David Steiner, who preceded John King as New York Commissioner of Education, wrote an article defending the collapse of test scores in New York. Like Joel Klein and Arne Duncan, he agrees that we are finally telling the truth about the widespread failure of public schools (and, one might add, the even greater failure of charter schools, which had a higher fail rate than public schools). It’s amazing how those who were in charge, who made decisions about resource allocation, curriculum, standards, teacher qualifications, class size, and everything else that affect schools, now stand back and absolve themselves of any accountability.

The first letter responding to Steiner’s article nailed an important difference between Massachusetts, which has led the nation on NAEP in reading and math, and New York, whose scores have been almost flat for the past decade. Gregory McCrea wrote:

“Mr. Steiner leaves out one important point when he compares reform efforts in New York and Massachusetts. At the same time Massachusetts was demanding higher standards through their Education Reform Act, they were dramatically increasing funding to public schools. In fact, from 1993-2002, state spending on public schools increased 8% a year, for a total of over $2 billion.
New York has failed to do the same. Instead, funding for schools in New York has decreased or flat-lined through the political shell game known as the Gap Elimination Adjustment. Despite the politician’s suggestions otherwise, funding has not increased and GEA continues to be the most significant drain on public school funding across the state. More recently, boards of education have had to deal with a tax cap railroaded through by the governor and the legislature. As in Massachusetts decades before, the New York tax cap has made school districts more heavily dependent on state aid which only worsens the funding equation.

“Anyone who actually works in a New York public school (something most of the State Ed. bureaucrats have never done) will tell you that the dramatic shift in testing requirements combined with cuts in funding will decimate learning opportunities for New York’s children. Urban and rural schools alike, wrought with poverty, will be forced to redirect funds toward unproven curriculum models and canned materials based on the false promises of Common Core alignment and improved test scores. Music programs will be cut, art teachers will be directed to teach reading modules, class sizes will increase dramatically, and districts will be forced to cut valuable extra-curricular activities. Students will lose enriched learning opportunities and be herded into “interventions” to increase learning and achievement, the very thing that will most certainly not occur.

In his rush to defend his former employer, Mr. Steiner has narrowed his focus on increased standards for all and ignored the influence of funding, poverty, and parental involvement on student achievement (the latter two have the most significant impact). I am disappointed, but not surprised, that he could not offer a more complete review of the challenges facing schools today.”