lives. Dimensions of Early Childhood; 20(3), 8-

9, spring.Hilliard, A.G. (1976). Alternatives to IQ Testing: An approach to the identification of

gifted minority children. Final report to the California State Department ofEducation.

Ladson-Billings, G. (1994). What we can learn from multicultural education research.Educational Leadership; 51(8), 22-26, May.

(1995). But thats just good teaching! The case for culturally relevant pedagogy.Theory into Practice; 34(3), 159-65, summer.

(1995). Toward a theory of culturally relevant pedagogy. American EducationalResearch Journal; 32(3), 465-91 Fall.

Lawrence-Lightfoot, S., & Davis, J.H. (1997). The Art and Science of Portraiture. SanFrancisco: JosseyBass.

Levine, D.U. (1994). Instructional approaches and interventions that can improve theacademic performance of African American students. Journal of NegroEducation, 63(1).

Levine, D. U. & Lezotte, L. W. (1995). Effective schools research. In Handbook ofResearch on Multicultural Education, 525-47. ERIC Clearinghouse, Nebraska.

Michael, S. (1980). Sharing Time: An oral preparation for literacy. Paper presented at theEthnography in Education Research Forum. University of Pennsylvania,

Philadelphia, PA, March.Ogbu, J. (1999). Beyond language: Ebonics, proper English, and identity in the Black-

American speech community. American Educational Research Journal, 147-184,36(2).

Perry, T. & Delpit, L. (1998). The Real Ebonics Debate: Power, Language, and theEducation of African-American Children. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.


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APPENDIX A

Interview Questions for I.R.I.S.E. TeachersAdapted from Ladson-Billings (1994)

The Dreamkeepers: Successful Teachers of African American Children

1. Tell me something about your background. When and where were you educated?When and where did you begin teaching?

2. How would you describe your philosophy of teaching? What do you believeworks?

3. How, if at all, has this changed since being involved with I.R.I.S.E.?

4. Can you think of any characteristics that African American youngsters as a groupbring to the classroom?

5. What kinds of things have you done in the classroom that have facilitated theacademic success of African American students?

6. How much of what you know about teaching African American children did you learnas a result of I.R.I.S.E. professional development workshops?

7. If you could revamp teacher education so that teachers would be more effective withAfrican American students what changes would you make?

8. What kind of role do you believe parents play in the success of African Americanstudents? How would you describe the kinds of relationships youve had with parentsof students youve taught?

9. How do you handle discipline? Are there special things that teachers of AfricanAmerican students should know about discipline?

10. How do you think the schooling experience of the students you teach differs from that

of white students in middle-class communities?


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APPENDIX B

Demographics of African American Veteran IRISE and Comparison

Group for SAT-9 Analysis

Table 1: Percentage of Students in Each GradeVeteran IRISE vs. Comparison

Group

3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th

Veteran IRISE (n=342) 13 10 15 17 23 23

Comparison Group (n=185) 9 24 25 14 13 15

Table 2: Percentage of Students in Receiving Lunch SubsidiesVeteran IRISE vs.Comparison Group

No

Subsidies

Free or

Reduced

Lunch

Veteran IRISE (n=342) 36 64

Comparison Group (n=185) 33 67

Table 3: Percentage of Males and FemalesVeteran IRISE vs. Comparison Group

Male Female



Demographics of African American Veteran IRISE and Comparison

Group for GPA Analysis

Table 4: Percentage of Students in Each GradeVeteran IRISE vs. ComparisonGroup

7th 8th



Table 5: Percentage of Students in Receiving Lunch SubsidiesVeteran IRISE vs.


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Comparison Group

No

Subsidies

Free or

Reduced

Lunch

Veteran IRISE (n=209) 46 54Comparison Group (n=146) 51 49


Male Female



Demographics of African American Veteran IRISE and ComparisonGroup for Suspension Analysis

Table 7: Percentage of Students in Each GradeVeteran IRISE vs. Comparison

Group

K 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8t

Veteran IRISE (n=728) 8 10 10 9 7 10 14 15 1

Comparison Group (n=433) 6 13 10 7 14 19 10 10 1

Table 8: Percentage of Students in Receiving Lunch SubsidiesVeteran IRISE vs.

Comparison Group

No

Subsidies

Free or

Reduced

Lunch




Male Female



irise paper for aera

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