Data for the 2004-2005 school year again points to steady improvement, with many schools scoring double-digit increases in math proficiency. In addition, analysis of the data suggests that schools with high levels of participation in the First In Math® program posted higher increases in math proficiency.

During the 2003-2004 school year, the School District of Philadelphia implemented the First In Math® Online program in more than 2,600 third- through eighth-grade classrooms throughout the district, and the program proved to be a resounding success. Data for the 2004-2005 school year again points to steady improvement, with many schools scoring double-digit increases in math proficiency.

This year, the threshold for Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) jumps to 45%, meaning that 45% of a school's student population is required to score at the "proficient and above" level on state standardized tests. The 2005 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) results for the School District of Philadelphia showed a 14.7% increase in 5th grade students to 45.4% scoring at the proficient and above level. Improvement among their 8th grade counterparts was a 8.3% increase, for a total of 39.2% scoring proficient and above.

In addition, analysis of the data suggests that schools with high levels of participation in the First In Math® program posted higher increases in math proficiency.  

CASE HISTORIES - Northwest Region

One of the largest regions in the district, the Northwest Region includes 31 schools, 355 classrooms and 12,780 students that were actively involved in the First In Math® (FIM) program.

After implementing the FIM program two years ago, ALL Northwest Region elementary and middle schools were able to meet government-mandated Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) standards in mathematics for the 2004-2005 school year.

The region ranked second in the district in the First In Math® program, and exhibited dramatic increases in PSSA scores, with 22 of its 33 elementary and middle schools posting double-digit increases from 2004 to 2005.

5th grade student scores increased an average of 14.6%, mirroring the district's 14.7% increase. 8th grade student scores increased an average of 16.8%-double the district's 8.3% increase.

5th Grade
School District of Philadelphia Northwest Region Schools
(#2 FIM REGION - 4,381,872 Award Stickers Earned)
2005 - 2004 PSSA Test Scores in Math
Second Year In A Row with Double Digit Increases

School Name

% Proficient& up 2005

% Proficient& up 2004

% Change05- 04

Enrollment2004

# StudentsProficientand up2005*

# StudentsProficientand up2004

Charles W Henry School

71.1

55.4

15.7

57

41

32

Cook-Wissahickon School

76.6

69.1

7.5

59

45

41

Day, Anna B School

55.7

33.4

22.3

90

50

30

Dobson, James School

91.0

50.0

41.0

28

25

14

Edmonds, Franklin S School

91.7

55.0

36.7

106

97

58

Ellwood School

59.1

46.1

13.0

87

51

40

Fitler Academics Plus

84.2

50.9

33.3

59

50

30

Houston, Henry E School

49.3

33.3

16.0

82

40

27

Howe, Julia Ward School

71.1

76.8

-5.7

53

38

41

Jenks, John S School

54.7

37.2

17.5

53

29

20

Leverin,g William School

44.4

38.6

5.8

47

21

18

Lingelbach, Anna L School

53.0

51.9

1.1

54

29

28

McCloskey, John F School

41.3

18.4

22.9

69

28

13

Mifflin, Thomas School

66.6

46.4

20.2

30

20

14

Pennell, Joseph School

40.9

29.9

11.0

84

34

25

Pennypacker, Samuel School

49.0

45.7

3.3

89

44

41

Prince Hall

50.0

40.7

9.3

101

51

41

Rowen, William School

43.1

41.4

1.7

89

38

37

Shawmont School

79.7

67.2

12.5

71

57

48

Wister, John School

34.9

21.9

13.0

63

22

14

Total Students

1371

810

611

% Total Students Proficient and up

59.1

44.5

% Change Regionwide 2005 - 2004

14.6

* Assumes the enrollment figures for 2005 are the same as 2004.

