Learn more about the Excellence in Education Awards Additional profiles: Carthay Center Elementary Wonderland Avenue Elementary Irving Middle School White House Place Primary Center Community Magnet School Lowman Special Education Center Magnolia Avenue School Elizabeth Learning Center Park Western Place Elementary Coeur d'Alene Elementary Welby Way Gifted Magnet Haddon Elementary Hobart Elementary Open Magnet Charter School Maclay Middle School Murchison Street School

Excellence in Education Awards Barbara Moreno and Judy Utvich Open Magnet Charter School 6085 Airdrome St., Los Angeles Dr. Grace Arnold, Principal A LEARN School Hamilton/Palisades/University Cluster-Merle Price, Cluster Administrator RESULTS: Open Magnet Charter School students consistently score well above the district average on standardized tests, and above the state average. Purple Cluster students also have performed well on the state-mandated Stanford 9 test for the past two years since they first took the test in Spring, 1997. Among the 64 students in Purple Cluster, 74% scored at the sixth stanine or above in 1997. In 1998, Purple Cluster students increased their scores an average of 5 percentile points over 1997 scores. The attendance rate is 97%. Purple Cluster is a fourth and fifth grade classroom in which students focus their teaming on the study of systems to create a deeper understanding of the ecological concepts that are interwoven throughout all areas of the curriculum during the year. Students use systems thinking to see how, just as in the "real world," things we learn and do are interconnected. Students begin each school year discussing the idea of systems and how they apply to everyday experiences. Students identify systems they see around them, analyze systems to try to understand how they work, and formulate systems principles based on their observations and experiences. This year's teaming centered around the Gold Rush and ways in which it permanently changed the California landscape. Students visit the Gene Autry Museum for an historical overview and the mining towns of Julian and Bodie. They study geology and classify rocks and minerals; grow crystals and see how minerals form; study mining methods; raise trout and identify the impact of mining on trout habitats; are exposed to literature, art and music about the Gold Rush and in June will produce a musical on the Gold Rush. Each year the focus is different In past years, the focus was on the Ballona Wetlands one year and the Lewis and Clark Expeditions another. Students must engage in daily problem solving, critical thinking and other hands-on activities to complete their projects. Cooperative teaming groups enable students to work as peer tutors to lend support, clarify their own teaming and develop leadership skills. Often students generate their own questions about a topic of study A story in which one character opened a boardinghouse led to an activity in which students planned their own boardinghouse businesses. Pre-and-post assessments evaluate what knowledge students bring to a topic of study and their academic progress.This is reflected in notebooks in which students list what they already know about the unit of study in one color, then add in another color the information gained from reading, research, demonstrations, slide shows and discussions. Continually, both students and teachers reflect on "the so what question" - why is this important and how is it relevant to the larger scheme of things.