Schoolyard News spends some time with the recent report that analyzed the performance of BPS's five-year-old school-assignment system, the one that was supposed to improve choices for parents and their kids, but didn't if they weren't white or Asian-American.
Bottom line: If you screw with a computer program, you need to make sure it still works.
The whole thing fell apart because of problems assigning students for sixth grade - not all BPS elementary schools go that high. So the authors tinkered with the algorithm and came up with new assignment lists, but then didn't check any of the resulting assignment lists actually still had good schools on them:
Most amazing: Apparently no human being checked to see that the system was working as intended.
The result was that many children applying to new schools for sixth grade had no MCAS tier 1 schools on their lists. That was true for more than half the sixth grade applicants from Jamaica Plain and Roslindale and more than a third of those from Roxbury.
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I don't think it's a problem either
By Will LaTulippe
Wed, 07/25/2018 - 2:13pm
This lady's kids need not go to a school to be among a diverse crowd, provided that they participate in sports or the arts with a diverse crowd outside of school.
Problem for who?
By Sock_Puppet
Wed, 07/25/2018 - 2:30pm
I don't think it's a problem for the kids who go to private school.
I think it’s a problem
By Neighbor12
Wed, 07/25/2018 - 2:51pm
I chose BOS over private school because I believe in public education. I’ve spent years advocating and fundraising for ALL the students in my school. My daughters are wonderfully social and adaptable and I credit their school for supporting that. I think the loss of families like mine is a problem for all stakeholders. I think it’s a shame that BPS has been unanchired for so long. And has made bad decisions that lead me to feel this way. When we started I wanted to use my energy to help the system. It’s run over me.
I'm With You
By Failed Us
Fri, 07/27/2018 - 6:13pm
BPS wants families like ours (yours and mine) but they ran us out because we are lucky enough to buy our way out of the system.
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