8th Grade
School District of Philadelphia Northwest Region Schools
(#2 FIM REGION - 4,381,872 Award Stickers Earned)
2005 - 2004 PSSA Test Scores in Math
Second Year In A Row with Double Digit Increases

School Name

% Proficient& up 2005

% Proficient& up 2004

% Change05- 04

Enrollment2004

# StudentsProficientand up2005*

# StudentsProficientand up2004

AMY NW

68.6

32.2

36.4

92

63

30

Charles W Henry School

68.0

48.5

19.5

70

48

34

Dobson, James School

63.6

61.6

2.0

41

26

25

Fitler Academics Plus

63.0

58.5

4.5

55

35

32

Hill-Freedman

89.7

84.7

5.0

79

71

67

Houston, Henry E School

45.6

44.1

1.5

87

40

38

Jenks, John S School

77.4

55.6

21.8

57

44

32

Leeds, Morris E MS

33.7

17.5

16.2

209

70

37

Levering, William School

68.3

43.3

25.0

64

44

28

Mifflin, Thomas School

64.5

47.2

17.3

36

23

17

Shawmont School

72.5

50.5

22.0

93

67

47

Wagner, Gen Louis MS

63.3

50.0

13.3

298

189

149

Widener Memorial

81.9

14.3

67.6

28

23

4

Total Students

1209

742

539

% Total Students Proficient and up

61.4

44.6

% Change Regionwide 2005 - 2004

16.8

Northwest Region's 16.8% increase in 8th grade is double the School District of Philadelphia's increase of 8.3%.

* Assumes the enrollment figures for 2005 are the same as 2004.

NORTHWEST REGION SCHOOLS:

5th Grade Highlights

Dobson, James School. The school experienced a significant increase of 41% on the PSSA in 2005, as Dobson 5th grade students scored 91% proficient and above, up from 50% in 2004.

Edmonds,  Franklin S. School.  5th grade students at Edmonds School performed extremely well on the 2005 PSSA in math, they scored a whopping 91.7% proficient and above. This represented a 36.7% jump from the previous year of 55% proficient and above.

Fitler Academics Plus is a great example of how FIM can become part of a school's culture and motivate students to achieve above and beyond in mathematics. Fitler 5th grade students scored 84.2% proficient and above on the PSSA in 2005, a difference of 33.3 percentage points from 50.9% in 2004.

8th Grade Highlights

AMY Northwest. 8th grade students PSSA results showed tremendous improvement through a 36.4% increase from 32.2% proficient and above in 2004 to 68.6% proficient and above in 2005.

Levering,  William School. Levering School presented a 25% increase in PSSA results, from 43.3% in 2004 to 68.3% in 2005 for 8th grade students testing proficient and above in math.

Widener Memorial School. This is an excellent example of the diversity of FIM when implemented in a school setting with students who have special needs. Widener is a school for the physically disabled, and many of the students also have cognitive issues, from brain injuries. Widener 8th grade students scored 81.9% proficient and above on the PSSA in 2005, an increase of 67.6 percentage points from the previous year of 14.3% proficient and above.

CASE HISTORIES - Northeast Region.

The Northeast region includes 20 schools, 364 classrooms and 13,104 students that were actively involved in the First In Math® (FIM) program. These students were the top performers in the FIM program-ranked #1 for 2004-2005. The Northeast Region's PSSA test scores showed steady improvement.  5th grade student scores increased 13.6%, close to the district's 14.7% increase.  8th grade student scores increased 10.7%, exceeding the district's 8.3% improvement.

5th Grade
School District of Philadelphia Northeast Region Schools
(#1 FIM REGION - 5,089,341 Award Stickers Earned)
2005 - 2004 PSSA Test Scores in Math

School Name

% Proficient& up 2005

% Proficient& up 2004

% Change05- 04

Enrollment2004

# StudentsProficientand up2005*

# StudentsProficientand up2004

Comley, Watson

74.2

61.8

12.4

70

52

43

Crossan, Kennedy C.

89.6

64.3

25.3

60

54

39

Decatur, Stephen

69.5

44.9

24.6

179

124

80

Farrell, Louis H.

