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March 13, 2012

We ask: What has credit recovery looked like in your school?

by Philissa Cramer, at 12:50 pm

Changes announced last month to rules about makeup work made less of a splash than the teacher ratings released the next day but could have just as significant an impact.

The changes affect policies around “credit recovery,” which schools have used to let students earn credits for failed classes without retaking the classes themselves. The new rules restrict the frequency and timing of credit recovery and the online programs schools can use. And for the first time, the teacher who originally issued the failing grade must weigh in on the decision of whether to grant a student credit for make-up work.

The rule changes could radically reshape some schools’ practices — particularly if they have been abusing leniencies under the current rules and giving students credit for work they haven’t really done.

Responding to our story about a town hall meeting on credit recovery held last month, a commenter posting under the name “Glad to be out of there” described how exactly that happened at his school:

Kids were supposed to do two sets of online problems, 75 questions each and get a minimum grade of 75. They were supposed to provide some sort of proof they actually did the work on their own. When the kids didn’t do this, the number was reduced to one set of 75 questions, passing grade 65 and no proof of work required. I know many kids had friends and private tutors do the assignments for them. The [instructional support services] chairperson paid teachers to come in on Saturday and do the work for the children, working with the kids when the kids were supposed to be in credit recovery gym. She told the students to sign in for gym and then go do the work. She also had them do credit recovery assignments during their regular classes. The after-school program, the one kids were attending to make up credits, also allowed them to do this assignment, giving them two credits at the same time. In reality, they did nothing. It was a sham to make the administration look like they were doing a good job.

With schools’ credit recovery practices set to change July 1, we’d like to know more about how the practice has played out in the past. Share your stories in the comments.

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  • Jay11

    Yes, credit recovery is usually a joke, but I tell you, without it, Bloomberg’s numbers on education would be pretty grim.  I have never seen any credit recovery activity approaching anything close to making up for a full semester course.  Most of the ‘activities’ are just a set of a few worksheets or a coloring exercise misnamed as a ‘project.’  I have seen so much of this.  Liberal, social justice-minded teachers and administrators justify it by saying racism has held the students down, so they have to ‘correct’ the injustices.  I have heard this from numerous teachers and had it intimated to me by two admins.  Whoever says our civilization is not on the downward spiral is living with blinders on.

  • Transformation Teacher

    At Lehman Credit Recovery is now either done through a computer program called Nova-Net, or through the more traditional packets. In the past students could take the packets and return them whenever, with no seat time necessary. I am now under the impression that all packets must be done in front of a teacher, but I am not sure how all departments operate. As for nova-net, since it logs their time on the program, working at home counts as seat time. Meaning there is no way, in my estimation, of knowing that the work was actually done by the student. I also believe that students can complete as many credits as they want via credity recovery, as long as they had a 55 or 50 in the course, and not a 45 or 0.

  • HS Biology Teacher

    At my school, credit recovery consists of 12-hour courses that students take after school with a teacher licensed in the subject area. Typically, students complete packets of work in the subject, although related courses are often combine (for example, students who failed the fall semester of U.S. history and students who failed the spring semester of U.S. history are given the same work). The teacher has the right to remove any student from the class who is either disruptive, misses too many classes, or shows up late too many times. Homework is not assigned. Some teachers give a final exam on the last day, but it is an unwritten rule that almost every student who shows up and does some work gets a passing grade. Students who fail are dropped from the course so the failing grade never appears on their transcript (as if they never attempted the course).

  • CReditbyDesign

    Credit Recovery rules have changed as documented here:
    http://schools.nyc.gov/NR/rdonlyres/27BF8558-B895-407A-8F3F-78B1B69F030A/0/AcpolicyHighSchoolAcademicPolicyReferenceGuide.pdf

     

     

    Make-Up Credit and Credit
    Recovery

    It is important that students
    who fail a course have the opportunity to make up the course to get back on
    track. Students can make up credit by repeating the entire course during the
    school year or summer school, or through targeted credit recovery. Please note
    that there are many delivery mechanisms for completing courses; please see section II.A for more information.

    Courses repeated during summer
    school must provide a minimum of 45 hours of instruction for the student to be
    eligible to earn one credit and 90 hours of instruction for the student to be
    eligible to earn 2 credits (compared to 54 or 108 hours, respectively, during
    the school year).

    Grades previously recorded for
    the course the student is making up should not be changed, whether the student
    is making up credit by repeating the course or through targeted credit
    recovery. Instead, the school should create a new course code72 and the
    student should receive a grade (and credit, as appropriate) in the semester the
    course or targeted credit recovery was completed.

