Guest blogger Georgia Lignou, Chapter Leader, Bryant High School, talks grade inflation and much more.
Grade inflation is the elephant in the room that we all know is there and yet we act surprised when it breaks something. Now that some teachers took the blame for what we all know is systemic abuse, again we act as if this is news. So, the DOE decided to investigate a school, really? And I am asking.
Do they have the data that proves that year after year we have been promoting students who were not present in class, for most and, many times, the whole year?
Do they know of the Chancellor's regulation saying that attendance is not a reason for failure which is used to blackmail teachers into passing students they never met?
Do they know of the packages students have been completing the very last week of the school year?
Do they know of the two or three "high leverage" "salient" "standard based assignments" that students can complete the very last day of the school year, with the help of a tutor, to pass?
Do they know of the quotas Guidance Counselors need to meet, and how they in turn pressure the teachers?
Do they know of the scholarship meetings with the APs that sound more like "what are you not doing" and the students are failing? Well, teachers have learned that it is better to avoid them.
Do they know why last year graduation rates increased?
Do they know that if grades had not been inflated, graduation rate across the city would have been about 20% lower?
Do they know that we are graduating students who lack basic knowledge and barely know how to write a paragraph?
And finally, do they know what their slogan "failure is not an option" means?
They do know all these and more, but as a proverb says, the fish smells from the head. Really, what did they expect to happen when the standards they set for the schools are not realistic? And to those who will ask, what is the UFT doing? I will say not as much as we should, but remember, it is not the UFT running the system. It is the DOE.
Wait. Wheres the UFT bashing. To survive on this blog, you have to blame the UFT. If DoE is at fault, then UFT is more at fault for not stopping them or not prodding them. Better fix your post in a clarifying comment.
ReplyDeleteI am hoping the UFT is part of the solution but not holding my breath waiting for the cavalry to charge in to save the day.
ReplyDeleteThe UFT has allowed Dwarka to harass, discriminate, and bully teachers but also students for 10 years, and they did nothing.
DeleteWhenever an administrator pressures you into passing students just bring up what happened in Maspeth and now that they are going after the teachers. If an administrator orders you to pass a student you know should fail, tell them you want to CYA and tell them to send you an email with the name of the student and what you would like me to do. If they think it is legal what they are doing, then they should have no problem sending you an email like that. At least with the Maspeth HS incident we have a little leverage.
ReplyDelete@10:08am... i would also say if admin doesn't send that email, you can send them an email memorializing their request. Put admin in the hotseat. It's one thing to say attendance isn't a factor but if the exams class assignments participation etc doesn't add up--oh well. That student fails.
DeleteI once had a parent raise Holy hell over his daughter receiving a grade of 90. I was generous with the grade and could justify it completely and did, but just because the parent was loud and a bully, the principal changed the grade to a 93. Most administrators are afraid of irate parents and have no problem throwing you under the bus to avoid conflict.
ReplyDeleteGrade fraud is the one part of the common core of criminal mismanagement at the NYC DOE
ReplyDeleteunder de Blasio.
Today our school is having a PD on CRT and "equity". This is a second part of the common core of DOE mismanagement. This ideology is more about victimhood and entitlement than race. CRT/Equity is absolutely unrelated to achieving "excellent outcomes". Excellent outcomes are the result of smaller class size, better school buildings, realistic expectations. All of these requirements for excellent outcomes are absent from the DOE.
A third common core of the DOE criminal management is doing everything really cheap, like
not paying teachers for their online classrooms and spring break pay.
So today, we will be proselytized to all about equity and CRT, the new theology of the DOE.
CRT/ equity is another fad and it will hopefully be discarded when the door hits de Blasio on his way out.
Honestly, in this system, what does it matter to pass kids who try to get work done? If we really passed kids bc of their true grades, we wouldn’t pass many of them. That’s the truth. We all fudge grades to some extent. If this were a real system, this would be an issue. But, this system is a joke.
ReplyDeleteThe system is working exactly how it was designed to work.
DeleteThink we need to add 5-10 vocational high schools into every borough. Carpentry, plumbing, hair styling, etc needs to be offered for students who are not going to complete or even care to be in school.
ReplyDelete@928 am... that makes too mucb sense so scratch it off the list. The system is working exactly how it is designed to work.
DeleteLast year was even worse than before. In the past you could pass students all day long but they had to pass the Regents, at least in English and Math and Admin could try and work a little magic with the rest of the Regents with the students with an IEP. Last year, not only did they pass without attending or completing their work, they received a waiver for any Regents class they were scheduled for. One student in particular who I know has barely come to school for the entire 4 years managed to graduate on time. But Admin wants to gripe about a student with a hoodie on? That's the real issue here? It's insanity run amok.
ReplyDeleteA win for the UFT on Social-Emotional Screening.
ReplyDeleteSo maybe the Set up the Google Machine pay and the Spring Work Pay are next?
lots of teachers already complaining that have to do 25-30 of these. Adding jobs for us teachers, maybe hire more mental health workers to schools.
ReplyDeleteThe DOE only stands behind one definition of success: college ready (whatever that means.).
ReplyDeleteD75 is teaching chapter books and doing adapted algebra with students who scratch, bite, and scream.
Trade training makes sense! They should have trade school options. Many of the students would excel in hands on learning, especially when they realize the $$$ potential.
The DOE won't do it next it makes sense and is a good idea ��.
The Nyc doe is designed to turn out government dependent voters who elect democrats and they’re doing a great job! Get out of nyc if you want a different education for your kids. So far the voters of nyc have given a thumbs up to continuing the status quote of babysit, pass. They love the system as it is so I give them what they want and get paid well to do so.
ReplyDeleteDwarka and AP M Morales are such little tool bags. Word has it, Dwarka verbally abused the simpleton, and he wet his oversized chinos.
ReplyDeleteDwarka needs to be removed asap. Lawyers, and investigators have been sweeping her messes for a long time while Elaine Linsey protects her furthermore she is bringing the school to the ground.
DeleteDo people on here actually think that the grades they enter on report cards actually matter? How many of the kids who do poorly don’t even know what grades are on their report card? This is not a new issue. It has been around for a long time.
ReplyDeleteAnother issue I have is why with the technology we have are we expected to go to work for three hours to turn around and go home? To me, it’s amazing the lack of preparation and common sense that we have in this system.
You really think if Silwa won, he would make any real changes and things would get better? Look what Bloomberg did to the schools?
ReplyDelete8:01 - they don't care as long as he's wearing a red hat.
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot to be said about grade inflation and there are times that holding students back can hurt them. The problem is that we should stand up for colleagues who are penalized for a systemic problem to which we all participate and the DOE not only knows about but they encourage with their policies.
ReplyDeleteFraud is a crime in Nasperh or in Brtant High School just to name the 2 more notorious corrupt cases. For some reason Dwarka who should have been removed 8 years ago is still there.
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