SHSAT Sunset

  • Is This What We Consider ‘a Good Education’?

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    This is one of the best “perspective” pieces on the topic yet. The time has come, I believe, to redefine what it means to be a great public school. McGraw put it this way: “I don’t know why we’re celebrating a school that’s 97 percent Asian or white as a great school. I don’t know…

  • Attorney Launches ‘DREAMChasers’ Program to Help Underrepresented Students Prepare for SHSAT

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    The students have been studying with instructors from Khan’s Tutorial. The 11 month course normally costs around $2,500. But these classes, for students from low-income homes, are free—thanks to a program called DREAMChasers. It was created by attorney and Bronx Science alum Jason Clark after visiting his old school and noticing the lack of diversity.…

  • The Effects – Intended and Not – Of Ending the Specialized High School Test

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    Our findings also lead us to some larger conclusions about flaws inherent in New York City’s entire system of choice in public high school admissions. Because under this system, there is no simple, direct relationship between an individual applicant’s academic strengths and the caliber of the high school she or he ultimately attends. Myriad other…

  • Back to School Reform

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    The allure of testing lies in its apparent neutrality—its democratic indifference to a student’s background and wealth. But this is not how the current system functions. Success correlates closely to socioeconomic advantages and access to test preparation. Pricey services offer tutoring to ever younger children. (There is a niche industry of consultants who help two-year-olds…

  • The burden on elite high schools: They must change their cultures to welcome students of all backgrounds

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    Over the course of our meetings, many students lamented the lack of diversity at our schools, specifically with regard to black and Latino students. They shared that the lack of representation at their schools created environments that bred racism and other forms of prejudice both inside and outside the classroom. This atmosphere does not foster…

  • Liu: No quick fix to specialized high schools entrance exam

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    Senator John Liu showed his hand and hinted that he plans to kill any SHSAT reform by languishing the decision in committee over the next few years. State Sen. John Liu said at City & State’s Education Summit on Thursday that he doesn’t expect any major changes to come out of Albany for at least…

  • City Council staffer accused of stoking tensions at protests over DOE’s plans to diversify NYC schools

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    I’ve seen this man at just about every SHSAT demonstration I’ve attended. He’s definitely one of its most prolific organizers. The man who’s been the loudest in the raucous movement to oust Richard Carranza is on the payroll of one of the school chancellor’s biggest critics — and more than willing to take one for…

  • The WAVE: School Scope – Those SHSAT Tests, Part 1

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    This opinion piece dates SHSAT test prep to the 1950s. Of course, the entrance exam was not called “SHSAT” back then, and there was one exam per school. When I was an 8th grade student in the 1957-58 school year at George Gershwin JHS, a jewel of a school recently opened on Linden Blvd in…

  • NEW YORK’S SPECIALIZED HIGH SCHOOLS NEED MORE STUDENTS LIKE OBRIAN

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    Obrian was devastated when he found out he didn’t score high enough on the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT) to attend Brooklyn Technical High School, one of New York City’s most selective high schools. Unlike many of the students who gain admission to the city’s specialized high schools, his family didn’t have the resources…

  • Elite or elitist? Lessons for colleges from selective high schools

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    An in-depth report on the state of specialized high schools across the nation. reformers might do better instead to look to Chicago’s use of area-based geographical tiers. One advantage of this system is that it retains the high-stakes entrance examination but takes inequality into account by having students with similar backgrounds compete against each other…