There was a time - 50 ~ 60 years ago, NYC public schools were among the best in the country. then the UFT took control.
‘nuff said.
I’m a retired urban public school teacher. Permit me to make two points.
1. I fought my corrupt teachers union every step of the way. But the unions have very little to do with the decline of public schools. They have zero input into what is being taught in the classroom or how the schools are managed.
2. I could write a book about what’s wrong with urban public education. Instead I’ll just mention the top two problems.
- Disruptive students are tolerated by administrators. These administrators get bonuses and promotions when their suspension numbers are low. So they suspend very few disruptive students.
In a class of 25 students, one or two chronically disruptive kids can and do put a complete stop to learning. It’s tough to teach algebra when you have one kid running around the room and two more yelling at each other.
- The second problem is attendance. Even in my worst classes most of the kids were okay. But they only came to school maybe three or four times a week. Missing 12 school days in a quarter was not uncommon.
So, can urban public schools be fixed? I think not. They are too far gone.