David Banks Applauded After NYC Schools Math Profiency Jumps Over 10% In One Year

Last academic year, it was revealed on Wednesday that New York City students achieved a significant rise in their scores on the state’s standardized math exams, and their performance on English exams also saw a slight improvement.The percentage of students who met the proficiency benchmark in the Math exam saw a substantial increase, rising from 37.9% in 2022 to 49.9% in 2023. This improvement occurred during the first full school year under the leadership of Mayor Eric Adams and his selected Schools Chancellor, David Banks.The percentage of students achieving proficiency in English Language Arts also showed a modest increase, going from 49.0% in 2022 to 51.7% in 2023, as indicated by the results.Banks expressed his optimism about these results, stating, “These outcomes are highly encouraging. In the first year of this administration, we are witnessing more of our students performing at grade level and meeting the State’s educational standards, with significant advancements in math and improvements in ELA as well.”However, Banks acknowledged that these positive results should be viewed with a caveat. The new exams were aligned with new educational standards, making them not directly comparable to the previous year’s tests, according to the city Department of Education.The chancellor emphasized that the increase was still a positive sign and pointed out his satisfaction with the results showing a reduction in the racial achievement gap. He mentioned, “We also observed proficiency growth among historically underserved student groups: students of color, multilingual learners, and students with disabilities. These results indicate that we are heading in the right direction. We are making progress in our recovery from the pandemic and will continue to build on this success in the upcoming years.”Furthermore, the disparity between Black and White students on the English exam decreased by 2.1% in English and 2.2% in math.Typically, an increase in test scores is considered a significant achievement for the mayor, as he is held responsible not only for educational outcomes but also for crime statistics. However, Mayor Adams was away addressing the migrant crisis in Central America when the results were released.Banks credited the Education Department’s new phonics-based initiative, NYC Reads, and other changes for yielding positive results in Community School District 11 (covering the Northeast Bronx) and District 19 in Brooklyn’s East New York. In both districts, the number of students achieving proficiency in English saw a substantial increase of 5.3 percentage points, which was more than double the citywide average gain of 2.7 percentage points.