By Joyce Szuflita
Hi everyone else in the City!
Now that the City is taking on a version of the admissions plan that was adopted by District 15 a few years ago, I thought you could befit from some good old Brownstone Brooklyn insight.
By Joyce Szuflita
As I predicted (hate to say, “I told you so”) and as recommended in the Fordham Law School Feerick Center for Social Justice report back in May, middle schools are removing all screens for placement for the 2021-22 school year.
District priorities will remain in place and students will be ranked by lottery and sometimes also with an economic diversity priority. Exactly what will happen to Citywide and Borough-wide screened and audition programs (like Twain, ICE, Medgar Evers, PPAS, 318’s Chess Program…) has not been laid out. It seems to me that the design and focus of those few schools/programs are so unique and specialized that they may be considered separately. We’ll see. Watch their MY SCHOOLS listings and their websites for more information.
Dates:
The application will be open in MY SCHOOLS on Jan. 11
We don’t yet know a deadline. Go here for ongoing information.
Sign up for DoE email blasts.
Other questions that I have:
What about sibling priority?
What about zoning?
What about tracked programs within schools?
Will borough-wide and city-wide programs retain their geographic priorities?
By Joyce Szuflita
Read HS Admissions: Vol. 2 - it is more up to date.
The DoE announced the things we have all been waiting for yesterday (kind of).
Dates:
Registration for the SHSAT begins on Dec. 21. Deadline to register Jan. 15
The test will be administered at your current middle school beginning the week of Jan. 27
(no word on how it will work for kids in Independent or Charter schools yet), don't panic more details about how, and when will be release. Everyone will be attended to. For now just register for the test when you can.
High School application will open the week of Jan. 18
The Deadline will be the week of Feb. 22
There is usually a gap of about 3.5 months until placements are made.
By Joyce Szuflita
The PAR Team recommended that the vote for rezoning be moved to late winter or spring. With the deadline for fall 2021 kindergarten coming up on Jan. 19, 2021, the recommendation is that any re-zoning plan go into effect for the 2022-23 school year.
The map for the re-zoning will be publicized in the new year, in line with vote.
One aspect of the possible proposal is to transition PS 676 to a middle school.
That’s all she wrote for now.
By Joyce Szuflita
This has been a big change and not so much. I explain my take on this over and over every day, so I thought that I would write about it here. It is “big”, because parents and the district recognized that encouraging diversity in all of the 11 middle schools in the district would benefit everyone; the students, the schools, and the community. It was also an enthusiastic nudge for parents to look past the few well known popular favorites…and it has worked pretty well.
By Joyce Szuflita
It is hard to wait for information that never seems to come. This is what you can do now to prepare:
First a few basics:
Elementary schools sometimes have the same number in different boroughs. When you do a google search, look for the “PS ‘XO’, Brooklyn” or “Queens” or “Manhattan” when searching for a specific program.
By Joyce Szuflita
You can find the DoE’s new videos here
You can find the video page through this link, but the link doesn’t show up yet on the website. It is nice that they have divided these videos into bite sized chunks. Nothing earth shattering here, but they are clear and simple and it walks you through the process at a saunter. I will highlight some interesting things below.
By Joyce Szuflita
Read this great article from Chalkbeat that lays out the problem and presents what I feel is a realistic and pragmatic approach (in this moment) to screening students (or not) for middle school and high school. It is reporting on the Fordham Law School Feerick Center for Social Justice report.
By Joyce Szuflita
This is not a large sample and it is from a very narrow range of residents in northwest Brooklyn, but it is pretty consistent, so I thought that I would report on the buzz from where I sit.
In the effort to make some decisions about how to deal with school in the fall, these are the assumptions parents who talk to me are making. Conflicting assumptions are often held simultaneously, thus making any action impossible or wildly uninformed. They are all just feeling around in the dark. One thing to point out - I don’t know any more than you do, but I do have a calm head.
Assumptions:
Everyone who can, will move out of the City (forever, for 6 months, for 2 years).
This is the time to buy in the City.
Everyone will flee to private school for the smaller class sizes and student: teacher ratio (for 1 year, or forever).
Everyone will flee to public school because of the economy and the deficiencies of Zoom School.
Everyone is going to hire a tutor and home school.
First off, don’t assume. Take this one moment at a time. It is probably too early to tell what emerging plans will be put into place on the public or private side, what the economy will look like and how Covid will react.
Look at your family and your child and try not to make a fear based move (City or not, public or not).
Resiliency and flexibility (along with creativity and humor) will get us through this. There are likely to be some opportunities as things sift out, but they will likely be most available to people who remain patient and keep a cool head.
People who panic drown.
By Joyce Szuflita
There are many opportunities to go deep academically at high school in NYC.