    When students are not repeating
    a course during the school year or during summer school, but are making up
    credit through targeted credit recovery, certain policies apply, as outlined
    below. Note: the policies below do not apply if a student is repeating a course
    during the summer or school year, and only apply to students participating in
    targeted credit recovery.

    Eligible students can make up
    credit through credit recovery: targeted, intensive instruction in the
    student’s identified deficiency areas of a course. To award credit through
    targeted credit recovery, schools must meet the following requirements, in
    alignment with New York State Commissioner’s Regulations:

    The program must align with
    applicable New York State commencement-level learning standards; address
    student course deficiencies; and ensure that students receive equivalent, intensive
    instruction in the applicable subject area under the direction or supervision
    of a teacher certified in the subject area in which the student is making up
    credit.

    o A teacher may oversee and instruct a group of students
    with different course deficiencies making up credit in the same subject. As
    with all targeted credit recovery programs, in this scenario the teacher must
    be certified in the subject area and the classroom component and assignments
    must be differentiated based on students’ individual course deficiencies and
    credit recovery plans.

    A
    school-based panel, which must include the principal, a teacher certified in
    the subject area for which the student must make up credit, and a guidance
    director or other administrator must approve a student’s participation in a
    make-up credit program.

    To receive credit, the student
    must successfully complete the make-up credit program and demonstrate mastery
    of the learning outcomes for the subject, including passing the Regents exam,
    if the Regents exam is required for graduation.

     

    Effective for NYCDOE
    targeted credit recovery programs beginning on or after July 1, 2012, the following policies apply to students earning credit
    through targeted credit recovery:

    Only
    students who have attended at least two thirds of the class time of the
    original course are eligible to earn credit through targeted credit recovery.

    Students may earn no more than
    a total of 3 core academic credits through targeted credit recovery throughout
    high school.

    o Core
    academic credits include credits required for graduation in English, Social
    Studies, Mathematics, and Science.

    o Students who have already earned any number of credits
    through targeted credit recovery may use those credits to meet graduation
    requirements, and may earn no more than 3 additional credits through targeted
    credit recovery.

    Students
    can only earn credit through targeted credit recovery during the semester or
    summer immediately following the one in which they failed the original course.
    After that period, students can only earn make up credit by repeating the
    course during the school year or summer, as outlined above.

    The
    school-based panel must consult with the teacher of the course the student
    originally failed (if the teacher still teaches at the school) regarding:

    o whether the
    student should repeat the course or earn credit through targeted credit
    recovery, in accordance with the policy above; and

    o if the panel
    determines that the student should participate in targeted credit recovery:

    § the scope and content of the targeted learning plan
    for the student; and

    § how the
    original failing course grade will be reconciled with targeted credit recovery
    grade in accordance with the school or course’s grading policy.74

     

    For students in grade 9 in the
    2011-12 school year, the policies above apply without exception. For students
    in grades 10-12 in 2011-12, schools should program students according to these
    policies. If there are exceptional cases where some students in grades 10-12 require
    a waiver from these requirements, schools should contact their network academic
    policy point person.

    Schools
    using targeted credit recovery must also meet the following requirements for
    targeted credit recovery programs beginning on or after July 1, 2012:

    The
    school-based panel must document their decisions using the template in Appendix H. (Schools may adapt this form as long as it includes documentation of
    each of the elements listed above.)

    If
    using online targeted credit recovery, schools must use NYCDOE-approved programs, in addition to following the State and City targeted
    credit recovery policies outlined above. Schools currently using other online
    credit recovery programs that meet the above requirements may use them through
    June 2012. In order to continue using these programs after June 2012, schools
    must apply for DOE approval by submitting this form:

    o For credit
    recovery offered in summer school 2012: applications must be received by April
    5, 2012. Applications will be approved, conditionally approved, or denied
    within 30 business days. For conditional approvals, additional requested
    information should be submitted by May 18, 2012, and a final decision will be
    shared with the school by June 1, 2012.

    o For credit
    recovery offered in the 2012-13 school year: applications must be received by
    June 1, 2012. Applications will be approved, conditionally approved, or denied
    within 30 business days. For conditional approvals, additional requested
    information should be submitted by July 13, 2012, and a final decision will be
    shared with the school by August 3, 2012.

    Like offline targeted credit
    recovery programs, students must receive equivalent, intensive instruction in
    the applicable subject under the direction or supervision of a
    subject-certified NYCDOE teacher.

     

  • Teach My Class Mr. Mayor

     Of course, imagine, if you will, you teach a class and see a name on your roster all semester long. That students gets a zero, because he/she never came to class. During the January regents your school has a “credit recovery” session, for four days at two and a half hours each. Now just remember I said IMAGINE…I am NOT saying this happened, just imagine…The students that show up at the “opening remarks” are told you have to be on time, and you have to be there all four days, or no credit. Now imagine, as you teach one of those sessions that kid from the roster shows up…and a few weeks later, that students grade, without your knowledge is now 65…I am not saying this happened, just saying imagine.

