Sep 17, 2008 8:05 am US/Eastern
Grades Are In: NYC Schools Flourish
Mayor Bloomberg Ecstatic After 56 Percent Of the 1,000-Plus Schools Evaluated Improved Since Last Report
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Of the 1,043 NYC school graded, 817 received an A or B.
AP
You want your children to succeed, but what do you do if their school is failing them? On Tuesday, the Department of Education released its progress report on New York City schools.
The school grades are in and according to Mayor Michael Bloomberg, they are good.
"This is a perfect example of how accountability creates incentives for success," Bloomberg said.
The second annual School Progress Report was released Tuesday. Of the 1,043 elementary, middle and K-8 schools graded, 56 percent improved or maintained an A grade, while 21 percent dropped.
The grade breakdown goes as follows:
* 394 received an A
* 423 received a B
* 150 received a C
* 50 received a D
* 18 received a failing grade.
Pegye Johnson's great grandson attends PS 5 in Bedford-Stuyvesant. Last year the school got an F. This year it jumped to an A.
"You just go along thinking, 'I'm doing well.' Then all of a sudden you get this F and we're not doing well. And we have to do better and teachers pitched in," said Johnson, who is also the president of the local PTA.
A total of 68 schools received D and F grades, which means they could be closed or have their principals replaced.
"Schools don't do the job, they're not gonna be there," Bloomberg said of the principals. "Our obligation is to our children and if they aren't getting the kind of education they need then we're not gonna be afraid to break eggs."
PS 8 in Brooklyn Heights is one of the 18 to get an F, a grade parents disagree with.
"I think the method of ranking has to change," Maedline Schwartzman said. "I think it's a great school."
Added parent Irene Vernadakis: "We're delighted to be here. We're not paying attention to it."
The majority of a school's grade is based on student progress, plus performance and school environment.
None of the 34 schools that received Fs last year failed again this year.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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