Higher Common Core Standards for Our Students: We Should Expect No Less of Them
Test scores from last year’s standardized tests revealed that less than one-third of New York’s students in grades 3 to 8 are proficient in math and English language arts. According to the Times Union, there were tests that every student failed in 10 Capital Region schools. In some of the most academically challenge suburban school districts, about one-third of students failed tests. The Times Union explains that the state is beginning to hold students to the higher Common Core standards.
According to the Times Union, many business leaders and professional educators support Common Core standards:
They both understand that one of the reasons America's economy is flagging is because we no longer have the world's best schools. If other nations outpace us intellectually, our national security is at risk.
We need a different workforce than we did a decade ago, with greater skills. State Education Commissioner John King notes that if we could add a single percentage point to New York's college completion rate, we could boost the state's economy by $17.5 billion a year.
"The standards reflect the reality of what we need to compete in the 21st century," King says.
NYC Begins to Grade Teacher Colleges
The city Department of Education just released a scorecard evaluating the education programs that supply the most teachers to NYC’s public schools. According to the New York Post, the evaluations are made by measuring the performance of new teachers who have come from the 12 programs that supplied the most educators:
It’s no secret that the traditional education degrees at many colleges are mediocre. But the city’s scorecard shows that when it comes to improving student test scores, even an elite university such as Columbia had 20 percent not as effective as they should be. The comparative figure for City College of New York, another big supplier of teachers, was 10 percent.
The evaluations won’t provide a complete picture of how NYC’s teachers are performing, but it is one important step in making sure our teachers are up to par.
The Hard Truth: Success is Possible in Our Schools
In a recent New York Daily News op-ed, Stanley Crouch looks at the progress that has been made in some NYC schools and explains that the numbers show success is possible in all schools. According to Crouch, we don’t have bipartisan agreement on the importance of education because both sides refuse to seriously look at the achievements in the best charter schools and public schools:
It’s not enough to support choice, but we need to discuss what really works. Neither so-called progressives nor hard-core conservatives have actually addressed what has worked in this town - what has been done and is available to be expanded.
They may not get it — or not be willing to say it if they do — because they have been cowed by the zeal of teachers unions that fight for power as quickly as they can whenever faced with a challenge to their effectiveness.
Crouch goes on to explain that there has been proven success in New York. At Success Academies run by Eva Moskowitz, 77% of students are poor and 82% of those students passed math. Success Academies is in the top 1% of all schools in the state.
The numbers clearly show that success is possible and it’s up to teachers to inspire students and get them to engage.
StudentsFirstNY Weekly Education News Roundup: August 11-16, 2013
In this week's news roundup: data from the Common Core testing shows NYC's education policies are improving student outcomes, Quinn wants to raise the dropout age to 18 and NYC's mayoral candidates visit Cincinnati schools for ideas.
22 of the Top 25 Performing Schools on Common Core are in NYC
New York Daily News // August 14, 2013
While only about 30 percent of New York City students passed the Common Core, the vast majority of the top performing schools were located in NYC. Of the 25 top performing schools for the test, 22 were in New York City. According to the New York Daily News, there were no schools among the top 25 performing schools on tests just 10 years ago:
"Of the 25 top-performing schools statewide, 22 are in the city, the Education Department found.
"'Ten years ago, there were no New York City schools in the top 25 schools in the state; today, the city has 22,' said Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott in a statement, adding that's up from 19 last year."
Common Core Results Show Choice is Driving NYC School Improvement
New York Daily News // August 14, 2013
In an editorial, the New York Daily News called on NYC's mayoral candidates to stop the negative rhetoric around the Common Core and examine how the City has built a charter school network and allowed parents to choose schools for their children. These two factors are both driving student success:
"An astonishing 22 of the top 25 performing schools from Montauk to Buffalo were in the five boroughs. And they were at the top of the top.
"Only four were traditional grade schools that accept students from geographic zones. The rest were charter schools, gifted-and-talented programs and middle schools that are sought out and require admissions. Their students have benefited from one of the hallmarks of the Bloomberg years - a dramatic boost in parental ability to take advantage of top programs. The lesson for would-be mayors is that choice drives achievement."
UFT Charter School Shows Poor Results on State Tests
New York Post // August 12, 2013
United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew has said the lower NYC student scores on state tests reflect poorly on recent education policies. When making these comments, he neglects to mention that a charter school run by the UFT was among NYC schools with the worst results.
As noted in an editorial from the New York Post:
"...among the New York City students who fared the worst on these new tests are those who are being taught in Mulgrew’s own glass house — the UFT charter school. Whether scored against the city average or the charter average, a school that was supposed to showcase the union’s professionalism has only highlighted its failures.
"In English, only 9.7 percent of the UFT charter’s third to eighth graders are proficient, and only 12.6 percent in math. That’s worse than district public schools, where the average is 26.4 percent in English and 29.6 percent in math. It also falls far short of the average for charters, which is 34.8 percent proficient in math and 25.1 percent in English."
Quinn Proposes Raising Legal Dropout Age to 18
New York Post // August 11, 2013
New York City mayoral candidate and current City Council Speaker Christine Quinn wants to raise the legal dropout age in NYC to 18 years of age. The current dropout age is 17, which was raised from 16 in 2005. According to the New York Post, high school dropouts on average earn $8,000 less per year than a high school graudate:
"'Anything less than 100 percent graduation rate is unacceptable, and we, as a city, must strive to change this and take measures to correct it,' Quinn said."
