Recent news reports have indicated that, once again, minority enrollment in New York’s eight specialized high schools was disappointing. Responding to this, New York City’s Mayor Bill de Blasio has called for a change in admission criteria to allow some students who do not quite make the grade on the standardized admission tests to be, nevertheless, granted admission into these eight schools. It’s little wonder why students desire such admission: these schools have historically produced some of the most successful students in New York City. But admission to these schools is based on exam performance. In three of the eight schools, State law mandates the exams as the method of admission; in the other five, similar admission criteria were developed.
The admission tests have been evaluated for cultural sensitivity. Despite this, minority enrollment has lagged to the point where, in the most selective of these schools, fewer than 1 percent of enrolled students are Black. This is despite the fact that more than 50 percent of New York City high school students fall into that category.
In an effort to balance the school’s enrollment, Mayor de Blasio proposes modifying admission criteria to include some students who have not performed as well on admission tests. Others have suggested remedies such as eliminating the admission tests completely. Recently, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez simply asked, “Why can’t all the schools be like Brooklyn Tech?” (one of the eight specialized schools).
Underrepresentation of minorities in elite city schools is, indeed, a major problem — one that dovetails with a continued lack of integration of New York City schools in general. Both of these issues need solutions. The disparity in admissions of selective schools and lack of integration has been recognized for decades, but any number of attempts to address the issue in incremental ways, or through “school reform,” have proven relatively unsuccessful.
Using a medical analogy, altering admission criteria to specialized high schools will certainly increase minority representation, but this represents treating the symptom, not the disease. The truth is too few students in New York City elementary schools and junior high schools are adequately prepared for the rigorous environment of the city’s specialized schools. Less than 47 percent of New York City third to eighth graders perform at grade level in English, and less than 43 percent achieved proficiency in math. Such students can’t be expected to undertake arduous coursework in specialized schools, some of which may include calculus in ninth and 10th grade. The problem is not who gets admitted, but rather how well students are prepared. Nonetheless, there are some things that can be done both at the elementary and high school levels to improve both minority representation and student outcomes at specialized high schools.
Better Teachers, More Contact Time
Kamala Harris, a U.S. Senator from California, recently proposed a national program to increase teacher’s salaries. Having more qualified teachers in city classrooms will certainly make a measurable difference, and showing greater appreciation for these teachers is clearly warranted. However, any increase in teacher compensation should be tied to an increase in contact time with students, which could be represented by a longer school day, or by extending the school year.
