Prep Course for Specialized HS - Feb 28 Deadline (Stuyvesant: low income, best schools)

[queensgrl]

Specialized prep open to 6th & 7th graders

[nycgirllovesde]

Thanks for the info. As a Bronx Science alum I like to inform others about the treasure in the NYC specialized high schools. I just posted this to my fb page

[Andez]

Brooklyn Tech alum here. Aka the best of the specialized high schools. I always hear about these programs that are aimed at "low-income" students, but the amount of Hispanics and Blacks in the specialized high schools (Stuyvesant in particular) is still abysmally low. I actually think the number is still dropping.

[bill83]

I guess only Asian low income kids benefit from theses prep services. Many Asian parents can barely speak English. All top 3 specialized high schools are dominated by Asians. Stuyvesant HS has 72%. Those who failed should first study why the Asian succeeded.

[SobroGuy]

I took the test and only got into Brooklyn Tech...and living in the Bronx was not about to travel to BK. Prep tests are a necessary expense to get into these schools, and had I taken one I probably would have been accepted by Bronx Science or Stuyvesant (but who knows). Alot of parents, especially lower-income, are not savvy enough to understand what it takes to get into these schools, and create a plan to get their kids into them. Many have their priorities in the wrong place, or are simply not aware of all the resources available to them.

I recommend every kid taking a preparatory class, regardless of whether they are interested in taking the specialized tests or not, as they will provide advanced level critical thinking skills and useful test taking skills that they otherwise would not have and ultimately assist them in whatever school they go to.

[Andez]

Originally Posted by bill83

I guess only Asian low income kids benefit from theses prep services. Many Asian parents can barely speak English. All top 3 specialized high schools are dominated by Asians. Stuyvesant HS has 72%. Those who failed should first study why the Asian succeeded.

Thanks for reminding us about something everyone knows about the specialized high schools. Anyways, many Asian parents put their kids in Saturday school. They come from a culture that values education. The parent's have high expectations for the children and are usually very strict.

[bg7]

Originally Posted by Andez

Thanks for reminding us about something everyone knows about the specialized high schools.

Not everyone knows it at all, I meet people who are astounded at the figures for how successful aisans have been in doing well enough to get into the specialized HSs to the extent that while they are majority at Stuy, Bronx Sci and Brooklyn tech. Absolutely amazing.

I remember just 4 or 5 years back some NY councilman saying on NY1 news how we have to get more minorities into the specialized high schools, then he went on to say i.e. more blacks, more hispanics and more asians in the specialized schools....

As someone above said - the secret to success in getting into the schools is right there - copy what is being done by the minority group which is now in fact the majority in the best schools.

[jcoltrane]

Originally Posted by bg7

Not everyone knows it at all, I meet people who are astounded at the figures for how successful aisans have been in doing well enough to get into the specialized HSs to the extent that while they are majority at Stuy, Bronx Sci and Brooklyn tech. Absolutely amazing.

I remember just 4 or 5 years back some NY councilman saying on NY1 news how we have to get more minorities into the specialized high schools, then he went on to say i.e. more blacks, more hispanics and more asians in the specialized schools....

I wonder if he recent NYT article spurs this thread?

Anyway, such articles only tell a partial story, and frankly do NOT reflect reality and the WHY, or perhaps HOW. Frankly certain very real facts are ignored and not considered.

Back in my day, the late 70s, Brooklyn Tech, for example, had virtually an all black population, and most of the top schools had somewhere like 25% minorities.

Also, the Asian population with NYC, overall, was significantly lower!!

So, the real question is what has changed?

First, the asian population has EXPLODED!

Second, the American/native born black bourgoise and middle class population has declined significantly. The black bourgoise have abandoned the city completely (specifically the four boroughs) and has no presence in the NYC schools system.

Non-bourgoise middle class American/native blacks have in a MAJORITY percentage abandoned the city beginning in the 'cracks' days, either leaving the city, state and region entirely or moving to NJ

[jad2k]

Originally Posted by jcoltrane

I wonder if he recent NYT article spurs this thread?

