|
IDEA Students Show Progress in English/Language Arts on Interim Tests
 After IDEA's leadership team restructured testing procedures and environments and rewrote tests, most students showed improved proficiency in English/Language Arts, while scores reflected continued struggles with math. 60% of 7th graders, 50% of 9th graders, and 57% of 10th graders improved their ELA scores. More 30% of those students who improved increased their scores by more than 10 percentage points. IDEA Head of Academics Alcine Mumby wrote new interim assessments for 7th- and 8th-grade students and revised those for 9th- and 10th-grade students to better reflect requirements and assessments of the DC-CAS test, the standardized test that all DC students must take. READ MORE »» |
Teacher Feature: Phillip Yarborough, English 9
|
 Why I Became a Teacher
Throughout all my years of growing up in Queens, New York and being schooled in the New York Public School system, I had only two African American male teachers and one was a substitute. It's important for kids to have a role model of someone who looks like them and possibly relate to them. Many of these students are growing up without positive male figures. I wanted students to be able to see successful males in the classroom. What keeps me here is seeing how many kids are coming to me in high school who can't read or are behind. This motivates me to help students! There's more of a need for good teachers in DC than anywhere else.
READ MORE »»
|
|
Lady Timberwolves Volleyball Team Wins Championship!
Believe it or not, the WCSAA 2012 Girls Volleyball champions from IDEA Public Charter High School are new to the sport. When IDEA's first-ever volleyball team took to the court this fall, they were starting from scratch. None of the 15 girls, including 9th-, 10th-, 11th-, and 12th-graders, had ever played organized volleyball. Some had never played volleyball at all. Yet they made up for lack of experience with sheer will, determination, and discipline, said their coach, Iris Corbitt. "They have demonstrated a lot of discipline," Corbitt said. "Both on and off the court. They show respect for themselves and their teammates on and off the court and they had the will to better themselves." READ MORE »» |
|
IDEA Students Serve Thanksgiving Dinner to Homeless
 This past Thanksgiving members of the IDEA community continued their time-honored tradition of giving back. On the day before Thanksgiving, the 13th annual Safeway Feast for Sharing brought 5,000 DC residents to the DC Convention Center to enjoy a complete Thanksgiving meal as well as a job fair, health screenings, and a free clothing bank. IDEA students, teachers, family members, and alumni make up a large group of volunteers at the feast each year. READ MORE »»
|
Art Club to Expand Creative Outlets for Students
Creating murals on the walls of IDEA, exploring street art and stencils in a safe and legal environment, and building serious art portfolios are just a few of the opportunities students will have in art teacher Claire Reintgen's new art club next semester.
Students who are currently enrolled in art class or are signed up for art in the spring will be able to participate in afterschool art activities.
"I would like to instill a sense of community art and of building community through art," said Ms. Reintgen, whose own art background includes painting and graphic design. READ MORE »»
|
