Category Archives: Uncategorized

Are there too many Jews in Hollywood? Are there too many transgender people in the military? Are the too many Latino baseball players? Are there too many Asian students at the New York City specialized high schools? Did you answer … Continue reading →

On June 3, 2018 Mayor Bill de Blasio and then schools chancellor Richard Carranza introduced a plan for an alternative to using the SHSAT for selective high school admissions. Known to some as “The 7% plan” the idea is to … Continue reading →

Currently the only factor to determine admissions to the New York City specialized high schools is a 114 question mainly multiple choice question about math and reading. Out of 100,000 8th graders — 25,000 who take the SHSAT test — … Continue reading →

I’ve been following and participating in debates about education politics for about ten years. In an oversimplified way the two ‘sides’ of the debate are the ‘public education advocates’ and the ‘corporate reformers’. The ‘reformers’ hit a peak of popularity … Continue reading →

There are currently eight specialized high school in New York City. Out of the total 100,000 8th graders in the New York City school system about 25,000 take the SHSAT — the sole criteria for admissions — around 5,000 offers … Continue reading →

There are about 100,000 8th graders in New York City. About 25,000 of them take the SHSAT. About 5,000 of them are offered a spot in one of the eight specialized high schools, 800 at the most competitive school, where … Continue reading →

Out of the around 100,000 8th graders in New York City, 25,000 of them take the SHSAT. Of the 25,000 test takers, about 5,000 get offers to one of the eight specialized high schools. The demographic breakdown of New York … Continue reading →

The first book I wrote, ‘Reluctant Disciplinarian‘, was published in 1999 and it is still in print. That book was mainly a memoir about my rough first year and some advice about classroom management mixed in with it. In 2008 … Continue reading →

In 2011 I was invited by ASCD to adapt a chapter from my second book ‘Beyond Survival’ and make an article for their new teacher issue. I noticed that the link to that article is no longer working so I’m … Continue reading →

Though he died before I was born, I’ve heard many stories about my father’s uncle — my great uncle Moe. One of these stories was about how uncle Moe worked at the carnival and how despite being a small man, … Continue reading →