Anyway, such articles only tell a partial story, and frankly do NOT reflect reality and the WHY, or perhaps HOW. Frankly certain very real facts are ignored and not considered.

Back in my day, the late 70s, Brooklyn Tech, for example, had virtually an all black population, and most of the top schools had somewhere like 25% minorities.

Also, the Asian population with NYC, overall, was significantly lower!!

So, the real question is what has changed?

First, the asian population has EXPLODED!

Second, the American/native born black bourgoise and middle class population has declined significantly. The black bourgoise have abandoned the city completely (specifically the four boroughs) and has no presence in the NYC schools system.

Non-bourgoise middle class American/native blacks have in a MAJORITY percentage abandoned the city beginning in the 'cracks' days, either leaving the city, state and region entirely or moving to NJ

Yeah I read that article too and was wondering the same. Something very important to point out came from one of the replies to the article. Many of the black students that perform well academically are (also) courted by elite private schools AND offered full scholarships to those private schools. They are encouraged to choose the private schools over the NYC ones. That's one other reason why the population of black students (and I assume Hispanic students too) at these specialized schools has seen a decline since the 70s

Whenever this topic comes up about "why Asians do so well", it's so easy to fall on racist POVs. It has nothing to do with "race" and everything to do with culture. Culturally, there is a higher value placed on education in Asian countries and many of these kids are first generation Americans so the influence of the importance of education from their parents is still very strong. Also, people may not realize this but this is the same value structure in most African countries (and in many Caribbean countries too). Education is VERY important. Of the black students that perform well academically, I'd be curious to see how many of them are first generation Americans too. I'm betting it's high. I know that if you ask a lot of 1st generation Africans, they'll tell you their parents said things like "you better not get below a B" or "you should be studying more" or "why are you not at the top of your class" or "you only got a 95 on the last test...what happened to the other 5 points (my dad actually said that to me once, seriously). Not getting into a GOOD school was not an option and even then you must perform well in school and enter a respectable field of study like medicine, law, or science.

If more black Americans placed a higher value on learning and less on rims and sneakers (or playing basketball or rapping), the story would be different. Rims won't you get you anywhere in life but a good education will open up a lot of doors- especially if you are from the so called black underclass. College admissions sure do love those stories of "inner city kids that overcame tremendous obstacles and adversity." And yes, I know there are major psychological factors at play with the history of race in America but it's one thing to understand the history and use that knowledge to your advantage and another thing to use that history as a crutch.

[queensgrl]

Originally Posted by jcoltrane

I wonder if he recent NYT article spurs this thread?
No, I have been following the issue for three years.

Anyway, such articles only tell a partial story, and frankly do NOT reflect reality and the WHY, or perhaps HOW. Frankly certain very real facts are ignored and not considered.

Back in my day, the late 70s, Brooklyn Tech, for example, had virtually an all black population, and most of the top schools had somewhere like 25% minorities.
My class was 40% black, 25% white, and about evenly split Asian & Hispanic

Also, the Asian population with NYC, overall, was significantly lower!!
Yes, it was.

So, the real question is what has changed?

First, the asian population has EXPLODED!
Yes

Second, the American/native born black bourgoise and middle class population has declined significantly. The black bourgoise have abandoned the city completely (specifically the four boroughs) and has no presence in the NYC schools system.
and the Hispanic middle class as well.

Non-bourgoise middle class American/native blacks have in a MAJORITY percentage abandoned the city beginning in the 'cracks' days, either leaving the city, state and region entirely or moving to NJ
Don't you mean that the non-middle class is what remains (and that would be blacks & Hispanics)

And, just so everyone knows, the admission criteria is the same now as it was when I was a student. One test. The test has not changed ...

However, the number of gifted & talented programs nurturing kids K-8 has declined; Catholic schools that sent a large percentage of the Hispanic population have closed; and communication about the existence of specialized high schools is less .... possibly because in the past, word of mouth in your own community spread the word because someone attended one of the three.

Also, there are now EIGHT specialized high schools that admit students using the SHSAT exam.