York City Schools Research Articles

Trailblazer in Health Education: The Legacy of Thomas Denison Wood.

Thomas Denison Wood, often regarded as the "Father of Health Education," was a pioneering figure in the early 20th century whose work laid the foundation for modern health education. His contributions were instrumental in integrating health education into the public school curriculum in the United States. Wood advocated for a holistic approach to health, encompassing physical fitness, hygiene, nutrition, mental health, and preventive care. His key achievements include the development of comprehensive health education programs, leadership in professional organizations, and the establishment of the New York City School Health Program. Wood authored several influential books, such as "Health by Stunts" (1901) and "A Textbook of Hygiene" (1915), which provided practical guidance on maintaining health and were widely used in educational settings. His work emphasized the importance of lifelong health education, beginning in childhood and continuing throughout life. Through his writings, teaching, and advocacy, Wood significantly shaped the field of health education, and his legacy continues to influence health education practices today.

Graduate Teacher Education Students Use and Evaluate ChatGPT as an Essay-Writing Tool

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been evolving since the mid-20th Century when luminaries such as Alan Turing, Herbert Simon and Marvin Minsky began developing rudimentary AI applications. For decades, AI programs remained pretty much in the realm of computer science and experimental game playing. This changed radically in the 2020s when commercial vendors such as OpenAI and Google developed generative AI programs (ChatGPT) and (Bard) using large, language modelling (LLM). As a result, generative AI is now being considered for use in all walks of life including education. In Spring 2023, when ChatGPT burst into the public psyche, twenty-five education students in the author’s graduate seminar were invited to participate in a qualitative study using ChatGPT as a tool for completing an essay assignment. Fifteen (N=15) accepted the offer. The purpose in doing this was to give students in this seminar the opportunity to use ChatGPT in a supportive environment and to collect qualitative data from them on their experiences using ChatGPT. All of these students have master’s degrees in education and experience as teachers in New York City schools. Their training and experience give them keen insights into pedagogical practice making them ideally suited to evaluate ChatGPT as an instructional tool. This article reports on the results of this study. Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, AI, ChatGPT, Graduate Teacher Education, Qualitative Research

The Effects of Grade Retention on High School Outcomes: Evidence from New York City Schools

This study examines the causal impact of grade retention on high school attainment outcomes. We use administrative data on New York City public school students and a regression discontinuity design based on test score cutoffs used to determine retention eligibility. For students scoring at the test score cutoff, grade retention reduces average high school credit accumulation and the likelihood of taking math and English Regents exams. For middle grade students at the test score cutoff, we also find that retention increases dropout and reduces the likelihood of completing Regents exam graduation requirements. We also explore potential mechanisms and find that retention increases placement into special education and makes future retentions of these students less likely.

The Conflation of Dual Language Bilingual Education With Gifted Programs in New York City Schools

As neighborhoods across New York City gentrify, Dual Language Bilingual Education (DLBE) has become a big draw for gentrifier families. Our research contributes to growing literature on DLBE gentrification by examining how a racially diverse group of parents in two communities perceived DLBE as a school choice option. We found that schools with DLBE programs screened potential students via academic screening tests or school choice processes to determine admission into DLBE programs. This screening process has contributed to a) the conflation of DLBE with the city’s gifted programs, and b) a focus away from admitting and centering emergent bilinguals. While this screening served to further advantage gentrifier families, some parents resisted the opportunity hoarding behaviors of their peers through their alternative school choices and advocacy efforts. In this way, we show how all parents are constrained and impacted by the neoliberal logics of contemporary DLBE policy and school choice.

Science as a “Special”: Navigating the role of science specialist in urban elementary schools

AbstractThis ethnography explores the locally defined and culturally negotiated roles and responsibilities of elementary science specialists (ESS) in three New York City schools. Drawing upon interviews with ESS, classroom teachers, and building administrators, this study examines the roles and interactions of ESS with regards to instruction, support, and leadership as analyzed through a distributed leadership lens. The implementation pattern matched the characteristics of the science as a special model of elementary content specialization. While lacking specific qualifications or clearly defined roles, ESS were primary, exclusive, or supplementary providers of science instruction. Urban ESS leveraged relationships with various classroom generalists and faced challenges in navigating science leadership responsibilities such as curriculum coordination, communication, and support of classroom teachers.