NYC's Mayoral Candidates Look to Cincinnati Schools for Guidance
The New York Times // August 11, 2013
Several candidates for Mayor of New York City have recently traveled to Cincinnati to visit the city's "community learning centers," an alternative schooling model that deemphasizes testing and values school as more than just a place to learn. According to The New York Times, these schools have had moderate success in helping Cincinnati students raise their standards, although the district still lags well behind the rest of the state:
"Despite its relatively small size, Cincinnati, with roughly 30,000 students, has become a lodestar for big-city school systems across the country. Superintendents and union leaders looking for an alternative to a high-stakes, data-driven movement in education have showered the community schools model with praise, noting that it has expanded access to health care and social services, tackling problems thought to be causes of academic failure.
First Ratings of NYC Teacher Colleges Will Be Released Next Week
The New York Times // August 14, 2013
On August 21st, New York City will release scorecard data on all the teacher-preparation programs in the city. According to The New York Times, the data-driven Bloomberg Administration will, for the first time ever, evaluate all public and private education programs within the five boroughs:
"The release of the scorecards places the city at the forefront of a national effort, backed by the Obama administration, to use data to upend the teaching profession and the pathways to it."
First Ratings of NYC Teacher Colleges Will Be Released Next Week
On August 21st, New York City will release scorecard data on all the teacher-preparation programs in the city. According to The New York Times, the data-driven Bloomberg Administration will, for the first time ever, evaluate all public and private education programs within the five boroughs:
"The release of the scorecards places the city at the forefront of a national effort, backed by the Obama administration, to use data to upend the teaching profession and the pathways to it."
Common Core Standards Will Help Prepare NY Students for Success
State tests in New York are now aligned with Common Core Learning Standards, holding students to higher standards.
Jim Sampson, a member of the Buffalo Public School Board of Education, argues that such higher standards will help prepare students to succeed in the 21st century economy:
New York’s Common Core Learning Standards are designed to teach skills and knowledge students need to succeed. These test scores mark a realistic baseline that teachers and parents can use to provide more support to students on their path to college and career readiness. We all have a role to play in helping students succeed.
As school board members, we must set a vision and strategy for excellence in student achievement in the district. We must make decisions that prioritize our students, while also making our decisions transparent to the community. As a community, we must raise our expectations for our students and the school district. Through our combined efforts, we can ensure that students reach their full potential and are prepared for college and careers.
Common Core Results Show Choice is Driving NYC School Improvement
Twenty-two of the top 25 performing schools statewide on the Common Core test were in New York City. In an editorial, the New York Daily News called on NYC's mayoral candidates to stop the negative rhetoric around the Common Core and examine how the City has built a charter school network and allowed parents to choose schools for their children. These two factors are both driving student success:
"An astonishing 22 of the top 25 performing schools from Montauk to Buffalo were in the five boroughs. And they were at the top of the top.
"Only four were traditional grade schools that accept students from geographic zones. The rest were charter schools, gifted-and-talented programs and middle schools that are sought out and require admissions. Their students have benefited from one of the hallmarks of the Bloomberg years - a dramatic boost in parental ability to take advantage of top programs. The lesson for would-be mayors is that choice drives achievement."
22 of the Top 25 Performing Schools on Common Core are in NYC
While only about 30 percent of New York City students passed the Common Core, the vast majority of the top performing schools were located in NYC. Of the 25 top performing schools for the test, 22 were in New York City. According to the New York Daily News, there were no schools among the top 25 performing schools on tests just 10 years ago:
"Of the 25 top-performing schools statewide, 22 are in the city, the Education Department found.
"'Ten years ago, there were no New York City schools in the top 25 schools in the state; today, the city has 22,' said Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott in a statement, adding that's up from 19 last year."
UFT Charter School Shows Poor Results on State Tests
United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew has said the lower NYC student scores on state tests reflect poorly on recent education policies. When making these comments, he neglects to mention that a charter school run by the UFT was among NYC schools with the worst results.
As noted in an editorial from the New York Post:
… among the New York City students who fared the worst on these new tests are those who are being taught in Mulgrew’s own glass house — the UFT charter school. Whether scored against the city average or the charter average, a school that was supposed to showcase the union’s professionalism has only highlighted its failures.
In English, only 9.7 percent of the UFT charter’s third to eighth graders are proficient, and only 12.6 percent in math. That’s worse than district public schools, where the average is 26.4 percent in English and 29.6 percent in math. It also falls far short of the average for charters, which is 34.8 percent proficient in math and 25.1 percent in English.
Charter School Leader Prepares Students for Success
While NYC student scores on state tests dropped this year, a number of charter schools rose to the challenge.
New York Post columnist Michael Goodwin describes the impressive test results from Success Academy Charter Schools run by StudentsFirstNY board member Eva Moskowitz. Goodwin notes that Moskowitz takes a bold approach in focusing on student success rather than scoring political points and catering to union demands.
According to Goodwin, the numbers speak for themselves:
Of the 1,500 kids in her Harlem and South Bronx schools who took the Common Core exams, 82 percent got a passing score in math, and 58 percent passed English.
Across the city, the pass rates were 26 percent in English and 30 percent in math. Many other charter schools also had dismal showings, and not all passing scores are equal. Moskowitz’s students scored a disproportionate number of 4’s, meaning the top range.
Her gloriously lopsided results - her network topped Scarsdale schools by 14 points in math! - would be suspicious, except they happen routinely. Year after year, even as the number of students in her Success Academies grows, she cracks the code on getting disadvantaged children to excel.
