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    Joined: Feb 2010
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    The test-based admission process at Stuyvesant and other selective NYC public schools is again under attack, because the racial mix of admitted students is very different from that of New York City. I hope the process is retained.

    In Defense of New York City’s Elite Public High Schools
    by Jeffrey S Flier
    Quillette
    March 22, 2019

    Quote
    ...

    Those of us who believe in the merit principle, and who have seen firsthand how these schools can improve the lives of the students who attend them, should raise their voice in defence of the current system.

    That would include me. In early 1961, when I was a ninth grader at a Bronx junior high school, a teacher suggested that I take the entrance exam for the Bronx High School of Science, one of the city’s elite high schools (both then and now). Like most of the other kids who were encouraged to apply, I was a Jewish kid from either a working-class or middle-class household. Few of us had parents who’d attended college, and we had all seemed to have a knack for science.

    Back then, there was no such thing as “test prep”: You simply showed up, took the test, and went home. Several months thereafter, some of us were informed we’d been accepted to “Science,” as the school was known colloquially. My attendance would require an hour of travel by two buses, rather than a short walk to the local high school, but I found the idea exciting. My parents encouraged me, and I entered 10th grade at the Bronx High School of Science in September, 1961.

    My class of 700 or so was at least 80% Jewish. Perhaps a quarter were girls. The one constant among all students was unusually high intelligence. Of all the institutions I’ve gone on to attend or work at—including Harvard Medical School, where I served as dean—this was the place that featured, on average, the smartest people. The main currency in this realm was academic performance: Grades were published to two decimal points in the school newspaper twice per year (I could have done without that), and our heroes were the math team rather than the basketball team (we had no football team).

    Like a good minor-league baseball player who faces a true major-league pitcher for the first time, I quickly realized that many of my classmates possessed brute intelligence that was simply on a higher level than my own—especially in math and physics. It was a safe school full of well-behaved bookworms. And not everyone pursued science. The class produced high achievers in every sphere—including future poets, writers, musicians and lawyers. One of ’64 classmates was famed mathematician Gregory Chaitin—after whom is named the Chaitin constant in algorithmic information theory. (He sat next to me on my first day of class in 1961. He was the one writing out long equations for fun during English class.) Another was science writer Dava Sobel. In all, the school’s alumni have earned eight Nobel Prizes, eight Pulitzer prizes, two Turing awards and, yes, Two Emmys. (I haven’t won any of these prizes.)

    ...

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    Another interesting and thought-provoking article, Bostonian!

    The comments run in every direction, here are some which I thought were particularly insightful:
    Originally Posted by article comments
    Tommy - March 23, 2019
    The problem isn’t the neighborhood schools, but the students. There’s no accountability and little discipline. And by “discipline,” I mostly mean that the kids simply do not do their homework. Nor do they read on their own at home. This is a cultural problem. We’ve put so much time and money and effort into creating better teachers, but if students are not doing the work, what’s the point? ... these schools should not be dumbed down... these schools work, so don’t saddle them with social engineering.

    C.G. - March 23, 2019
    ...there aren’t enough safe schools where kids of all levels can learn.

    ga gamba - March 23, 2019
    ...Or, in other words, too many unsafe students allowed to remain at school to intimidate and attack fellow students and teachers to the detriment of learning.

    Paul B - March 24, 2019
    ...Should not be a binary choice, elite school or you are doomed.

    I also picked up a new word, whinge.

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    "Back then, there was no such thing as “test prep”: You simply showed up, took the test, and went home. Several months thereafter, some of us were informed we’d been accepted to “Science,” as the school was known colloquially..."

    When I googled "high+intelligence+elite+schools" I had a pop-up tell me my child's IQ score could be improved in order that he/she could get into an elite school. It had testimonies of all things. You have to wonder how these preppers are even legal.

    Re The Jewish percentage in Brooklyn's school.... similar story here in N.C. where I went to a private school in high school (I was about to drop out of public). The atmosphere went from a public school with all its fights, etc. to a place where high achievement was valued. Wonderful place. I just wish I could've gone earlier. Playing catchup with that crowd was tough.

    Last edited by Alannc44; 03/25/19 11:01 AM.
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    Originally Posted by Alannc44
    "Back then, there was no such thing as “test prep”: You simply showed up, took the test, and went home.
    Yes! So glad you mentioned that point made by the author in the OP's article. smile

    Originally Posted by Alannc44
    ...I had a pop-up tell me my child's IQ score could be improved in order that he/she could get into an elite school. It had testimonies of all things. You have to wonder how these preppers are even legal.
    Yes! There is a distinction between preps offered by test companies themselves (often for free or at minimal cost, examples: ACT SAT), and preps available from other entities, including IQ test preps. While I believe the former are ethical and serve potential test-takers impartially, I have often wondered whether the latter involve violation of copyright, infringement on intellectual property rights, etc.

    Originally Posted by Alannc44
    I was about to drop out of public
    Unfortunately, dropping out and school refusal are not uncommon among the gifted.

    Originally Posted by Alannc44
    ... a place where high achievement was valued. Wonderful place. I just wish I could've gone earlier. Playing catchup with that crowd was tough.
    Sounds like you rose to the challenge. smile

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    The thing about the majority being Jewish, is that because that was the main immigrant community after the war, where people lost everything and learned the only thing you have is your education. So now they are filled with Asian, children of immigrants. Different ethnicity, same story.


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