Impact of concomitant cardiovascular medications on overall survival in patients with liver cirrhosis

Objectives of the article Liver cirrhosis is the end-stage liver disease associated with poor prognosis and cardiovascular comorbidity could significantly impact mortality of cirrhotic patients. We conducted a large, retrospective study to investigate the survival impact of cardiovascular co-medications in patients with liver cirrhosis. Materials and methods A study-specific R package was processed on the local databases of partner institutions within the Observational Health Data Sciences and Informatics consortium, namely Columbia University, New York City (NYC), USA and Ajou University School of Medicine (AUSOM), South Korea. Patients with cirrhosis diagnosed between 2000 and 2020 were included. Final analysis of the anonymous survival data was performed at Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University. Results We investigated a total of 32,366 patients with liver cirrhosis. Our data showed that administration of antiarrhythmics amiodarone or digoxin presented as a negative prognostic indicator (p = 0.000 in both cohorts). Improved survival was associated with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor ramipril (p = 0.005 in NYC cohort, p = 0.075 in AUSOM cohort) and angiotensin II receptor blocker losartan (p = 0.000 in NYC cohort, p = 0.005 in AUSOM cohort). Non-selective beta blocker carvedilol was associated with a survival advantage in the NYC (p = 0.000) cohort but not in the AUSOM cohort (p = 0.142). Patients who took platelet inhibitor clopidogrel had a prolonged overall survival compared to those without (p = 0.000 in NYC cohort, p = 0.003 in AUSOM cohort). Conclusion Concomitant cardiovascular medications are associated with distinct survival difference in cirrhotic patients. Multidisciplinary management is needed for a judicious choice of proper cardiovascular co-medications in cirrhotic patients.

A Chance at the Arts: Assessment of NYC Department of Education’s ArtsCount as a Violation of Title VI Implementing Regulation

A Chance at the Arts: Assessment of NYC Department of Education’s ArtsCount as a Violation of Title VI Implementing Regulation

Review of “The Battle Nearer to Home: The Persistence of School Segregation in New York City”

In The Battle Nearer to Home: The Persistence of School Segregation in New York City, Christopher Bonastia provides a detailed analysis of the efforts to desegregate New York City schools during two periods: (a) the 1950s–1970s which span the Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board through the district’s fiscal crisis of the 1970s and (b) the early 2010s to the present. In both periods, desegregation was at least nominally a focus of school district policy and a central concern of activist groups. In the intervening years, school desegregation was not “foregrounded in public discourse” (p. 3). As Bonastia observes, New York City’s reputation as a progressive city masks the deep and thus far intractable patterns of school segregation within the district. Bonastia refers to the policies he traces as integration rather than desegregation because it was the term which public officials used to describe policies aimed at ameliorating school segregation. As Bonastia documents, most public officials pursued statistical integration focused on the demographic balance in school enrollments. School and city officials’ efforts fell far short of a more expansive pursuit of integration aimed at creating inclusive school communities where all students feel welcomed and nurtured. Policies aimed at promoting statistical integration in the New York City public schools were implemented on a limited scale and were easily derailed by White parents who opposed integration and the inconsistent and tepid support of political elites.

Contested Justice: Rethinking Educational Equity Through New York City’s COVID-19 School Reopening Debates

This study examines competing justice claims that stakeholders policymakers, district leaders, families, and educators evoked during the 2020 COVID-19 New York City school reopening debates. Drawing on thematic analysis of 300 news and opinion articles, we examine stakeholders’ overlapping and contested understandings of justice in public education, including claims related to how school resources are distributed, whom district policies recognize, and who is represented in policymaking. In addition to deepening our understanding of the educational politics of the COVID-19 pandemic—an event with field-changing consequences—our analysis offers researchers and policymakers a more robust basis for advancing equity and conceptualizing just educational policy for multiple stakeholders.

The effects of the historical practice of residential redlining in the United States on recent temporal trends of air pollution near New York City schools

