Per all this NY test score back and forth and what it means for New York City and the contentious debate about the ongoing reforms there, as a public service Eduwonk is offering a quick guide to both sides so you can move on to other things this weekend. Print and keep these in your pocket for quick reference:
Anti-Bloomberg/Klein argument: Test score were up all over the state, Bloomberg and Klein are just riding a wave that’s out there. In fact, because of everything they’ve done the scores in the city should have dramatically outpaced the state. It’s a failure!
Pro-Bloomberg/Klein argument: Sure, test scores are up everywhere, and that’s a good thing. But considering all the challenges in New York City and the fact that the system has 1.2 million kids, these gains are noteworthy nonetheless. The city hasn’t always kept pace with the state and has now turned a corner. It’s a success!
I appreciate the balance, but in this case it is not good enough.
The burden of proof falls on those who are intitiating the change. School kids are not guinea pigs.
If your policy has a fifty fifty chance of making improvements (and I think you got it right on that), then it is the responsibility of the reformer to go back to the drawing board and come up with something more promising.
And the alternative is not the status quo. We have a lot of more modest, and more promising alternatives out there. For instance, the Bolder Broader Challenge.
John Thompson,
Millions of black and brown students failing but the burden of proof is on the reformers?