An estimated 21,000 elementary and middle school students scored at the lowest levels on state math and reading exams, New York City education officials said Thursday, meaning that twice as many students in those schools as last year will be required to enroll in summer school.
Under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s policy of ending so-called social promotion, students who score at the lowest levels of the state English and math tests must go to summer school or be held back. Official results from the tests, which are administered by the state, will not be released until the end of July, but with the end of the school year near, the city is using preliminary results to determine who should enroll in summer school.
Last year, the number of students passing the exams — meaning they achieved a Level 3, with Level 4 the highest — skyrocketed, and a relative few, less than 5 percent, scored at