written by Steve Osborne, corps member at KIPP Aspire Academy

In the first part of my blog on KIPP, I talked about KIPP’s culture of success on a whole-school level.  Their atmosphere, though, isn’t only reflective in the stuff they hang on walls.  From 5^th to 8^th grade, the kids have what is known as the mark card.  This is their lifeline for all things KIPP-related, and is also a perfect example of how KIPP teaches its kids to aspire for success.

The mark card is a tool for student accountability.  Each student carries one around for the week, and there are important data contained in them.  One section keeps track of the student’s “KIPP dollar” balance.  They start with a set amount, and this money can buy school supplies.  The student must also “rent” a desk with it, so if a student spends too much money buying supplies, he could be out of a desk and sitting on a crate.  But don’t worry; they can earn money by helping with chores and other similar tasks to earn the desk back.

The mark card, though, has data that holds the student accountable for behavior.  Students can receive positive or negative marks for 7 character traits, including grit, zest, self-control, social intelligence, curiosity, gratitude, and optimism.  Showing any of these traits in school gets a positive mark, but exhibiting a lack of the trait earns a negative mark.

At 5 negative marks, the student is put on “red card” for 24 hours, which means s/he must turn their shirt inside-out and sit on a crate away from their rented desk.  S/he is not allowed to speak to other students (that could result in another mark!).  More severe consequences exist beyond 5 marks, including wearing a brown “self-discipline” shirt, sitting in isolation, and sometimes even suspension.

On the other hand, the student can receive positive marks to help them earn things.  Students earn these simply by doing positive, productive things that exhibit those 7 traits.  The positive marks do not instantly reward them (other than, of course, that warm feeling of being praised for a job done well), but if students earns enough of them, they can earn tickets for a raffle at their weekly town meeting.

Town meetings happen once a week for about 45 minutes.  It provides a place for the teachers to talk to the students about the state of their grade, what can be improved, and what the students have excelled in.  At the end, teachers hold a raffle full of tickets earned by kids with positive marks.  The more positive marks a student has, the more tickets the student has.  And the more tickets s/he has, the better the chances of winning.  The raffle often has school supplies, college swag, and occasionally a prize to something really awesome, like Spurs tickets.

City Year’s presence and partnership works well at KIPP because both cultures have similar practices and themes.  Their raffle tickets are just like City Year “Swag Tags”, used during Basic Training Academy.  The self-accountability they instill in the student is similar to our goal of “Starfish Stories.”  Our partnership, then, is a strengthening of those practices.  This year’s KIPP team has created initiatives that take mark cards, for example, into account.  One of our favorites is the City Year Student of the Week, which awards a highly improved student with wearing the coveted red vest.

KIPP is, indeed, a school with an amazing structure and culture.  However, it must be stressed that the teachers and City Year corps members at the school must work hard each day to mold these kids into the successful people we see in them.  We strive to make them responsible, successful, and civic-minded adults on a daily basis, and our hard work is the what makes the structure and culture work.

Marshmallows and mark cards alone don’t matter without the care and practices of corps members and teachers.