A SAFE BET

Burke Elementary uses afterschool program to improve students’ performance

STORY AND PHOTOS BY EMILIO BERMEO

 

Jayavi Johnson, 8, understands science better in her third-grade after-school class than in her regular morning courses.

 

With fewer students and more personalized instruction, the new after-school program at Burke Elementary on Chicago's South Side, offers students an opportunity to get additional assistance while providing them with a safe environment.

 

Consisting of one hour of extra lessons, the goal of this program is to galvanize the students’ learning experience in the hopes their progress is reflected at the end of the year in their Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) test scores.

 

“After-school helps us learn because there are not a lot of people, and we can learn better with no noise and no playing around,” Johnson said about the program, which has an enrollment of more than 50 percent of the school’s 440 students.. “It makes us pass to another grade, keep going on.”

 

Burke Elementary is located in Washington Park, one of the most crime-plagued neighborhoods in Chicago. It ranks No. 3  among neighborhoods with the most violent crimes, such as murder and assault, and No. 4 in property crimes, such as burglaries and stolen vehicles, according to data compiled by the Chicago Tribune.

 

Chicago Public Schools reports that 93.6 percent of the students in Burke Elementary come from low income households. This program, known internally as “after-school,” provides further assistance to families and reduces dropout rates by cutting down the time they are exposed to the social and economic difficulties at home and on the streets.

 

The after-school program was established after Burke was awarded with one of the School Improvement Grants that the Illinois State Board of Education offers for institutions devoted to engage in a significant shift to revamping their academic standards.

 

“The application was a strenuous process that caused a really quick turn around,” said Tenesha Hatter, the school’s assistant principal and administrator of the after-school program. The subsidy—obtained last July—supplies Burke with $3 million in additional resources for the 2014-2016 school years.

 

Burke’s administration promoted the program throughout Washington Park, culminating with what the principal called a "jamboree day" just before classes started in August. The event was a day of culture-setting activities and team-building exercises, where students got to meet their teachers and their classmates.

 

Many parents signed their children up for after-school on the first day. According to Hatter, having the students at school for an extended period of time helps their families, who in most cases have to work, forcing them to leave the children home alone in the afternoons.

 

Since her daughter began attending the after-school program, Emikia Bell has had more time for herself.  

 

“It’s helping me a lot, too, because I just went back to school,” Bell said. “Now I don’t have to stop studying, stop cooking or stop getting the school clothes ready to help my daughter with her homework.”

 

Not only do the students and their parents benefit from after-school, but it also creates a working place for teachers.

 

Grace-Ann Richardson has been teaching English at Burke for six years. Since she started tutoring for the after-school program, she has found her job more enjoyable; it helps her achieve her aspirations of stimulating the learning process of every student.

 

“During after-school, I have a smaller group of students, so it is much easier to work,” Richardson said. “The students who are afraid to speak up in the big classroom open up during after-school, and that is very rewarding. The kids in my after-school class are working below their grade level, so I am really hoping that with extra guidance, they will at least be on grade level.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While there is still much to be incorporated at Burke, like teaching equipment and recreational activities to motivate students, Richardson is optimistic.

 

“This is necessary for many of the students, because they learn better in a smaller class environment, so in after-school, you’ll see them shine like they don’t in their regular classroom,” she said. “The kids are here, and we’re just ready to go on and see the results.”  

 

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