Reports On NYC Schools Show Mediocre Progress
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The report cards are out for New York City schools and more than 200 of them are flunking. Upset parents are demanding better grades and say it's time for some city schools to get grounded.
"That means they are not teaching our child with city standards, so our child will be failing tests as well," said Joan Pritty Paul, the mother of a third grader.
It's not all bad.
Of nearly 1,200 elementary and middle schools, more than 300 got an "A" on the annual progress report, but 217 received a failing grade: F, D or a third consecutive C, CBS 2's Weijia Jiang reported Tuesday.
EXTRA: Click Here To Find Your School's Grade
For example, P.S. 140 Edward K. Ellington, where Alex Moore's daughter goes, got an F.
"Why should my child be subjected to that, [with] me being a taxpayer, my wife being a taxpayer?" Moore said.
But some parents at P.S. 140 said they don't care about the grade, even if it is just a 21 percent. They said their kids are doing just fine and wondered if the grades are fair.
"For my daughter it's good. Her teacher is really good, so I don't know why they got F," Esnel Josias said.
Grades are heavily based on standardized tests -- not scores, but year to year progress, which some said is a problem.
Last spring, Mayor Michael Bloomberg tried to close 24 schools that got bad marks. Seven just received a report card.
This time, two of them earned a B, while five got a C. That's why some said the focus should be the work, not the grades.
"Stop blaming the students. Stop trying to close the schools. Stop blaming teachers. I think we can get it together," Sean Banks said.
Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott said the evaluation and follow-up is a work in progress.
"Now we'll start to analyze those grades and work with those schools in an early engagement process," Walcott said.
Still, it may not be enough. Next week the city will release a list of schools in danger of being shut down.
Grades for high schools will be released later this year.
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