By Joyce Szuflita
Who says you have to pick your career in high school?
The high school art audition programs get the reputation as being only for the singularly passionate or wildly talented. The idea that the “Fame” school (LaGuardia) is only about becoming a professional artist and dancing on cabs is overrated. When searching for high schools, many students disregard those programs immediately, because they don’t think of themselves as “those kids” or as talented enough. If you have no interest, then they are not for you. If you like doing whatever (performing or visual arts) and wouldn’t mind digging deeper, then you should investigate further.
By Joyce Szuflita
High Schools in NYC are either 500 kids or 4000. That is very odd.
While there are many good high schools that are tiny or giant, my optimal size is 1000-2000. That is 250 to 500 students in the graduating class; enough to have lots of sports, arts, electives and extra-curriculars but small enough that you have probably run into everyone in your class at least once. The academic and social biodiversity that this size promotes is healthy. You can find your people, but it won’t take you four years to do it.
By Joyce Szuflita
We have dates:
Register to take the SHSAT or audition for LaGuardia by
Oct. 21, 2020
Dates for the Boroughwide High School Fairs (positive thinking!) under “Virtual Tours and Attending Events”:
Oct. 3-4 and Oct. 17-18, 2020
Dates for the Specialized HS test- under “Take the SHSAT”
Locations to take the SHSAT- under “Take the SHSAT”
The deadline for high school application is Dec. 4 2020.
We have Admissions Guides!
The Regular HS Admissions Guide
The Specialized HS Admission Test Guide (practice tests)
Go to Inside Schools to think about your list and use their advanced filters.
Go to individual school websites to see if they have any virtual tourish information yet.
By Joyce Szuflita
Everyone wants to know. I don’t get enough reports to make any judgements. One problem is that individual teachers and individual students will have personal challenges that have a big impact. Which schools had the best plan and the best support for their staff is the question. Are there schools where there is a lucky cluster of teachers who have embraced this challenge or show a talent for drawing out and engaging their students remotely?
I would be happy to take your comments about your experiences. It is also wildly important that you send in reviews to www.insideschools.org about your in school in normal times as well as remote school experiences for next year’s parents who will be searching for K, 6th grade and 9th grade. I can’t tell you how important this is for your neighbors. Please, please do it now. If you are a student, try not to dig into personal grievances. Tell about the good and the bad. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Be fair but be specific.
Please, please share as much concrete information as possible.
If you feel that you can comment about your school below (you may do so anonymously):
how old is your child? and if it is a positive review (lets try and stay positive)- what is your school?
how often and how long is their interaction with their teacher each day?
if you are having a good experience, do you credit it to the talent of your particular teacher or has there been institutional/school backup?
is there any one particular thing that is most effective?
By Joyce Szuflita
With the knowledge that much is yet to be revealed there are definitely things that you can do now to prepare for the fall. The City is starting to address concerns about admissions and the Chancellor has scheduled Admission Engagement Sessions by borough to allow you to weigh in on the changing admissions process.
First, you should know that even if you have a zoned middle school (and that is rare) you will be able to rank schools in your district of residence (and in the district where your child attends public school - which is usually the same district).
Read MoreBy Joyce Szuflita
Considering that you just read the previous blog about the uncertainty of admissions criteria in the fall, here is what you should do now:
By Joyce Szuflita
WARNING: EVERYTHING THAT YOU READ HERE IS CONJECTURE. I AM TOTALLY GUESSING.
So everyone has been asking me what is going to happen in the fall. Ummmm, I know that I am very confident in my pronouncements, but the thought that I would know what the virus, Governor, Mayor and Chancellor will do in Sept is a wonderful vote of confidence. I appreciate it.
The City is starting to address concerns and the Chancellor has scheduled Admission Engagement Sessions by borough to allow you to weigh in on the process.
Here is what we don’t know:
Read MoreBy Joyce Szuflita
Prek placements are out. Check your account in MY SCHOOLS for results.
Placements:Many people are happy. Congratulations to them.
Of course, I am hearing from families who have gotten placements way down at the bottom of their lists or schools that they haven’t ranked at all. The City will make every effort to place you in a school from your list, but they don’t guarantee you something from that list. Families are often surprised that they got a low placement. That application is a list of your preferences, that is all (very important but not strategic). You are likely to preference very popular programs that can’t possibly take all the students who apply, and small programs that don’t have enough seats for all the families who may have a high priority.
Your ranking of the school doesn't advantage or disadvantage you for a placement. Families often think that their ranking of the schools equates to leverage and it doesn't. Watch this vimeo to get an idea about the algorithm.
Read Morehelping families search for Brooklyn preschools, elementary schools, middle schools, NYC high schools
