KIPP AMP web page

 

 

Earlier this week I visited the KIPP AMP Academy in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, which is REALLY knocking the cover off the ball, even by KIPP's standards.  I've posted pictures and observations from my visit at: http://www.tilsonfunds.com/Personal/KIPPAMP/

 

Here's an excerpt from my comments on the site:

Culture

Entering KIPP AMP on the 4^th floor, one is greeted by an oasis of calm and quiet.  Like every KIPP I’ve ever visited (nearly two dozen now), it’s completely silent.  You can’t tell if school is in session or not.  There are no children milling about in the hallway and in the classrooms, students are 100% focused on learning.

Anyone who knows the first thing about inner-city schools will recognize how completely abnormal this is.  We asked Ky how he got the kids to behave this way.  He replied, “With high expectations!  It begins long before school starts, with a three-week program in July.  The teachers and I are all there and we explain our rules and expectations to the students.  We begin in an empty room, teaching lessons in respect and the value of earning everything in life; everything from earning their chairs and desks to KIPP AMP uniform shirts, all of which they earn by the end of the summer session.  We are in the business of building children up, so that’s what we do; we focus on both the academic and character growth alike.” 

Classrooms

If you know what to look for, you can quickly see signs of a top school – pretty much anywhere, I’d argue – by visiting a few classrooms.  Most importantly, the children are totally focused on learning – what KIPP calls SSLANT (Smile, Sit Up, Listen, Ask and Answer Questions, Nod Your Head When You Understand and Track the Speaker).  Also, notice in the pictures below that the desks aren’t cluttered – each child has one notebook on the desk and that’s it.  Finally, the walls are filled with students’ work and slogans that capture KIPP’s culture: “Work hard.  Be Nice.”, “There are no shortcuts”, etc.