One day before a rally expected to draw 12,000 parents and teachers demanding upgrades for the city’s failing schools, Chancellor Carmen Fariña on Wednesday unveiled a plan to eliminate letter grades in evaluating the institutions.
“This is a new era in education in New York City,” Fariña said at PS 506 in Brooklyn. “We are no longer forcing change on people — we’re creating change with people.”
Organizers gave her an F for proposing a way to measure schools that downplays objective test scores for criteria such as quality reviews.
“Eliminating report cards is another rejection of accountability for failing schools,” warned Families for Excellent Schools CEO Jeremiah Kittredge. “There are already enough opinions about the schools — parents want facts.”
Fariña trashed the letter- grade system as lacking credibility, saying she visited many A schools with complacent teachers and lower-graded schools that were judged unfairly.
“Schools have unique qualities that cannot be captured in a letter grade. They are not restaurants,” she said.