With great fanfare Chancellor Richard Carranza hailed the 59% of the high school graduates who went to college, other continuing education programs, or the military. The problem with the 59% figure it doesn't tell one how many high school graduates who entered these continuing education programs finished with a degree.
We do know that for high school graduates who entered community colleges in NYC, only 22% achieved a degree in three years and only 33% in six years.
The Chancellor also boasted that "college readiness " improved by three percentage points, to 51%. However, the CUNY metric was changed once again and the 3% improvement must be highly suspect. The changed CUNY metric no longer includes Algebra II, which many NYC students have difficulty passing.
Chalkbeat has an article that further explains it.
I guess all the new newbie no nothing deer in the headlights teachers are doing a better job than the past previous generation of teachers.....No that's not it we all know that....The real story here is just more smoke and mirrors without complete data such as the college graduation rate but we will never hear about that.
ReplyDeleteFolks, we live in a society now that focuses on giving kids the trophy for finishing last and this is just another wow look what we did but its just moving data from one paper to another and than saying look!
NYC Public HS grads are the reason McDonald’s had to get cash registers that display change to given back. Now McD’s doesn’t even want these academic superstars - they realize they have absolutely no employable skills.
ReplyDeleteWilling to bet that there is a significant percent of HS graduates that are simply not prepared for the rigor of college reading and math--and results in many first year students being placed in non-credit remedial classes.
ReplyDeleteWe graduate students every year with 3-4th grade skills, and some even lower than that.
ReplyDeleteIt's not our fault. They come to us with 1-2 grade skill levels and we move mountains to raise them up from that. Some kids even excel if they have some life motivation or other strong support, but many do not have those benefits for whatever reason.
Students have no accountability these days, so even the desire to get good grades is moot, because they know everyone will be passed regardless.
It's all on the teachers, as you all know.
If you 'hold them accountable' meaning they have the chance to fail if they don't measure up, then "We" are punished.
"Why did the student fail? What did YOU do wrong as a teacher?"
No one ever asks, "So student, why are you on your phone in class all day? Why do you throw books out the window or talk over the teacher all the time?"
The problem is that in our Brave New World, it is assumed by social justice warriors that everyone has the exact same skill potential regardless of any other factors, and the teacher is the miracle worker who will magically unlock it, or fail to do so.
Doesn't matter what the background of the kid is, we must all be like that FICTIONAL Freedom Writers movie, in which ALL the teacher's students in that ghetto high school already were reading at grade level and were naturally waiting for the young, high-energy cheerleader-like teacher to unleash their pent up genius.
Anything less is an ineffective teacher, or so we're told. If you are over 40, you are assumed to be an out-of-touch racist who never gives the kids a chance. You hold them accountable and then you are the bad guy.
The younger teachers do LOTS of group work, where one kid does the work and everyone passes. Hooray! Then they make chart paper posters and 'share' their opinions about things, as opposed to learning facts about things and making connections, and finally, the 'students now teach each other.' That is the (communist-style) model now.
We may all look forward to retirement, but we are at the end of Empire here, and we will see our Rome burn in the next few decades.
I know a recent CUNY grad who could not figure 25% of 500 without a calculator
ReplyDeleteHe’s got a job waiting as a teacher with the NYCDOE!
DeleteI see this post a lot, "now everyone calls me racist". Do you guys ever stop to think that maybe, you are a little racist? Maybe some of the problem is you?
ReplyDeleteThe Real Racist —— Someone who walks on fawns tolerance, passes and graduates kids that are Black and Hispanic simply because they are Black and Hispanic.
Delete4:22 - Wrong. The problem is cultural, not racial. It persists among blacks the most because their culture is based on race. Black culture actively discourages every behavior that is proven to give children a higher chance of succeeding in life - going to school on time, staying out of trouble, studying, getting good grades, NOT being a teen parent. All of these are disparaged as 'acting white' and being 'Uncle Tom.'
ReplyDeleteGraduate high school, get a job, don't have kids until you're married. Doing these three things give you over a 95% chance to be in the middle class by middle age. Black culture values none of these things. The so-called 'achievement gap' exists because black culture does not value achievement. And until there is a cultural change no amount of 'racial equity training' is going to change a thing, and will make the problem worse by encouraging the idea that they don't have to work to be successful, they're just not successful because 'the man' doesn't want them to be successful.
