By Anna Gustafson
Queens high schools fared better on the public school progress reports released this week compared to last year, with more borough institutions landing A’s than they did in 2008.
“What you see in Queens is what you see citywide,” said Daniel Kanner, a spokesman for the city Department of Education. “There was an increase in A’s %u2026 and only one F citywide, which was in the Bronx.”
City Schools Chancellor Joel Klein released the 2009 progress reports for public high schools Monday and 41 percent of the 49 Queens high schools received A’s — an 8 percent jump over last year’s 33 percent. About 35 percent of borough schools were given B’s, 18 percent received C’s and 6 percent landed D’s. No Queens school received an F.
Last year 49 percent of Queens schools were given B’s, 13 percent had C’s, 2 percent received D’s and 2 percent were marked with F’s.
For example, Springfield Gardens High School, Francis Lewis High School in Fresh Meadows and Forest Hills High School all landed A’s; Long Island City and Benjamin N. Cardozo high schools each received a B; John Bowne High School in Flushing, John Adams High School in Jamaica, Newtown High School in Elmhurst and Richmond Hill High School got C’s; and Jamaica High School received a D.
“We continue to see more high school students making progress toward graduation and more students meeting the milestone of graduation, which is exactly what we want to see and exactly what the high school progress reports are intended to reward,” Klein said. “High school progress reports continue to serve as a useful tool for parents and other stakeholders — especially for families of eighth-graders who are deciding where to apply to high school.”
Citywide, 139 of the 311 schools given progress reports received an A, 92 received a B, 58 received a C, 21 received a D and one received an F. Last year, 113 high schools received an A, 123 got a B, 34 landed a C, eight received Ds and six were given an F.
The third-annual progress reports give each high school an overall letter grade based on school environment, student performance and student progress.
School environment includes the results of surveys taken by parents, students and teachers last spring, as well as student attendance rates. Student performance measures the number of graduates and rewards students receive. Student progress is determined by how well schools help students move toward graduation by amassing course credits and passing Regents exams.
A school’s progress report score in part comes from comparing the institution’s results to about 40 or so other high schools in the city serving similar student populations.
Schools that earned D’s and F’s could face consequences that include leadership change or closure. Students enrolled in schools that earned an F will be able to transfer to another school.
Reach reporter Anna Gustafson by e-mail at agustafson@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 174.
