New York students have endured incredible challenges and disruptions to their learning during the ongoing pandemic, which has exacerbated many pre-existing educational inequities. Advocates in the education equity space can agree we all want students to graduate high school prepared to thrive in college and in the workforce. Yet we sometimes have differing perspectives on what this means.
Recently, The Education Trust–New York hosted a roundtable discussion for advocates across New York State to hear varying perspectives on assessments, graduation measures, and accountability. Advocates engaged in a solutions-oriented, intimate conversation with each other to find opportunities to collaborate to ensure that together we are advancing a more equitable path forward for New York’s students.
In the discussion, attendees participated in a gallery walk around the room regarding what comes to mind when they think about assessments, and what are the intentions and impact of accountability.
We also sought to better understand as a group how systems are held accountable, how resources are allocated, and what solutions we as a state can hold the Board of Regents and the labor and education committees accountable to.
Above all, despite the different perspectives, a core question remained — what kind of system would not only help our students succeed but also be equitable and excellent at the same time?
Those are the issues that we hope — together with our fellow advocates — to find solutions to. The future of New York depends on how well we prepare our students for success, so we look forward to continuing to collaborate with fellow advocates on what graduation measures and accountability standards should look like.
Thank you to our partners Educators for Excellence for hosting us and to all that joined us in this important conversation!