City schools to reform curriculum

In a grade-A effort to revive failing city schools, the Philadelphia School District approved a plan for citywide curriculum and instructional reform for kindergarten through the ninth grade, amidst statewide discussions about changes in funding for education.

The plan, announced Friday by Paul Vallas, CEO of the city's school district, outlines an overhaul of the current mosaic of teaching and organizational methods.

Philadelphia School District spokesman Cameron Kline said that there is no "streamlined curriculum from bottom to top that builds on itself."

One of the biggest problems with the current curriculum is its inability to respond to the city's 40 percent student mobility rate, he said.

But with the new curriculum, all Philadelphia students in the same grade will be learning the same material simultaneously.

Another large component of the new curriculum is that students will spend more time per day on math and reading.

Although Kline said these curricular changes are "a relief" to many teachers, the new academic programs are not drastically different from those already in place at some schools.

Principal Christina Spink of Rudolph Blankenburg Elementary School said the reformed curriculum will not affect her school because "we are already doing it."

Extended day and summer school programs will also be established in schools across the city.

In addition to providing a uniform curriculum, the school district's plan will mandate other structural changes, including a significantly increased level of administrative and teacher support.

Professional development is also a key component of the reform plan, according to Kline.

"And this is not a one-time thing," he added. Teachers and administrators will participate in development initiatives every other week during the school year, as well as several times throughout the summer.

"They will be able to continually get help," Kline said. The teachers have "never had this level of support before."

The school district's plan also requires that schools reduce class size in order to facilitate the learning process.

The program has a built-in parental involvement component -- each school community must establish a home and school council.

Report cards and test scores will be simplified, and curriculum guides explaining students' course material will be sent home to parents.

Additionally, the already existing Parent Truancy Officer Program will expand its practice of reaching out to uninvolved parents.

The curriculum and instructional reform plan will affect Philadelphia public schools to varying degrees depending on their current integration of the plan's components.

However, charter and privately-run schools such as those under the management of Edison Schools, Inc., and partnership schools, such as the Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander -- University of Pennsylvania Partnership School, will decide for themselves how to implement the city's plan.

"Previously, we were able to make use of other district-provided development programs," said Aparna Prasad, director of communication for Philadelphia's Edison-run schools, indicating that teachers would likely be invited to participate in the city's professional development programs.

As for curricular changes, Prasad was uncertain "what exactly will be adopted and what won't," noting that the Edison schools already utilize parts of the citywide curriculum plan.

Ann Kreidle, planning coordinator at the Sadie Alexander School, said that as "a demonstration school of the School District of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers and Penn," it will "work with all three of those organizations to determine what are the best instructional materials to reach the school's high standards for students' learning and academic success."

Vallas also announced a series of budget cuts and priorities to help realize the district's initiatives, some of which would depend on state funding.

And yesterday, Governor Ed Rendell unveiled the second part of a budget proposal that, if approved by the state legislature, would increase funding for public education, providing $912 million in basic education subsidy to the Philadelphia School District. That number represents an increase of 2.5 percent over the current figure, according to Rendell spokesman Tom Hickey.

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