Academy for Teaching and Learning, Chester SC

Original Research by School Decision on Academy for Teaching and Learning

The Academy for Teaching and Learning is a K-8 charter school in Chester, South Carolina, operating under the Chester 01 school district. Chester is a small rural city that served as a textile mill town for much of the twentieth century, anchored by employers like Springs Industries and J.P. Stevens. The decline of manufacturing and agriculture left the local economy struggling, and the city has seen little growth in recent decades. Housing values in Chester are well below state and national medians, reflecting the area’s economic challenges and making it a relatively affordable place to live. The community has a historic downtown centered on the courthouse square, and its population includes a significant African American share, shaped by historic patterns of segregation that placed many Black residents and institutions in the eastern part of town.

The school itself is small, serving kindergarten through eighth grade. Every student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, a reflection of the community’s economic circumstances. The student body is predominantly white, with a modest share of Black students and a very small number of students of other races and ethnicities. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the source material; families with children in those categories would want to ask the school directly about the services provided.

On state assessments, the Academy for Teaching and Learning shows a clear strength in English language arts. Across most tested grades, a majority of students scored proficient or above, with particularly strong results in the upper elementary and middle school grades. Math performance is more uneven. In the early elementary grades, proficiency is in a moderate range, but it drops notably in grades six through eight, where a minority of students meet the state bar for proficiency. This pattern may be one a parent would want to explore further with the school, especially if their child is approaching middle school. Science results, available for fourth and sixth grades, land in a moderate zone. Social studies data comes from a single prior school year and is too old to characterize current performance. The state made changes to cut scores on some assessments during this period, so direct comparisons with earlier years are not reliable.

As a charter school, the Academy for Teaching and Learning is a choice option within the Chester 01 district. The district has publicly reported a 1:1 technology initiative that provides devices to students, a change that affects how coursework and learning materials are accessed at home and school.

The school serves no high school grades, so there is no graduation rate and no advanced placement or dual-credit course data to evaluate. Information on chronic absenteeism, discipline, staffing ratios, and course access was not available in the source materials. Parents interested in any of those areas would need to reach out to the school directly.

The Academy for Teaching and Learning fits families looking for a small charter school in a rural small-town setting, where reading instruction is a consistent strength but where math achievement for older students may need additional attention. The student body is economically homogeneous, and the surrounding community offers low housing costs but a limited local economy.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 332%

School 32% · District 39% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 41% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▼ 2 pts below state median

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 33% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 3 pts above state median

Grade 627%

School 27% · District 24% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 7 pts below state median

Grade 726%

School 26% · District 18% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▼ 1 pts below state median

Grade 810%

School 10% · District 18% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median

English language arts

Grade 359%

School 59% · District 47% · ▲ 12 pts above district

even with state median

Grade 457%

School 57% · District 51% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median

Grade 561%

School 61% · District 49% · ▲ 12 pts above district

even with state median

Grade 650%

School 50% · District 43% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 3 pts below state median

Grade 766%

School 66% · District 49% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median

Grade 858%

School 58% · District 48% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median

Science

Grade 441%

School 41% · District 33% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median

Grade 643%

School 43% · District 35% · ▲ 8 pts above district

even with state median

Social studies

Grade 568%

School 68% · District 57% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median

Grade 752%

School 52% · District 51% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 13 pts below state median

This schoolChester 01, 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.