Yesterday NY1 reported on Chancellor Klein's new plan to allow English Language Learner (ELL) students more time before requiring them to take standardized tests. Whereas ELL students currently have to take the tests during their first year in school (even students who haven't yet been in the...
Parents raised questions about special education, middle school admissions, parent coordinators, and changes planned for the new school year at the first of a series of “Ask Martine and Friends†meetings with the Department of Education’s chief parent officer, Martine Guerrier. Some 200...
Do you want to make sure that additional funds for New York City schools are being well spent? You can send a letter to the State Board of Regents telling them to require that the upcoming historic increase in education funding be used for the purposes it was intended, including small class size...
In Ben's last post, he took a look at merit pay for teachers. Now, New York City is going to pioneer offering merit pay for students — offering kids cash prizes for academic achievement. Last week, when the first rumors of the mayor's plan to introduce monetary "incentives" for strong school...
Bloomberg and Klein's reforms have been on the right track, but the DOE's upcoming reorganization could undermine recent gains, Insideschools founder Clara Hemphill told University of Chicago alums at an event Wednesday evening. Hemphill said Mayor Bloomberg and Chancellor Klein have implemented...
If you're like us, you have a few questions about what the school system will look like -- and how it will work, or not work -- after June 30. Tomorrow morning you have an opportunity to ask those questions of Martine Guerrier, the new CEO for parent engagement, and several other DOE officials at...
6/17 update: For a summary of the reasons to be wary of the new math test scores, check out Diane Ravitch's article over at the NYC Public School Parents blog. Ravitch urges readers to "wait patiently to see whether the recent gains on the state tests are reflected on the national tests when the...
There's been some discussion on our forum about the city's plan to lease most of the playing fields on Randall's Island to private schools instead of making them available to East Harlem public schools. The deal seems unfair both because it deprives public schools of access to public parks for...