    By the way, the new catchphrase is “RIGOR”, we have seen all kinds of charts and rubrics, and you know what word does not appear ANYWHERE? Standards. DOE does not believe in an any, because the current administration is just looking to keep the house of cards up before his ponzi scheme collapses. And he is found out  that all he has done for twelve years is line the pockets of his friends with no bid contracts and destroy as much of the union as he possibly can, which has been the real agenda since day one.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Leonie-Haimson/1094324158 Leonie Haimson

    I’m sure the administration will figure out how to juke the stats by scamming the system under the new regs ; remember that it was DOE ones who “taught” principals how to scam the system in the first place. http://shar.es/p0IaW

  • It’s amazing

    Why isn’t anyone investigating the number of PE classes that are now being assigned to students so they can catch up on all their PE credits.  There are students taking PE in the morning, in the afternoon and during extended time.  In fact, the number of students assigned to the PE classes is ridiculous and I can’t figure out why the PE teacher would allow this unless the PE teacher made a deal with the principal.

  • Teach My Class Mr. Mayor

    You are assuming that the PE teacher knows what’s going on. How many times do you think the PE teacher in your school failed a senior, for legitimate reasons, like not being prepared, or cutting, only to see that student still at graduation, despite the grade remaining a 50 or 55. And you scratch your head wondering how the heck that happened. Once again, it is not about standards, it is about Bloomberg’s ego…oops, I mean legacy.

  • ROBBIN HOOD

    READ CAREFULLY — CREDIT RECOVERY WAS THE BIGGEST SCAM GOING.  KIDS GRADUATED WITHOUT EVER BEING IN CLASSROOMS.  PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS WANTED TO BOOST THEIR GRADUATION AND SCHOLORSHIP.  IT WAS SO EASY TO SAY .. HERE YA GO!  IT HAPPENED!  IT WAS A JOKE AND EVERYONE KNEW IT.  IT WAS A FREE RIDE SET UP FROM THE STATE AND THE STATE ACTUALLY HAD TO STEP IN AND SAY, WAIT A MINUTE, YOU GUYS A REALLY TAKING THIS TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL THAT WE NEVER THOUGHT YOU’D EVER DO.  CAN YOU IMAGINE THE STATE ACTUALLY HAD TO STEP IN.
    ANYWAY, THE RIDE IS OVER AND NOW YOU WILL SEE SCHOOL AFTER SCHOOL AFTER SCHOOL TANK!  NO MORE GIFTS.  THE KIDS ACTUALLY HAVE TO SIT IN A CLASSROOM.  IMAGINE THAT?  IF THEY WANT A CREDIT RECOVERY, THEY ARE ALLOWED A TOTAL OF 3 IN AN ENTIRE 4 YEAR H.S. CAREER.  THE ONLY WAY TO GET A CREDIT RECOVERY CONSIDERATION IS TO TAKE IT DIRECTLY THE NEXT SEMESTER AFTER A FAILURE GRADE.  YOU CANNOT TAKE A CLASS 3 YEARS LATER IN CREDIT RECOVERY ANYMORE, IT MUST BE THE NEXT SEMESTER.  BUT HERE’S THE KICKER – YOU MUST HAVE AT LEAST 2/3 ATTENDANCE THROUGHOUT THAT ORIGINAL CLASS THAT WAS FAILED.  THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE!!!!  HOW CAN A STUDENT HAVE 2/3 ATTENDANCE.  THIS MEANS THAT THERE WILL BE NO (ZERO) RECOVERY CREDITS IF FOLLOWED LEGALLY.  IN ADDITION, ONLY 2 INDEPENDENT STUDY NONSENSE CREDITS WILL BE GIVEN IN A 4 YEAR H.S. CAREER.
    GAME OVER!!!!!  THE GOOD NEWS – MORE HIRES, MORE PER SESSION FOR P.M. SCHOOL AND SATURDAY SCHOOL.  MORE BODIES IN CLASSROOMS.  NO MORE FAKE CREDITS, YA GOTTA HAVE A TEACHER IN A ROOM.
    IT’S OVER!!!!  IT GETS FUNNIER AND FUNNIER BUT AS I READ PREVIOUSLY, THE GREATEST QUOTE OF ALL TIME, “THERE’S OPPORTUNITY IN CHAOS.”
    I LOVE THIS JOB!!!!

