AFC works to change education policy so that the public school system serves all children effectively. We publish policy reports and data analyses, testify at the City and State levels, speak out in the press to bring attention to the challenges facing the students and families we serve, and join with other advocates, parents, youth, and educators to call for change.
102 Results Found
This 2005 article, written by AFC Deputy Director Elisa Hyman and published in the Clearinghouse REVIEW Journal of Poverty Law and Policy, describes the efforts undertaken by AFC to address the push-out problem in New York City.
This 2005 article, published in the Clearinghouse REVIEW Journal of Poverty Law and Policy and written by AFC Executive Director Jill Chaifetz and Program Associate Rachel Kravitz, describes research that demonstrates why retention policies are damaging to students and presents methods for advocating against retention.
This paper analyzes 25 years of research documenting the failure of single-test retention policies, looking in particular depth at New York City’s past failed retention policies and the current data on Chicago’s retention policy. The paper was accompanied by a sign-on letter in opposition to the Mayor’s announced policy to hold back fifth graders on the sole basis of their scores on standardized tests.
This 2004 report by AFC and the New York Immigration Coalition examines the role of Parent Coordinators and their ability to serve the needs of Limited English Proficient (LEP) parents.
During the 2001-02 school year, AFC piloted a project called the Domestic Violence Education Advocacy Project (DVEAP) that provided individual school-related advocacy for children who had been exposed to domestic violence or abuse and who were having significant problems in school. These children were unable to perform up to their academic potential as a result of suffering from undetected and untreated trauma-related illnesses. AFC found that the public school system, in particular the special education system, bears the brunt of this problem.
This report assesses the manner in which special education services are delivered to children in NYC who have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders, with a particular focus on the delivery of services to poor children and children of color.
This report, a joint release from AFC, the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University, the Urban Institute, and the Civil Society Institute, highlights the urgent need to address the impending crisis of minority groups not graduating from high school at troubling rates.
This 2004 report by AFC and the New York Immigration Coalition addresses the lack of meaningful access afforded to parents with limited English proficiency to their children’s schools and the school system due to language differences.
This report examines the results of surveys that were conducted to assess the implementation and effectiveness of Supplemental Education Services (SES). These tutoring and remediation services were provided for the first time in 2002-03 to over 240,000 eligible children in schools “in need of improvement.” The results of the surveys show major problems with implementation of SES in New York City, especially for students with disabilities and those classified as English Language Learners.
This report by the Office of Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum and Advocates for Children of New York examines data documenting students in New York City who have been designated as “discharged” from the school system, an indicator that has received little public attention. Anecdotal evidence suggests that many of these discharges may have been forced “push-outs” of students who have a legal right to remain in public schools.