achievement gap · admissions · DOE incompetence · Educational Equity · Gifted & Talented · literacy · NYC Kindergarten · NYC School Admissions · school diversity · School Integration

NYC Endorses Gifted & Talented Approach Determined To Do Least Good For All Students (But Especially Minority and Low Income Ones)

On August 26, 2019, New York City’s School Advisory Diversity Group (SADG) proposed that the ideal way to integrate schools would be to get rid of stand alone Gifted and Talented Citywide and District programs, and replace them with an Enrichment For All Model. What would that look like? Chalkbeat reported at the time: (I)t… Continue reading NYC Endorses Gifted & Talented Approach Determined To Do Least Good For All Students (But Especially Minority and Low Income Ones)

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Is It Cultural Appropriation To Believe In School Choice For All?

Photo Credit: Ballet Hispánico School of Dance © Christopher Duggan This past weekend, I sat at Ballet Hispánico, watching my 15-year-old son perform in their annual Winter Showcase. His exhibition consisted of three performances: Ballet, Modern Dance, and Flamenco. My three children are not even a little bit Hispanic. When my older son spit in… Continue reading Is It Cultural Appropriation To Believe In School Choice For All?

Accountability · Blog

Is Education a Zero Sum Game?

Zero-Sum Game: A situation in game theory in which one person’s gain is equivalent to another’s loss, so the net change in wealth or benefit is zero. (Definition: Investopedia) Admissions, a play by Joshua Harmon, ends its run at the Lincoln Center Theater this Sunday, May 6. Admissions stars Jessica Hecht (Susan, wife of Carol,… Continue reading Is Education a Zero Sum Game?

Accountability · Educational Equity · Finding the Right School · School Choice

Is Parental Engagement Necessary For a Child’s School Success? A Personal Story.

Celia Scott Wickham wasn’t just an HHLA board member. She was also my mother-in-law. On Friday, February 16, 2018, Harlem Hebrew Language Academy Charter School (for those tracking such things, one of NYC’s most diverse public schools at 36 percent White, 30 percent Black, 29 percent Hispanic) dedicated the day to celebrating their neighborhood. Classrooms… Continue reading Is Parental Engagement Necessary For a Child’s School Success? A Personal Story.

Finding the Right School · School Choice

5 Secrets NYC Department of Ed Doesn’t Want Parents To Know About Gifted & Talented Programs

New York City’s Department of Education (DOE) opened Request for Gifted and Talented Testing forms on Tuesday, October 3, 2017. Children who will be entering Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd or 3rd grade in September of 2018 may apply. (After that, no one in NYC is presumably either gifted and/or talented.) The DOE also offers a Gifted… Continue reading 5 Secrets NYC Department of Ed Doesn’t Want Parents To Know About Gifted & Talented Programs