New York City's Radical Proposal For A Troubled Program
New York City schools have been a prime example of what happens when the problems of segregation intersect with the problems of gifted programs. Now it appears they are prepared to throw up their hands and untie the Gordian knot with a flamethrower.
In 2014, the UCLA Civil Rights Report found that New York schools were the most segregated in the nation. Like most things about the New York City system, the situation was complicated. The Bloomberg administration was supportive of school choice, and like many choice advocates, believed that choice could be a solution to equity problems. In NYC, as in the rest of the country, that has not turned out to be true. School choice's effect on segregation remains highly debated, but choice advocates can't point to any clear successes.
Gifted programs have been seen as a route to desegregation in many school districts. The theory is that selecting students for a school or program based on giftedness rather than address should bring together students from across all lines--geographic, racial and economic. In theory, gifted programs should also better meet the needs of high-functioning students who might be bored and unproductive in regular classes.
But gifted programs have problems of their own. In 2013, Andy Smarick of the reform-minded Bellwether Education Partners put together a report about gifted programs in the US. He points out that there is no real federal guidance or support for gifted education, and that states are largely left to their own devices. In many states, that CONTINUE READING: New York City's Radical Proposal For A Troubled Program