The United Chinese Association of Brooklyn (UCAOB) held a forum on public school graduation requirements, on the 29th, to discuss the criteria by which it is decided whether students are allowed to advance to the next grade, as well as the impact of English, math, social science, and natural science scores and statewide standardized testing.

Qiu Yawen, president of the United Chinese Association of Brooklyn and vice-principal of Brooklyn High School of the Arts, stressed that beginning this June, all eighth-graders who do not meet statewide graduation requirements will be held back, and they may not even have the option of attending summer school.  This policy will have a harsh impact on new Asian immigrant students, she said; however, she reminded parents that if they are unsatisfied with their children's standardized test scores, they are allowed to dispute them, but should be sure to understand the requirements and the procedure for appealing.

As part of a new retention policy passed by the New York City Education Department last year, all students must earn high school diplomas in order to graduate; they may not, as before, graduate with Local Diplomas, said Qiu. In addition, all eighth-graders must receive "a grade of 2 or higher on math and English evaluations" and "pass all core curricula" in order to graduate from middle school; otherwise, they will be retained in a special "8th-grade Plus."

According to the DOE guidelines, students who do not meet the standards are allowed to appeal, or to attend summer school to do make-up work. Qiu noted that this year, though, because of insufficient funding, the Department of Education is likely to arrange summer school classes only for students who are graduating – in other words, those who are held back will not be able to attend.

Qiu advised parents who wish to help their children graduate smoothly to visit http://schools.nyc.gov/Languages/Chinese.htm, where they can learn more about the Department of Education guidelines.

The United Chinese Association of Brooklyn holds weekly forums in partnership with the NYC DOE, with the aim of helping Chinese families better understand the education system.