The contract with the educational company that administers the Gifted & Talented test for public school preschoolers narrowly failed to win approval from the city’s education board Thursday, jeopardizing Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan to hold the test in April for the last time.
The vote on renewing the $1.7 million contract with NCS Pearson came in the early morning hours Thursday after a marathon session of the Panel for Educational Policy, the committee made up of 15 appointed members and Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza.
Eight of the PEP members voted against the renewal, while 7 members voted yes. Carranza does not vote on contracts.
With the failure to renew the Pearson contract, it was not immediately clear what the city will do to hold the G&T test in April, but de Blasio said the program will happen this year. "You will have an opportunity to apply for those programs this year. We'll work on the right methodology and we'll announce it soon," he said at his press briefing Thursday.
Since 2012, Pearson has administered the G&T test for New York City, which is the only city in America to test 4-year-olds to determine entry into special kindergarten programs as well as one of five specialized elementary schools. The G&T program, as well as the city’s specialized high schools which require entrance exams, have become a battleground for the fight to desegregate schools -- critics say these programs are discriminatory and hoard resources for a small percentage of children. Advocates say these programs offer the best education for accelerated students, and the outcry has only come after the G&T programs and specialized high schools have grown in Asian enrollment.
The G&T test in particular has been criticized as a meaningless metric that mainly measures which families in New York City can afford to hire test-prep tutors for their 4-year-olds. In 2017, more than 14,500 preschoolers took the test for 2,305 seats, according to the Wall Street Journal. Many neighborhood elementary schools offer gifted classes that are separate from other classes, with an estimated 16,000 students enrolled. Black and Hispanic students make up less than 20% of G&T enrollment, though they make up 65% of kindergarten students, the Daily News reported.
Carranza has been vocal about his opposition to the test, and on January 13th, de Blasio announced that the city planned to administer the test for the last time in April while the Department of Education plans for a new approach for the future.
“We need a much better approach to serving kids who have a lot of capacity,” de Blasio said at his press briefing on January 13th. “Some kids have a lot of talent. Some kids are ready to learn faster. But that's a lot of kids, a lot more than are benefiting currently from the very small amount of gifted and talented programs that exist.”
PEP member Shannon Waite, who voted against the contract, said during the meeting the G&T program is “rooted in and undergirds a white supremacist structure." She was also concerned about the logistics of holding the in-person test as the pandemic continues.
But many of the parents who spoke in favor of keeping the G&T test said the program should be grown to accommodate more students instead of abandoned without an alternative plan. “I think that accelerated education programs and achieving equity in public schools are not incompatible outcomes,” said parent Johannes Homan at the meeting. “I urge people to think about a situation where you could expand the program.”
The DOE said there will be more details on how to apply for the G&T program forthcoming: “Earlier this month we announced a plan that laid out an equitable and long-term path forward for Gifted and Talented programs in New York City, without forcing a last minute-change for families during an already challenging time. We will share next steps with families soon," said DOE spokesperson Katie O'Hanlon in an email Thursday.
