Monday, April 26, 2010

P.S. 172 in Brooklyn Scores High Despite Poverty - NYTimes.com

P.S. 172 in Brooklyn Scores High Despite Poverty - NYTimes.com

Brooklyn School Scores High Despite Poverty


Michael Nagle for The New York Times
Fourth graders at P.S. 172 in Brooklyn, which outperforms its wealthier neighbors on state tests.




New York Test Scores
To ace the state standardized tests, which begin on Monday, Public School 172 in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, finds money for coaches in writing, reading and math. Teachers keep detailed notes on each child, writing down weaknesses and encouraging them to repeat tasks. There is after-school help and Saturday school.
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But at the start of this school year, seven or eight students were still falling behind. So the school hired a speech therapist who could analyze why they and other students stumbled in language. A psychologist produced detailed assessments and recommendations. A dental clinic staffed by Lutheran Medical Center opened an office just off the fourth-grade classrooms, diagnosing toothaches, a possible source of distraction, and providing free cleanings.
Perfection may seem a quixotic goal in New York City, where children enter school from every imaginable background and ability level. But on the tests, P.S. 172, also called the Beacon School of Excellence, is coming close — even though 80 percent of its students are poor enough to qualify for free lunch, nearly a quarter receive special education services, and many