Barbara a Sizemore Campus, Chicago IL

Original Research by School Decision on Barbara a Sizemore Campus

Barbara A Sizemore Campus is a charter school serving kindergarten through eighth grade on Chicago's South Side. The school is part of the Betty Shabazz International Charter School network.

The school enrolls a small population of about one-fourth of typical mid-size schools, distributed fairly evenly across grades. The enrollment is almost entirely Black students, with a small number of students from other backgrounds. Free and reduced price lunch eligibility data was not available.

Academic performance across the tested grades shows a pattern of very low proficiency in mathematics and a more mixed picture in English language arts. In math, proficiency rates are particularly weak in grades four and five, with single-digit and low double-digit percentages meeting state proficiency standards. Performance improves somewhat in the middle grades and eighth grade but remains in the range of about one-fifth or less meeting standards in most grades. In English language arts, the school shows greater variability: third grade matches math proficiency, fourth grade is also quite low, but by sixth and seventh grade, roughly half of students meet proficiency standards, and eighth grade shows a similar rate. Science proficiency, tested in grades five and eight, is modest in both years. Participation rates in state testing are good, running in the low-to-mid nineties across grades. The state changed proficiency cut scores during this assessment year, so comparisons to prior years may not be reliable.

Relative to other districts in Cook County, Barbara A Sizemore's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile. The school does not serve high school, so a graduation rate is not reported.

The neighborhood where the school is located is part of Chicago's broader South Side fabric. Chicago is a large, dense city with one of the nation's largest central business districts, extensive public transit, and significant lakefront and park resources. The city has resumed population growth after nearly a decade of decline, and housing approvals have been rising. Housing values in the school's zip code are substantially below the state benchmark.

No recent parent-relevant changes to the district or school were identified in available sources.

A parent considering this school may want to look further into the factors driving the low math proficiency and the instructional approaches the school uses to build skills in those grades, particularly the intermediate elementary years. The strength in upper elementary English language arts suggests the school has some areas of instructional effectiveness to build on. The small enrollment size means students and families may have close connections within the school community, and this would be a question worth exploring directly with the school.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 331%

School 31% · District 37% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Grade 411%

School 11% · District 35% · ▼ 24 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 55%

School 5% · District 3% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 618%

School 18% · District 18%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 718%

School 18% · District 12% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 816%

School 16% · District 25% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 331%

School 31% · District 35% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 417%

School 17% · District 42% · ▼ 25 pts below district

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 34% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 650%

School 50% · District 58% · ▼ 8 pts below district

even with state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 755%

School 55% · District 62% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 852%

School 52% · District 49% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

Science

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 19%

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Grade 830%

School 30% · District 32% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

This schoolBetty Shabazz Internl Chrtr Sch, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.