BackgroundIn the 1930's the United States (US) sponsored Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) created maps that determined risk for mortgage lending based on the racial and ethnic composition of neighborhoods leading to disinvestment in “redlined” or highest risk neighborhoods. This historical practice has perpetuated racial and economic segregation, and health disparities, that persist today. Interventions near schools where children spend large portions of the day, could impact large groups of children but schools are an often-overlooked environment for exposure. Despite a declining trend of ambient pollution in New York City (NYC) between 1998 and 2012, little is known about differences in air quality improvement near schools by historical redlining neighborhood status. Our objective was to examine if recent temporal trends of air pollution near NYC public schools differed in historically redlined neighborhoods. MethodsWe examined annual average street-level concentrations of combustion-related air pollutants (black carbon (BC), particulate matter (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and nitric oxide (NO)), within a 250-m radius around schools using NYC Community Air Survey land-use regression models (n = 1,462). Year of monitoring, historical redlining (binary), and summer ozone were included in multivariable linear regression using generalized estimating equation models. Average annual percent change (APC) in pollutant concentration was calculated. Models were further stratified by historical redlining and a multiplicative interaction term (year of monitoring × historical redlining) was used to assess effect modification. ResultsOverall, there was a decreasing trend of BC (APC = -4.40%), PM2.5 (-3.92%), NO2 (-2.76%), and NO (-6.20%) during the 10-year period. A smaller reduction of BC, PM2.5 and NO was observed in redlined neighborhoods (n = 722), compared to others (n = 740): BC (APC: −4.11% vs −4.69%; Pinteraction < 0.01), PM2.5 (-3.82% vs −4.11%; Pinteraction < 0.01), and NO (-5.73% vs −6.67%; Pinteraction < 0.01). Temporal trends of NO2 did not differ by historical redlining (Pinteraction = 0.60). ConclusionsDespite significant reductions in annual average pollution concentrations across NYC, schools in historically redlined neighborhoods, compared to others, experienced smaller decrease in pollution, highlighting a potential ongoing ramification of the discriminatory practice.

Analysis of School-Level Vaccination Rates by Race, Ethnicity, and Geography in New York City

This cross-sectional study of New York City school data examines differences in COVID-19 vaccination rates by race, ethnicity, and borough.

Negotiating Place and Power through Union Grievance in Post‐War New York City Cafeterias

AbstractNew York City School cafeterias in the American post‐war period are prisms through which we can understand struggles to assert new relations of power – in terms of gender, race and class. This article examines the documented grievances of rank‐and‐file cafeteria aides in New York City's Local 372 union and the importance of institutional carework as part of a longer legacy that informs our current moment. Letters of complaint sent by workers illustrate assertion of their rights as workers while they negotiated for control of their bodies, and identities within the realm of the cafeteria and a larger male‐dominated union framework.

Semiotic study of social distance and contact in Natalie Tjota's American pictorial story

The study investigates the social semiotics of contact employed by Natalie Tjota in her pictorial story "Berry Bunny Learns about COVID-19" which is taken from the internet website of the New York City School Library System. That is achieved by following Kress and van Leeuween (2006). It aims at discovering the effect of social distance on human behavior. Besides, it tests the impact of social distance on mood and emotions. In accordance with these aims, it hypothesizes that social distance can play an important role in conveying information, creating certain moods, and even influencing the decisions people make. The findings of the analysis validate the hypotheses of the study.

New York City School Social Workers in a Pandemic: Lessons Learned from COVID-19

Abstract During the beginning stages of COVID-19, school social workers in New York City (NYC) were at the forefront of managing the mental health of youth and families. There were multiple barriers that interfered with the level of care that school social workers wanted and needed to provide to both students and their families. This article is an NYC school social worker’s firsthand account of how she and her collaborative team managed the mental health of NYC students and families. Specifically, this article addresses suicidal ideation and suicidality in adolescents during the pandemic. This article also addresses the disparities and recommendations for further access to mental health care in NYC’s racially and socioeconomically diverse school communities. The article recommends both micro and macro changes that can be implemented to better address the acute crisis and long-term trauma implications for this population. Finally, this article makes recommendations for furthering social work educational practices to better train clinicians to handle future crises.

Fasting Serum IGFBP-1 as a Marker of Insulin Resistance in Diverse School Age Groups.

IntroductionThe known markers of insulin resistance in obese children are well studied. However, they require serial measurements and complicated calculations. The objective is to study IGFBP-1 and its relation with other known risk measures.Materials and MethodsThe study included 98 New York City school students of diverse ethnic/racial backgrounds (57 males and 41 females), 11–15 years of age. Subjects were enrolled in a cross-sectional study, and anthropometric measures were collected. They underwent fasting intravenous glucose tolerance tests (IVGTT), and glucose, insulin, lipids, IGFBP-1, adiponectin and inflammatory markers were collected.ResultsThe subjects were stratified into 3 groups based upon the BMI Z-score. Out of all the subjects, 65.3% were in the group with a BMI Z-score <1 SDS, 16.3% subjects were in the group with a BMI Z-score of 1 to 2 SDS, and 18.4% of the subjects were in the group with a BMI Z-score of more than 2 SDS. The group with a BMI Z-score of more than 2 SDS had increased waist circumference (WC), body fat, increased fasting insulin, and triglycerides (TG). This group had decreased levels of adiponectin and HDL and low IGFBP-1 as compared to the group with BMI <1 SDS. The group with a BMI Z-score of 1 to 2 SDS had a decreased level of IGFBP-1 as compared to the group with a BMI Z-score less than 1 SDS. IGFBP-1 inversely correlated with age, WC, BMI, body fat, TG, and insulin levels. IGFBP-1 positively correlated with adiponectin and HDL levels.ConclusionIGFBP-1 in children can identify the presence of insulin resistance in the group with BMI 1 to 2 SDS, even before the known markers of insulin resistance such as elevated triglycerides and even before decreased HDL and adiponectin levels are identified.