67.4

67.0

0.4

104

70

70

Fitzpatrick, Aloysius

60.4

37.1

23.3

166

100

62

Fox Chase

68.0

45.1

22.9

56

38

25

Frank, Anne

84.9

85.1

-0.2

140

119

119

Greenberg, Joseph

83.3

56.7

26.6

69

57

39

Hancock, John

89.0

82.6

6.4

72

64

59

Loesche, William H.

89.1

70.4

18.7

147

131

103

Moore, J. Hampton

64.7

56.7

8.0

172

111

98

Rhawnhurst

77.8

72.3

5.5

72

56

52

Rush, Benjamin MS

24.4

12.5

11.9

49

12

6

Solis-Cohen, Solomon

64.5

50.0

14.5

151

97

76

Spruance, Gilbert

60.4

53.5

6.9

145

88

78

Total Students

1652

1174

949

% Total Students Proficient and up

71.1

57.4

% Change Regionwide 2005 - 2004

13.6

* Assumes the enrollment figures for 2005 are the same as 2004.

8th Grade
School District of Philadelphia Northeast Region Schools
(#1 FIM REGION - 5,089,341 Award Stickers Earned)
2005 - 2004 PSSA Test Scores in Math

School Name

% Proficient& up 2005

% Proficient& up 2004

% Change05- 04

Enrollment2004

# StudentsProficientand up2005*

# StudentsProficientand up2004

Baldi, CCA MS

73.3

62.7

10.6

393

288

246

Farrell, Louis H.

75.3

67.0

8.3

101

76

68

Greenberg, Joseph

82.3

75.0

7.3

85

70

64

La Brum, Gen J. Harry

41.8

30.1

11.7

126

53

38

Rush, Benjamin MS

51.4

41.8

9.6

326

168

136

Spruance, Gilbert

51.5

45.6

5.9

134

69

61

Wilson, Woodrow MS

59.2

45.3

13.9

476

282

216

Total Students

1641

1005

829

% Total Students Proficient and up

61.2

50.5

% Change Regionwide 2005 - 2004

10.7

Northeast Region's 10.7% increase exceeds the School District of Philadelphia's increase of 8.3%.

* Assumes the enrollment figures for 2005 are the same as 2004.

NORTHEAST REGION SCHOOLS:

5th Grade Highlights

Crossan, Kennedy C. School.  Crossan 5th grade students showed a dramatic increase of 25.3% in PSSA scores, as the school went from 64.3% to almost 90% (89.6%) students proficient and above.

Decatur, Stephen School. 5th grade students at Decatur school presented a 24.6% increase in PSSA scores by scoring 69.5% proficient and above in 2005, as compared to the previous year of 44.9%.

Fitzpatrick, Aloysius. Fitzpatrick School witnessed an amazing increase in 5th grade from 37.1% to 60.4% proficient and above-a 23.3% jump to make AYP.

Greenberg, Joseph School.  The school experienced an increase on the PSSA from 56.7% of students proficient and above in 2004, to 83.3% of students proficient and above in 2005.

8th Grade Highlights

Baldi, C.C.A. Middle School.  Baldi Middle School is another great example of how FIM can motivate students at the middle school level to achieve higher levels of success in mathematics. Baldi had the #1 FIM student (a 7th grader) in the nation last year. 8th grade students from Baldi scored 73.3% proficient and above on the PSSA in 2005-a 10.6% increase from the previous year of 62.7%.

La Brum, General J. Harry Middle School. Last year, La Brum Middle School participated in the piloted FIM Winner's Circle, an incentive program designed to increase student achievement with FIM through weekly drawings and prizes. 8th grade students showed an 11.7% increase in PSSA scores last year, from 30.1% in 2004 to 41.8% in 2005.

Wilson, Woodrow Middle School. The school experienced a 13.9% increase on the PSSA in 2005, with 8th grade students scoring 59.2% proficient and above-up from 45.3% the previous year.

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