  • Kpsmove

    I would agree with you but I know in my school I actually make students who have me multiple times do the same work as everyone else or they dont get the credit I have complained about this to the guidance counselor but for them it is a numbers game and the kids need gym. y response is that these students are going to be in great shape in a few weeks.

  • OhMyEd

    We are being set up people. It is the rope a dope strategy. So it will play out like this:
    Think of the timing of this and when the Mayor leaves office. Within the next couple of years you will see a reverse in Graduation rates. Headlines read: Education Mayor leaves and Grad. rates he brought up begin to plummet. 

    2) Robbin Hood believes that there will be all kinds of money. Maybe, but after they gut the system of basic services. Sports, after school activities, etc. Now the system is being pushed towards bankruptcy, and the state doesn’t step in because they are broke. Not big money men step in to help as they feel the system with the Union is a lost cause. However, Charter schools begin to flourish as they are being sustained with additional funds by guess who?

    3) You see a complete meltdown of the educational system in NYC. 

    Just ask yourself, who has challenged the Mayor successfully in regards to school closings. The answer, no one. He will continue to steamroll this system and then set up for a grand return by funding charter systems. He’ll recruit his billionaire buddies to do the same. 

    If you’re near retirement, good for you. If you’re young with an entire career ahead of you have a rough ride ahead of you. 

      ”THERE’S OPPORTUNITY IN CHAOS.” is what my friend says below. Exactly what the money men are saying as they $$$ signs in their eyes. Remember, there’s a lot of money to be made in education. You just have to corner the market. 

  • I noticed that…

    You are absolutely correct.  Inflation of all stats was the mayor’s modus operandi and now people will look at him as the saving grace when the school system breaks down.

  • Proteach

    Can’t believe there are less than 100 comments. There are thousands of teachers that can write about credit recovery being abused.  Literally amazing that this forum is so open and yet no one holds the DOE or Bloomie accountable.  Honestly, take a step back and imagine if you knew nothing about NYC DOE and read this.  You would think we live in a 3rd world corrupt dictatorship.

    Anyway, here is my story. I taught HS social studies in small Qns high school.  One day in May the principal lectures (berates) teachers abour “rigor” and upcoming common core standards.  No real direction about how to create rigorous lessons except vague references to Bloom’s taxonomy.  One week later, principal comes back from conversation with area’s superintendent and says that any student who has passed regents has to pass class.  Our credit accumulation was too low.  So students who never did any work for a semester and scratched out a 65-69 on regents now deserve to pass class.  I don’t think we even did credit recovery at this point.  Fairly sure that principal went in and identified any student who had passed the regents but failed the course and just changed the grade.

    Now fastforward to regents week.  Principal comes back and says create credit recovery packets for students who failed class first or second semester.  Needs by the end of day.  We put together 75 multiple choice question and 1 or 2 thematic essays.  Students were to sit in library and complete for credit.  Actually at that point, it didn’t even matter if the students completed the packet.  It was our duty to chase them down during regents week and make sure they did.  Some students completed the packet, others did not.  All got credit. 

  • David C Bloomfield

    Repeating a comment from a previous post:
    Credit Recovery tweaks aren’t good enough since NONE go to the substance
    of what the credit recovery plan demands.  “Targeted” is just another
    term for some limited make-work assignment that doesn’t begin to help
    the student really master the material (Failed English? Write a book
    report or fill in this worksheet.) and online programs are notoriously
    easy.  The DOE helped craft the lax State regulations, now hides behind
    them. See http://bit.ly/z44m2Y and http://bit.ly/xqTxd3
    -David Bloomfield

  • Julieburmeister

    I am now retired partially because I realized the futility in trying to educate students when some administrators and teachers were allowing students to pass and graduate with no accountabiity. Students with poor attendance would approach me at the end of the year and ask for extra credit packets. I would remind them of the many times I had begged them to come to class, but in the end my standard answer was, “I don’t do packets.” Considering me hard hearted other teachers would meet my students’ demands and the students would then pass. We were one of the large failing highs schools whose student body was comprised mainly of the students whom the converted smaller high schools did not want. In the past  few years our graduation rate remained below 50% even with all the free rides. I always felt that more students would have succeeded if we had not lowered our standards.

  • Lany406

    Every teacher knows credit recovery is a joke.  The students know it, too.  Many students would rather work on a packet than complete the work that is required to pass a class. I think teachers should get the same pay for creating and grading CR packets as they do for teaching classes for an entire semester.  This might wake up the tax payers!  I heard many retired teachers are scared to speak out because the Mayor could go after their pensions with these investigations.  Current teachers are scared to speak up because they need their jobs!     

  • Jjjjoe aris

    Taught a sports program using classroom inc. software and students received a math credit.

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