And while the centers weren't directly intended to raise student achievement, school officials plan to take a closer look at test scores of the pupils served by such schools, Ms. Montez said. Hopefully, walking to schools in their own neighborhoods will solve some of that. The centers also give teachers and administrators the chance to work more closely. Candida Fernandez-Ghoneim, the principal at Van Nuys Primary Center, said her faculty is more willing to share information and materials. And Ms. Tapia added that in a single-grade school, there's no feeling of competition between grade levels, something that can happen in a regular school.
Teachers can also try new methods specifically targeted to younger children.
It's a program that Principal Giovanna Foschetti said probably would not have been tried in the K-6 school she came from. But operating the primary centers also has disadvantages. For one, fewer people are around to handle administrative and other routine tasks at the school, such as custodial work. The existing primary centers also lack libraries. Plans call for libraries in some of the Los Angeles district's future primary centers, but for now, teachers have carved out reading corners in their classrooms.