Finding the right school is one of the most important decisions parents and families make for their kids, but it can sometimes be the hardest, especially in New York City.
I give up. New York City School Chancellor Richard Carranza has decreed that the most important issue facing our public high schools isn’t that close to 80% of students aren’t graduating college-ready, SAT scores are well below the national average, or there’s a lack of access to Advanced Placement (AP) classes. No, according to the… Continue reading 3 Things NYC Can Do TODAY To Integrate Public High Schools!
When I give my Getting Into NYC Kindergarten workshops to community organizations, I explain the differences between New York City’s two types of Gifted & Talented programs. The five Citywide G&T’s are Accelerated. That means that, because there is no such thing as a G&T curriculum, these schools take the standard NYC school curriculum and… Continue reading What’s “Enrichment,” Anyway? Can It Really Replace Gifted & Talented Programs?
New York City released elementary school test scores for the 2018-19 school year on Thursday, August 22, 2019. In the past, I’ve listed the Top 10 Schools by Test Scores for 2017, and the Top 25 Schools by Test Scores for 2018. While there is some juggling for placement every year, the top-scoring schools tend… Continue reading 10 NYC Public Schools Which Went Up In Test Scores in 2019 — And 10 That Went Down.
In my 2017 post, Beyond the Zone: All Your NYC Elementary School Options (And How To Get Them) Explained, I mentioned Deborah Meier as someone who didn’t believe that the primarily African-American and Hispanic families of Harlem should be forced to settle for the education their zoned public schools were offering. In 1974, she founded… Continue reading NYC Schools Of Choice: Then and Now
It’s been an extremely difficult season for New York City public schools admissions. The new Parent Portal found novel and exciting ways to malfunction. Placements would appear and disappear. Results were posted for high school and Gifted & Talented admission, only to be nullified and families informed they weren’t official. One parent shared with me:… Continue reading Parents Helping Parents – When the Department of Ed Won’t (Gifted & Talented Edition)
New York City public middle school placement decisions were distributed to students just before Spring Break 2019. For months leading up to the big day, parents had been hearing about how this would be the season of true equality in school admissions. But did that, in fact, happen? The headlines trumpeted: Two NYC districts embarked… Continue reading True Equality Means Everyone Is Equally Unhappy
About a year ago, I asked: Is an ‘Unenriched’ Spring Break Worth Living? I confessed that, despite offers flooding my inbox to sign my kids up for coding camp or a writing workshop or test prep, I was tired. So, over Spring Break, we did… nothing. In New York City, admitting you let a child… Continue reading The Privilege (and Cost) Of Being “Well-Rounded.”
StudentsFirstNY reports that dozens of public charter school parents from across New York City rallied outside the NYC Department of Education in support of a longstanding City initiative that allows charter schools to mail flyers to prospective families. New York City has a model program where it protects parent privacy so that no school has… Continue reading “Why Would the Mayor Want to Block Me and Other Parents From Knowing Our Public School Options?” Parents Speak Out.
This is a fact sheet from the New York City Charter School Center that counters myths with facts about the DeBlasio Administration’s threat to block charter schools’ access to Vanguard, the city Department of Education’s direct-mail vendor. Without access, NYC families will have a far more difficult time making public school choices for their children.… Continue reading Myths Vs. Facts on NYC DOE’s Threat to Limit Parent Information About Public School Options for Their Children.
Spring is a major holding pattern for New York City families. Middle school placement, Universal Pre-K, and Gifted & Talented scores are due “any minute.” Kindergarten General Education, charter schools, and high school offers are out. But the process is far from over. High schools hold a Second Round for those unhappy with their initial… Continue reading The Butterfly Effect: Good and Bad News About Your NYC Public School Waitlist
