DOE Screw Ups

The Needs Of the Many Outweigh the Needs Of the Few: NYC Schools Edition
achievement gap · Blog · coronavirus · DOE Screw Ups · Hybrid Learning · online learning · Parents Helping Parents · remote learning · School Budget

The Needs Of the Many Outweigh the Needs Of the Few: NYC Schools Edition

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

As we shared last week, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio unexpectedly held a press conference the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend to announce the school re-opening plan he’d promised the previous Wednesday but then said would be coming sometime in early December. (Got that?) Hizzoner proclaimed that while middle and high schools would remain… Continue reading The Needs Of the Many Outweigh the Needs Of the Few: NYC Schools Edition

#VoteLocal: Who Is Really Responsible For Your Child’s Education? (Cuomo, De Blasio, and More!)
Accountability · achievement gap · Blog · DOE Screw Ups · NYC Schools Reopening

#VoteLocal: Who Is Really Responsible For Your Child’s Education? (Cuomo, De Blasio, and More!)

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

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 that I started hearing the question: How will Betsy DeVos being Secretary of Education affect my child’s school? My reply is to ask parents to name the… Continue reading #VoteLocal: Who Is Really Responsible For Your Child’s Education? (Cuomo, De Blasio, and More!)

Straight From the Trenches: Parents Report What Really Happened During NYC’s First Days Of School
achievement gap · Blog · coronavirus · DOE Fails · DOE incompetence · DOE Screw Ups · Educational Equity · Hybrid Learning · NYC Parent Voices · online learning · remote learning

Straight From the Trenches: Parents Report What Really Happened During NYC’s First Days Of School

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

Even though they had six months to plan for re-opening New York City’s schools, Mayor Bill De Blasio and Chancellor Richard Carranza still insisted on doing everything at the last minute.  Schools were supposed to begin remote learning for all on Wednesday, September 16, and blended/hybrid for those who chose it on Monday, September 21. … Continue reading Straight From the Trenches: Parents Report What Really Happened During NYC’s First Days Of School

Lost Scores, Retests & The Current State of Gifted & Talented Programs in NYC Schools
admissions · Blog · coronavirus · DOE Fails · DOE incompetence · DOE Screw Ups · Gifted & Talented · NYC Parent Voices · NYC School Admissions · online learning · remote learning · School Waitlists

Lost Scores, Retests & The Current State of Gifted & Talented Programs in NYC Schools

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

Last May, I reported on how the Department of Education lost dozens of Gifted & Talented tests — and waited almost four months to inform families (after weeks of telling them the tests weren’t lost, the parents must have done something wrong!). Retests were offered to those affected along with students new to New York… Continue reading Lost Scores, Retests & The Current State of Gifted & Talented Programs in NYC Schools

Parents’ Top 5 Concerns About NYC Schools 2020
coronavirus · DOE Fails · DOE incompetence · DOE Screw Ups · Hybrid Learning · NYC Schools · NYC Schools Reopening

Parents’ Top 5 Concerns About NYC Schools 2020

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

Fearing a teachers’ strike, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio pushed back public schools’ starting date from September 10 to September 16 for all remote learning, and September 21 for the hybrid model.  Since Hizzoner closed public school buildings on Monday, March 16, communication and information have been in painfully short supply. Families have… Continue reading Parents’ Top 5 Concerns About NYC Schools 2020

Different Families Get Different G&T Deadlines: Where’s the Fairness and Equity? I Go To the DOE For Answers!
DOE Screw Ups · Gifted & Talented · NYC School Admissions · School Waitlists

Different Families Get Different G&T Deadlines: Where’s the Fairness and Equity? I Go To the DOE For Answers!

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

Last month I got to the bottom of why some parents’ Pre-K, Kindergarten, Gifted & Talented, Middle and High School waitlist numbers were moving in the wrong direction. This week we tackle the question of why, unlike in previous years, when there was a hard deadline issued by the Department of Education, different families are… Continue reading Different Families Get Different G&T Deadlines: Where’s the Fairness and Equity? I Go To the DOE For Answers!