2022 has been a busy, challenging, exciting year for the Research Alliance for New York City Schools. It has been gratifying to be together in the office again, to meet with partners in person, and to spend time in school buildings that are buzzing with activity. We have worked hard to produce evidence that is useful to a wide range of education stakeholders, including school and district leaders, educators, advocates, parents and students. Below we share a few highlights from our year.
Publications
New releases in 2022 included:
- Integrating Computer Science and Computational Thinking into Elementary Science, which summarized findings and lessons from the Maker Partnership Project and provided access to resources designed for MPP, such as sample lesson plans.
- Improving the Teacher Pipeline in the Bronx: Examining the Impact of New York City’s Teacher and School Leaders Program, which highlighted notable benefits from the Teacher Leadership program, including improved teacher retention.
- Policing and Educational Outcomes, which found that when there was heavy Stop, Question, and Frisk activity in Black and Latinx students' home neighborhoods, they were substantially less likely to graduate from high school.
- CS4All: Examining Equity in Computer Science Access and Participation; this report explored the extent to which NYC schools are reaching all of their students with computer science instruction, as well as the extent to which participation is equitable for girls and Black and Latinx students—who have been starkly underrepresented in CS education and careers.
- ASD Nest: Exploring Educators' Perspectives on an Innovative Model for Autistic Students; this brief provided insight into the factors educators see as important for implementing the ASD Nest model, challenges that may need to be addressed, and considerations for replicating the program in other schools and districts.
- Senior Research Associate Kathryn Hill co-authored “‘It’s a Marathon, Not a Sprint’: The Implementation and Outcomes of a Yearlong Racial Justice Intervention,” in AERA Open, together with Research Alliance affiliate Adriana Villavicencio and former Research Alliance staffer Sarah Klevan.
- Research Alliance staff also contributed to “Understanding Barriers to School-Wide Computational Thinking Integration at the Elementary Grades: Lessons from Three Schools” and the Career and Technical Education Research Network's new Equity Framework for Career and Technical Education Research.
2022 in Spotlights
How Equitable is Access to a Positive School Climate in NYC Schools?
The third post in our series examines how school-wide perceptions of school climate vary by race/ethnicity, finding that Black students, in particular, appear to attend schools with climates that are rated lower on average.
Access to Advanced Coursework in NYC High Schools
The second post in our series examines the degree to which students in NYC have had opportunities to take classes that would help them graduate from high school and prepare for post-secondary education, exploring how access to advanced coursework varies by race/ethnicity and neighborhood poverty.
To What Extent Are Students With Disabilities Included in K-12 Computer Science Education?
This Spotlight post uses data on students’ Individualized Education Plans and course enrollment records from the 2018-2019 school year to explore the degree to which students with disabilities are participating in CS.
New Work
This year, the Research Alliance launched new studies aimed at identifying and addressing barriers to implementing CS4All and developing Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Educational practices in CS instruction. We also introduced our new Equity Indicators series, with analyses examining high school students’ access to advanced coursework and a positive school climate. Looking ahead, we will be working to develop a full suite of equity indicators, pinpointing differences not only in student outcomes, but also key resources and opportunities available to students, from pre-K through college.
Chancellor David Banks, Research Alliance Executive Director James Kemple and Deputy Director Cheri Fancsali sit at a round table discussion at the 2022 NYC Equity Summit.
Public Engagement
In 2022, members of the Research Alliance team participated in a variety of virtual and in-person events. Research Alliance Deputy Director Cheri Fancsali served as a panelist for “Defining Equity and Envisioning an Equitable NYC,” along with City Council Member Nantasha Williams and NYC Racial Justice Commission Policy Director Jimmy Pan, in an engaging, cross-sector conversation moderated by FPWA’s Raysa S. Rodriguez. Fancsali, along with Research Alliance Executive Director James Kemple, also participated in the 2022 NYC Equity Summit, convened by the Mayor's Office of Equity, FPWA, and the Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice. Throughout the year, Research Alliance staff presented to diverse groups of policymakers, practitioners, and funders, as well as at academic conferences, including APPAM, AEFP, AERA, and SREE (where Kemple was named President—his term begins in January 2023).
In the News
This year, Research Alliance work and experts were featured in a range of news stories, including:
- "Why Schools' Going Back to 'Normal' Wont Work For Students of Color," The 74 Million, (November 26, 2022).
- "Computer science classes have an equity issue. Some NYC educators are trying to change that," Chalkbeat, (November 21, 2022).
- "2022 Power Players in Education," PoliticsNY, (October 03, 2022).
- "N.Y.C. Children Held Ground in Reading, but Lagged in Math, Tests Show," The New York Times, (September 28, 2022).
- "41% of NYC students were chronically absent last school year," Chalkbeat, (September 16, 2022).
- "Chancellor Banks launches 16th annual NYC school survey to elevate voices of parents and students," AMNY, (February 14, 2022).
- "NYC School Survey seeks parent, teacher, student feedback," Staten Island Advance, (February 14, 2022).
- "NYC officials keep a lid on data from tests to address ‘learning gaps,’" Chalkbeat, (January 27, 2022).
- "Study: Common school ratings biased, often inaccurate," Chalkbeat, (January 24, 2022).
As always, we welcome your questions, feedback and ideas for new areas of research. With 2022 coming to a close, please know how grateful we are for your continued readership, partnership and work on behalf of New York City’s students and communities. From everyone here at the Research Alliance, we wish you a warm and wonderful holiday season and a happy, healthy new year!