It’s been a long, arduous, and stressful New York City public school admissions season. And, unfortunately, it’s not over yet. The Department of Education (DOE) has now pushed admissions to public Gifted & Talented programs for grades Kindergarten through 3rd to “late July.” Meanwhile, families of rising 9th graders are still hoping for a seat… Continue reading NYC Mom Exposes School Admissions Deception
Outgoing New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio hasn’t had a lot of luck with his School Chancellors. His first pick, Carmen Farina, opened multiple Dual Language programs… but barely lasted through de Blasio’s first term. His second, Alberto Carvalho, accepted the job, then backed out at the last minute – on live television. He… Continue reading NYC, Meet the New School Chancellor: What This Means For Your Child
Non presidential year elections tend to result in low voter turn-out in New York City. Which is a shame, because, as I wrote exactly one year ago: I have been offering open-to-the-public Getting Into NYC Kindergarten and Getting Into NYC High School workshops for about 15 years now. But it was only four years ago… Continue reading When It Comes to NYC Schools, Why You Should #VoteLocal
War metaphors have been flying hot and heavy these past few months, as politicians, statesmen, and journalists search for ways to characterize our fight against COVID-19. They leave ordinary people wondering how we can do our part. What’s COVID-19’s version of Rosie the Riveter, air-raid wardens, victory gardens, collecting scrap metal, rolling bandages, or driving… Continue reading Holding Out For a Hero: How You Can Help Heal NYC (School Edition)
I have a confession to make: I’ve always been confused by New York City calling itself “progressive” when it comes to education. To me, progressive means moving forward, implementing new, bold, downright radical ideas, bucking the status quo and breaking down old – especially failed – systems. Yet when it comes to educational policy, NYC… Continue reading New Report Asks: Why Does Progressive New York City Have Larger Student Achievement Gaps?
If you are currently in high school in NYC, your school probably offers AP courses. You may know that they are “advanced” classes, with a final comprehensive test at the end, and you were probably told that you can earn college credit for taking them. If you’re a good student who wants to save some… Continue reading 4 Things High School Students MUST Know Before Signing Up For AP Classes
It’s Kindergarten application season in NYC! Four year olds are being interviewed for Hunter College Elementary School and getting tested for public school Gifted & Talented programs while their parents are navigating the online portal to apply them to General Education Kindergarten, which includes zoned, unzoned, magnet, dual language options and more. Last year, we… Continue reading NYC School Application Law: Anything That Can Go Wrong, Will Go Wrong
A new year doesn’t mean an end to New York City’s education woes. In honor of 2020, we highlight 20 stories which are bound to continue vexing NYC families, ranked by how much traffic they received in 2019: 20: The Big Con: Why NYC’s Plan For Raising Student Achievement Isn’t Close To Good Enough For… Continue reading Top 20 NYC Education Stories To Follow In 2020
As covered in Part #1, two weeks ago was the New York City Department of Education’s CSEdWeek, which is an extension of their CS4All initiative that they claim “will ensure all NYC public school students learn computer science” and help students develop “computational thinking, problem-solving, creativity, and critical-thinking skills.“ There are a few issues with… Continue reading What Is Computer Science? The DOE Doesn’t Know: CS4All (Part 2)
The NYC DOE has a program called CS4All which they say “will ensure all NYC public school students learn computer science” and that this will make students “better prepared to utilize computer science during their K-12 experience and after graduation.” Two weeks ago was their CSEdWeek, which encouraged many schools to bring “computer science to… Continue reading “Teaching computer science so people can work with computers is akin to teaching students about locksmithery so they can unlock their doors.” – How the NYC Department of Education Doesn’t Understand Their Own CS4All Initiative! (Part #1)
