At the same time that some educators are scathingly critical of Chancellor Joel I. Klein's plans to retain New York third-graders who flunk the state tests, a group of impassioned teachers at a Brooklyn High School sent a letter begging Klein to put an end to social promotions once and for all.
Those who oppose Klein's plan claim it is "short-sighted," "abusive," and "contrary to the collective wisdom of the research community." The teachers' union in NY opposes Klein, and wants third-graders who flunk the exam to be enrolled in a "cushion program" that helps them without holding them back a grade.
But here's what the teachers at Clara Barton High School in Brooklyn had to say:
"As New York City high school teachers, we are wholeheartedly opposed to the practice of social promotion," the letter said. "It is not a solution. It is a lie that is eroded year by year as students realize they have been given flattery rather than the basic skills they need to survive in a classroom, and even more, in life.
"Come into our classrooms and we can show you the results of social promotion: 16-year-old students who write incoherently, misspelling the most basic words, who don't know multiplication tables, and who struggle to comprehend a passage in a basic textbook."
They said students are "shocked" when they flunk high school classes and exams because they'd gotten used to being promoted for merely showing up...
The letter repudiates the position of teachers union boss Randi Weingarten, who said on Tuesday that low-performing third-graders should not be held back. She said they should be promoted and given additional help in special fourth-grade classes.
Clara Barton nursing teacher Marcy Licardi said her colleagues feel so strongly about the issue that organizers were able to get 58 teachers to sign the letter in just one day. Licardi said it's "criminal" to promote students under "false assumptions."
"We don't want to do a disservice to students," she said. "They can't survive high school if they can't read and write. It is a political ploy to call students fourth-graders if they haven't met the requirements."
Klein has also released a study showing that third-graders who are retained aren't necessarily set up to fail later on:
The study tracked low- performing students who were third-graders in 1999 and 2000. Of the 1999 group of students held back once, 31.7 percent advanced from Level 1 to Level 2 on math and reading exams by sixth grade. By comparison, only 25.4 percent of kids who were promoted despite failing improved their scores.
The results were similar for the students who were third-graders in 2000. Of those held back, 33.5 percent advanced from Level 1 to Level 2. Of those students promoted, only 23.4 percent moved up.
And speaking of social promotion controversies in NY, the state Board of Regents is investigating the impact of its own policy that requires students to pass five Regents exams in order to earn a high school diploma:
One burning issue confronting state education officials is what to do about complaints from students who pass four Regents tests and flunk one.
"If a student fails one exam, are we going to deny that kid a diploma?" asked Regent Meryl Tisch, who is overseeing the analysis. "That is the most wrenching issue."
The situation is particularly alarming in New York City, where last year just 36 percent of high school students passed all five Regents exams (English, math, science, American history and global history). Nearly a third of city high school students drop out...
State officials have been on the defensive regarding the stricter policy since a majority of students flunked last June's math Regents exam. Albany officials admitted the test was flawed and ditched the results...
The state review will also examine the impact of the policy on immigrants just learning English. Students taking vocational and technical courses, who also must pass the exams to get a diploma, will also be monitored.
Posted by kswygert at March 4, 2004 11:24 AM