BY M. JUNAID ALAM
The 64-45 218 St. school joined 12 other District 26 schools in winning monetary rewards for receiving an A on the agency's progress report, which is partly based on standardized test scores in addition to a top score of “well developed” on a broader-based quality review. Only 10 percent of schools citywide won the designation.School Principal Marsha Goldberg thanked Klein for the $14,000 in funds, which she said would go toward procuring more school materials. The focus of the visit, however, was jockeying over policy.The District 26 Community District Education Council and state Assemblyman Mark Weprin (D-Little Neck)have criticized the progress reports for too heavily promoting standardized testing and have voiced fears that top-performing schools would be effectively penalized because of their already-high test scores.At a press conference held in the school library, attended by a cavalcade of cameramen, reporters and both Assemblyman Weprinand his brother, Councilman David Weprin (D-Hollis), Klein pointedly referred to District 26's performance as proof that such fears are unfounded.”We're rewarding success and that's very important here,” he said. “This is proof that wherever you start, there's plenty of room to get better.”Klein then ceded the floor to Jim Lieberman, the DOE's chief accountability officer, who clashed with Assemblyman Weprin at a CDEC 26 meeting last month over the efficacy of the agency's new rating system.”When we first started this, there were lots of worries” expressed by local officials, Lieberman said, recalling e-mails he received criticizing the progress report system.As a result, he continued, District 26 scores were among the first he examined when the results came in. The statistics, he noted triumphantly, bore out the reality on the ground –the district's status as the top academic performer in the city was reflected in the new assessment.Councilman Weprin sidestepped the policy debate, briefly praising Klein's efforts in helping the district “go from excellent to more excellent.”Assemblyman Weprin, however, stood by his earlier criticisms of the program. Prefacing his remarks by saying he did not want to appear rude, he nonetheless asserted that “too much test prep is going on” and compared the school environment to a Kaplan test seminar.Klein gently countered the remarks, saying standardized testing was a necessary step in preparing children for the future.Also notable, if only by way of absence, was CDEC 26 President Robert Caloras, who said he was told by a DOE official that Klein had no plans to visit the district that day. In a letter to the DOE, he described the communication failure as an “insult” to the council.Reach reporter M. Junaid Alam by e-mail at malam@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300 Ext 174.
