NYC DOE Revises Promotion Policy
In April 2014, Chancellor Fariña announced a new promotion policy for students in grades 3-8, which was subsequently approved by the Panel for Educational Policy (PEP). The new policy is in effect for the end of the 2013-14 school year and replaces a 10-year-old policy that based student promotion on state test scores. The new policy states that teachers and principals will make promotion decisions using multiple measures of student performance, including grades and classroom work in addition to test scores.
Key Components of the Changes
- Promotion decisions will no longer be based primarily on state test scores but rather on a more holistic assessment of student work throughout the year.
- Teachers will complete promotion portfolios for students identified as being at risk of not making sufficient progress.
- If the principal determines the portfolio demonstrates that “the student has attained minimum promotion benchmarks,” the student will be promoted. If not, the student will be recommended for summer school.
- The DOE is overhauling summer school. Instead of being evaluated by a multiple choice test at the end of the summer, student readiness for promotion will be determined based on students actual work in summer school.
Change the Stakes 