GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

Since Michael Bloomberg first became mayor and appointed Chancellor Joel Klein, new principals have been assigned to scores of schools in New York and considerable responsibility has been placed in their hands. Today, the majority of principals in the city have less than five years experience, and many have less than three. With the accountability measures adopted by the DOE in 2007, principals now have greater autonomy over how to manage their schools, to generate and expend resources, and increased pressure to produce results. What was true for SpiderMan is now true for New York principals: With great power comes great responsibility.

There is substantial evidence that many schools in New York have improved over the last eight years but several challenges remain. According to a recent study of high schools released by the New School, several of the city’s larger high schools are floundering. They generally have lower graduation rates, higher teacher turnover, and lower test scores than many of the new, smaller schools. The report also suggests that there are important equity issues at stake: The larger schools tend to serve higher numbers of English language learners and special education students. Many of these schools also serve a significant number of “over the counter students” who transfer in throughout the school year.

Holding principals accountable when they cannot control important aspects of the school environment is neither fair nor always an effective means of promoting improvement. (more…)

The Promise Academy, praised by David Brooks, is a wonderful school, but it is not unique and hardly a “miracle.”  There are several schools in Harlem and other parts of New York where poor children are achieving at high levels.  Many of these are charter schools, but some are public and private schools.  In most cases, these schools succeed not because they impart middle class values, (there is very little evidence that the middle class is the only group that values hard work and courteous behavior) but because of high academic expectations and a clear, coherent approach to educating children.   Most importantly, these schools succeed because they also address social, health and psychological needs of the children and families they serve.

This is the point that David Brooks doesn’t seem to understand.  He claims that Promise Academy’s high scores “are powerful evidence” in a debate between those (like New York City’s Schools Chancellor Joel Klein) who say better schools alone can close the achievement gap, and those (like supporters of the “Broader Bolder Approach” campaign) who say that for significant gains in achievement, school improvement must be supplemented by improvements in children’s social and economic conditions. Brooks believes the evidence favors the Klein claims. (more…)