PS / IS 217 Earns a "C" Grade from DOE

The NYC Deprtament of Education for 2007-2008 has graded the local Roosevelt Island elementary school PS / IS 217 with a "C". Last year the school was awarded an overall grade of a "B". Last year was the first year of the DOE's blunt grade system. This year's evaluation is considered by the DOE "well developed" where last year's evaluation was considered "undeveloped" indicating perhaps that the "B" awarded last year was not conclusive.

Per the report 24% of the City's K-8 schools fall into this grading. As noted above the breakout of this grade is as follows: B for School Environment; C for Student Performance, and a C for Student Progress. The full report for PS 217 can be found HERE.

Enrollment from year to year has been basically consistent from 462 last year to 454 this year per the DOE.

The NY Times has an articles regardin g the overall NYC reports issued of which PS 217 is part of.

Roosevelt Island's PS / IS 217 Earns a “B” on City Issued Report Cards

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein today released the first-ever Progress Reports on the City's public schools. Based on the searchable listing published by the NY Times today the local primary / middle school earned a “B” grade.

Double click the above image to enlarge it.

Per the official news release issued by NYC the grades are based on three major categories including:

“….school environment (15%), student performance (30%), and student progress (55%). "School environment" includes the results of surveys taken by parents, students, and teachers last spring, as well as student attendance rates. The "student performance" category measures actual student outcomes-whether elementary and middle school students are proficient in reading and math and whether high school students are graduating. "Student progress" has the highest weight because it measures how schools are helping students improve year-to-year-gains in reading and math proficiency for elementary and middle school students, and credit accumulation and Regents exam pass rates for high school students.”

I will admit I am a bit confused by this scoring system. When I was a kid in school passing was a 65 or better. Or was it 55? Either way how a 59 warrants a grade of a "B" makes no sense. The new math?

As per the Gothamist: "The Daily News' Errol Louis likes the report cards, Diane Ravitch doesn't and Inside Schools explains what the different components, from the grade to other factors like "student progress," mean. You can download the Excel file of grades here (XLS)."

Links:

New York Times article re City Issued Report Cards

Inside Schools.org profile of 217

Inside Schools Blog

NYC Public School Parents Blog