Summary:
The Young Scholars of Western Pennsylvania Charter School is the sole elementary school in the Young Scholars of Western Pennsylvania Charter School district. Despite consistent investment in resources, including higher per-student spending and smaller class sizes, the school has struggled to improve student outcomes, ranking in the bottom quarter of Pennsylvania elementary schools for the past three years.
The school's performance on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) tests is below the state average, with proficiency rates of 26.4% in math, 62.7% in science, and 44% in English Language Arts. Notably, there is a significant disparity in performance between lower and upper elementary grades, with 3rd and 4th graders outperforming their 5th-8th grade peers. The school serves a high-poverty student population, with a 100% free and reduced-price lunch rate, which may present unique challenges in addressing academic and non-academic barriers to learning.
While the school's higher spending and smaller class sizes suggest a commitment to supporting student success, the persistent low performance across multiple years indicates a need for a deeper analysis of the school's instructional practices, curriculum, and support systems. Identifying and addressing the root causes of the uneven performance across grade levels could be a crucial step in improving overall student outcomes at the Young Scholars of Western Pennsylvania Charter School.
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