News

Over the last decade, New York City public school students have seen real improvements in their schools, most clearly evidenced by a graduation rate that has been climbing steadily after decades of stagnation.

Throughout New York City public schools this week, teachers and engaged families came together to discuss students’ progress and academic standing. As a parent of a NYC public school student and a preschooler attending an early childhood program, I look forward to parent-teacher conferences as one of many vehicles that provides feedback on my children’s development, their strengths and weaknesses, and strategies I can employ at home to support their cognitive and social-emotional growth.

A new report by the Foundation for Education Reform and Accountability (FERA) argues that Governor Andrew Cuomo can use public school choice to significantly improve New York’s public education system. The report outlines how a mandatory Statewide Interdistrict Open Enrollment Program would work to end the damaging practice of assigning students to schools based solely on where their families can afford to live.

This summer, the Broad Center released 75 Examples of How Bureaucracy Stands in the Way of America’s Students and Teachers, highlighting how efforts to reform public schools across the country are often stopped short by the entrenched bureaucratic systems of large urban school districts. These bureaucratic challenges are significant and far-reaching. Too many of our students suffer under a system that disempowers teachers and principals, frustrates parents, prevents resources from reaching the classroom, and acts as a barrier to student success.

Today, TNTP released a new case study of teacher retention patterns in Washington, D.C. public schools, one of the districts included in its original “Irreplaceables” report. In the last three years, DCPS has radically shifted its approach to teacher evaluation and compensation. The TNTP case study offered powerful evidence that smart policy and determined leadership can materially improve a district’s ability to retain top teachers.

In last night’s final presidential debate on foreign policy, both candidates continued to address the importance of education. While traditional foreign policy experts might not place education at the top of the agenda, the truth is that it’s one of the greatest tools in our national security toolkit, and one that could use some sharpening.

President Obama and Governor Romney discussed a lot of issues in the first presidential debate, but there was one topic that stood out online: education.

StudentsFirstNY Director of Education Anna Hall responds to the New York Times Sunday Dialogue, noting that key education reforms are helping us measure and accelerate progress.

Charter school leader Deborah Kenny’s op-ed in today’s The New York Times argues against the move by many states toward teacher evaluations based on multiple measures, including both student progress on achievement tests and the reviews of principals. She criticizes the evaluation systems, in essence, for being too rigid for a profession as complex as teaching.

Last week, StudentsFirstNY hosted a screening of the new film “Won’t Back Down.”