"The so-called 'achievement gap' exists because black culture does not value achievement."
ReplyDeleteRemember, in our Brave New World the truth is not to be spoken or you're a - wait for it - racist!
I mean, the same can be said for the poor whites of West Virginia and elsewhere. Generations of chronic bad values and a poor work ethic keep them poor generation after generation.
Recognizing the problem here is not controversial, but apply it elsewhere and you are vilified. Even in our own families we may have some relatives who keep doing bad things and making bad decisions even in the face of tons of advice to the contrary.
Asian immigrants come in poor but work like mad to succeed. Marxists believe all cultures are 'equal.' Reality says that is not true.
If anyone feels the achievement gap is just a Black people problem you probably are racist. Just because the focus of underachievement is always focused on Black people and totally ignores the achievements of many black people (especially those who graduate from the historically Black colleges and excel in society, even that creep Ben Carson, who went to a Black college) shows that racist ideals permeates the mindset of many people so much so that they don't know or ignore the facts regarding those same people. All races have underachievers, not just Blacks. This country with its permanent racist mindset just chooses to keep promulgating negative ideas against anyone non-white as is plainly seen in today's society with the advent of Trump. BTW in the bronx, the largest school population is now Hispanic. I wonder if the underachievers will suddenly become Hispanic focused? I'm sure it will eventually. Comment if you want on my opinion, but don't expect me to personally respond to you as I have better things to do. This idea of non-achievement particularly caught my attention. Defense of racists does not.
ReplyDeleteBlacks who immigrate or have immigrant parents from the West Indies/Africa do not share the Black culture. Indeed, they themselves look down on American blacks. It always amazes me that the most "progressive" whites who readily hurl 'racist' at others tend to live in lily-white enclaves, whether it be neighborhoods or states, like Vermont or Oregon. I guess they sell decoder rings to spot the evil racists from afar. By the way, is Ben Carson a creep because he doesn't think or behave like other black folk? There's a word for that, hmm, need to get a decoder ring myself.
ReplyDeleteBen Carson is a creep because he is a clueless Republican like many of his white counterparts! Also your generalized statements on West Indians/Africans is based on your ethnic experience? Probably not.
DeleteThey are not generalized statements, they are based on experiences and interactions with West Indians. Before I became a teacher I used to work for a living in construction, primarily in Manhattan high-rise job sites. Many different groups of people work the trades. And West Indians would be highly offended if you mistook them for "African-Americans." Same with Nigerians. And I have taught in schools with people from the islands. Unlike progressives, I'm not afraid or uncomfortable interacting with people who aren't the same ethnicity as myself. As for the Ben Carson comment, I wanted to show how easy and ridiculous it is for people to throw out the accusations of racism whenever you disagree with someone.
ReplyDeleteYour experiences are just that...experiences. You generalized when you use phrases that indicate you are speaking about ALL people in a group rather than SOME. If experiences with other groups give you authority to make such statements then know this: My parents were west indian immigrants from Guyana and Barbadoes. I was born in NYC and we lived in Harlem along with other west indians and African americans. I am 62 years old and was raised old school west Indian style in food and culture. I do not recall hearing any anti - black sentiment growing up. We all got along. Everyone loved my mother's cooking west indian food. especially the American blacks. Secondly, I have visited Africa physically with some African muslim friends. I was treated royally while over there even though I was thought of as a Christian AMERICAN (I am Christian, not Muslim). No one called me a black person or African American or West indian, just AMERICAN. The same thing happened while I was in Europe. I was considered as an AMERICAN not Black or African or West Indian (of which I am all of the above). It is true that SOME Africans do look down on American blacks, but there are just as many if not more who don't. In fact, in today's world, in Africa it is considered passe to show prejudice against Black Americans amongst intellectuals. Working in America can cause animosity among workers which I am sure your experiences showed. But obviously you did not have extensive experience based on your comments, so your conclusions are therefore generalizations as you cannot possibly speak for all people as there are always exceptions.
ReplyDelete