Graduation rates have soared at New York City schools that don’t require students to take Regents exams, reports the New York Post.
Ten percent of the city’s high schools are allowed to use alternatives to the state exam. Many are “international” schools that cater to immigrants who aren’t fluent in English.
Science students at Pan American International High in Queens.
Students qualify for graduation by writing essays, doing oral presentations and other projects that are graded by their own teachers.
The graduation rate at Pan American International HS in Queens went from 50 percent in 2014 to 76 percent in 2015, “leap-frogging past even the citywide average of 70 percent,” reports the Post.
Lyons Community School in Brooklyn raised its graduation rate from 46 percent to 65 percent, “while the International Community HS in The Bronx and International HS at Union Square in Manhattan both produced 18 percent spikes.”
Will these students be prepared for success in college or the workforce? Will the district track them to find out?