School Disengagement, School-Age Births and High School Graduation: Evidence From Linked Administrative Records.

Failure to complete secondary education often results from a process of educational disengagement. Studies of teen childbearing and high school completion have not adequately accounted for the role of school disengagement prior to conception and may overestimate causal impacts of teen childbearing. We link New York City birth and school records to study a cohort of 22,484 Black and Latina public school students. We measure disengagement with monthly absences from age 12 until the month before conception and identify five preconception attendance trajectories using group-based trajectory modeling. Preconception absenteeism can account for as much as half the deficit in high school completion associated with a teen birth. This finding is robust to statistical approaches, such as school fixed effects and inverse-probability-weighted regression adjustment. Our results suggest that programs intending to increase educational attainment among young women should emphasize attendance and engagement, rather than primarily teenage pregnancy prevention.

Breaking Ties: Regression Discontinuity Design Meets Market Design

Many schools in large urban districts have more applicants than seats. Centralized school assignment algorithms ration seats at over‐subscribed schools using randomly assigned lottery numbers, non‐lottery tie‐breakers like test scores, or both. The New York City public high school match illustrates the latter, using test scores and other criteria to rank applicants at the city's screened schools, combined with lottery tie‐breaking at the rest. We show how to identify causal effects of school attendance in such settings. Our approach generalizes regression discontinuity methods to allow for multiple treatments and multiple running variables, some of which are randomly assigned. The key to this generalization is a local propensity score that quantifies the school assignment probabilities induced by lottery and non‐lottery tie‐breakers. The utility of the local propensity score is demonstrated in an assessment of the predictive value of New York City's school report cards. Schools that earn the highest report card grade indeed improve SAT math scores and increase graduation rates, though by much less than OLS estimates suggest. Selection bias in OLS estimates of grade effects is egregious for screened schools.

Culturally Relevant Leadership and Emancipatory Leadership: Linking Black Education and Social Justice Struggles Going Forward

In January 2020, in response to the criticism that New York City schools don't reflect the experiences of students of color, the New York State Education Department (2020) released the Culturally responsive and sustaining Education Framework. While the culturally responsive and sustaining education (CR-SE) initiative in New York City schools aims to bring a well-rounded curriculum that centers on many cultures into the classroom, there is still a lack of diverse curriculum and reading material (Gooden, 2019). Discussion of how CR-SE can serve as an emancipatory approach in Black education has been lacking since its creation. To get a better understanding of the liberating and emancipatory practices CR-SE offers, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Sonya Douglass.

The Effects of Historical Residential Redlining on Temporal Trends of Traffic-Related Air Pollution Levels Measured Near New York City Schools

The Effects of Historical Residential Redlining on Temporal Trends of Traffic-Related Air Pollution Levels Measured Near New York City Schools

Creating the Scratch Cooked School Food Framework: Qualitative Data Analysis of a Scratch Cooking Pilot.

The purpose of this study is to develop a novel framework that outlines the system required to implement scratch cooking in school kitchens. The data used in this study were 57 interviews with key stakeholders during the Return to Scratch Cooking Pilot that occurred in two New York City school kitchens in 2018-2019 and made significant modifications to many aspects of the existing school food system. The guiding framework for the data analysis was Meadows's Intervention Level Framework. Intervention Level Framework describes analyzing systems by examining five layers: (1) paradigm shift, (2) goals, (3) system structure (4) feedback and delays, and (5) structural elements. It also provides a framework for describing a system by defining its elements, interconnections, and purpose. Data analysis revealed four elements of the school food system: ingredients and recipes, kitchen, cooking, and the community. The interconnections that played a role in each of these elements were policies, practice, people, and promotion. Together, these four elements and four interconnections comprise the Scratch Cooked School Food framework, which has the purpose of being a tool for researchers and practitioners to utilize when planning, implementing, and evaluating scratch cooking in the school food environment.