Student-Centered Teaching at KIPP Philly’s Founding School
Amanda McBride is a 7th Grade English Teacher, Grade Level Chair, and English Content Lead at KIPP Philadelphia Preparatory Academy or KPPA, KIPP’s founding school in Philadelphia. She previously taught in Mississippi with Teach for America. This is her 5th year at KPPA, and she’s very excited to see her first cohort of students graduate high school next year in 2020. She says, “I’m able to see kids that I’ve had in 7th grade and what they’ve become later in life.” At her North Philadelphia school, Amanda serves her students and seeks to “be a constant for them”, and remains a resource and support system for students even after they move on from her courses. She is a first-generation college student and found joy in education when teachers noticed her and helped her grow and learn, specifically her English teachers. She felt their teaching approaches focused on students and centered on their growth in knowledge and personal character, which in turn inspired her approach to teaching. “People at my school became a home to me, in a way that KIPP is now another home for me.”
What’s unique about working at KIPP’s first Philadelphia school? For Amanda, this is where the Team and Family in Philly began and set the foundation for the other schools in our region. She explains, “I didn’t fully know how real the Team and Family aspect is. Not only do staff have your back, but you have kids’ backs to and through college. I think through the relationships that I’ve built, I’m something more to my students — they’re my team and family. I’ve become very successful in our building because of what I cultivate in my [classroom].”
KPPA cultivates strong leadership development in education, and Amanda shared her personal experience. “I’ve begun to wonder how I can use that to impact other teachers. Over the past year to 2 years, I’ve been thinking about how I can support other English teachers [at KIPP Philly] in how to better execute English teaching in the classrooms. I’ve thought about how to spread that in my building. My school has given me platforms to build that.” For Amanda, the bottom line draws back to the fact that “the biggest impact is the impact you can have directly with kids.” For Amanda, her success is measured by her students’ success, which directly reflects the student-centered approach that KIPP Philadelphia is all about.
