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Academy
A term often found in school names. Can refer to, among others, a small school within a larger one, a school that is highly academic or one that caters to under-prepared students.

Achievement Reporting and Innovation System (ARIS)
A data base of student progress indicators by school, by classroom, by student, by subject and by teaching method. The data base will track individual student progress as well as monitor school wide trends and identify best practices.  Data, which is derived from the periodic assessments of students, will be available online to schools and eventually parents

Adaptive Physical Education
A gym program with accommodations that enable children with disabilities to participate.

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
Measure of school improvement. Under the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act, schools receiving federal funds must develop goals, known as targets, to bring all students to “academic proficiency” by the end of the 2013-14 school year. Students at schools failing to make sufficient improvement after two years may transfer to another school or receive tutoring.

Advisory
A regularly scheduled meeting in which a small group of students and a teacher or other school professional talk about school and personal issues.

AIDP (Attendance Improvement, Dropout Prevention)
Program using incentives and counseling to help students stay in school.

Alternative Learning Center (ALC)
Alternate Learning Centers are sites for middle and high school students serving superintendent suspensions of 6-10 or 30-90 days. These sites are located within school buildings and are divided between middle school and high school sites. Students are assigned to a site by the Integrated Service Center in their school's borough. All students attending ALCs are entitled to full-day educational services.

Alternative School
School that differs in some way from conventional schools. Alternative schools are usually small and often use a special teaching method or curriculum. Some alternative schools accept students only after they have attended another school. (See Transfer Alternative schools)

AP Program (Advanced Placement)
College-level courses, accredited by the College Board, the not-for-profit group that administers, among other things, the common college placement exam, the SAT. High school students who take an AP class then typically take the corresponding AP exam. Depending on their score and the college they attend, the student may be eligible for college credit or able to skip entry-level college classes. Courses are taught by the school’s regular faculty and must meet certain standards.

AP (Assistant Principal)
An administrator in charge of an academic department or departments, especially in large high schools. In elementary, middle, and small high schools, an assistant principal is the administrator who works with the principal in running the school.

ARISTA
Name in some New York City middle and high schools for the school’s national honor society group.

Astre
Program for the academically gifted in Queens’ District 27.

Audition
A high school admissions method that requires students to demonstrate skill in the specific area of the program. An audition might mean performance or presentation of a portfolio of art work. This term also applies to some middle schools.

Aussie
Nickname for consultants working in city schools to train teachers and others in the citywide curriculum’s progressive teaching methods. The name comes from the acronym of the for-profit company that provides the trainers – Australian and United States Services in Education. A number of the trainers are from New Zealand and Australia.

Balanced Literacy
An approach to teaching reading that mixes whole language instruction and phonics. It also encourages children to read fiction and nonfiction books suitable to their skills and interests.

Baseline
Starting point for determining adequate yearly progress.

Beacon Program
Program offering activities ranging from photography to math clubs for young people after school and when school is not in session. The 80 Beacons in the city are located in public schools and also provide adult programs including English-language instruction and parenting classes. Beacon is administered by the city’s Department of Youth and Community Development.

Bilingual Education
Approach to educating students whose native language is not English. Students are taught academic subjects in their native language and take English as a Second Language (ESL) classes as well.

Bracken School Readiness Assessment (BSRA)
Test used by the Department of Education starting 2007-8 to determine if a child is qualified for a gifted and talented program. It counts for 25% of a combined score with the Otis Lenon School Ability Test. BSRA tests a child's knowledge of colors, letters, numbers/counting, sizes, comparisons, and shapes.

Bridge Class
A class with students from two grades. Bridge classes keep students with the same teacher for two years. A K-1 class for instance, would include some students in kindergarten and some in 1st grade.

Cap
Number of students allowed per classroom, as established in union contracts with school employees. When the classroom reaches capacity, the class is closed or “capped.” Sometimes an entire school is capped, because the overall capacity is reached.

Career and Technical Education School (CTE)
High school in which students are taught academic subjects, but also receive certification for a career skill such as nursing or computer technology. Formerly referred to as vocational schools or programs.

Center for Collaborative Education (CCE)
A national organization, based Boston, that advocates for small, progressive public schools. Affiliated with the Coalition for Essential Schools, the center has helped establish about 40 public schools in New York City, most of them elementary programs. The schools are small, progressive and dedicated to in-depth study. Students are judged in large part by evaluation of “portfolios” of their work, rather than by standardized test scores or other more conventional measurements. Teachers work together to set school policy and to develop an “interdisciplinary” curriculum – one that links topics learned in one class to material taught in others. Members of the network support one another through mentoring and conferences.

Chancellor's regulations
Official statements of the chancellor's policies on a wide range of issues, from admission to variances. Links for many chancellor's regulations can be found in the Basic Information section of Insideschools.org.

Chancellor's Parents Advisory Council (CPAC)
A group, made up of parent representatives from every city community school district which meets monthly with the chancellor or a person designated by the chancellor to discuss school issues.

Charter school
A school established by a charter granted by the chancellor, the State University of New York or the Board of Regents of the State of New York. Charter schools receive taxpayer funding for each child, but operate independently of the local district and regional office. Although required to admit students by lottery and give the same standardized tests as other public schools, charter schools are free of most other Department of Education regulations. Charters are issued for five years and can be revoked if the school fails to perform as promised.

Children First
Major initiative, launched by Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration and Schools Chancellor Joel Klein in 2003, to revamp and improve New York City public schools.  A key feature was the introduction of a standard curriculum for reading, writing, and math, and imposition of strong promotion standards. Another feature was an The initiative also included an overhaul of school management that grouped districts and schools under 10 Learning Support Centers, known as Regions and Regional Operation Centers (ROCs). In 2007, the regions were  replaced by borough offices to perform some functions and School Support Organizations to provide curriculum and professional development to schools. Integrated Service Centers took over functions formerly performed by the ROC's.  The 32 Community School Districts are no longer grouped under regions.

Citywide curriculum
The course of study in reading, writing, and math now required in most New York City public schools. Formally called the “system-wide comprehensive instructional approach” and also known informally as the “uniform curriculum,” this program was introduced by the Department of Education in 2003 as the centerpiece of its efforts to turn around the city’s many failing schools. The curriculum is progressive in teaching approach. In reading and writing, for example, it borrows heavily from the workshop method, while math classes seek to make abstract formulas concrete through use of manipulatives and other techniques. A small number of high-performing schools are not required to use the curriculum, although some have adopted it wholly in or part anyway.

Citywide Council on Special Education
An advisory group on matters involving District 75, a citywide jurisdiction for education of students with severe disabilities. The panel is made up of elected District 75 parents, community members appointed by the Public Advocate, and a student representative. The council comments on educational policy and issues an annual report with recommendations. The council was launched in 2004 as part of the overhaul of the school system under Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Citywide Council on High Schools
An advisory group on high school matters. The council’s 10 voting members, each a parent of a student in a public high school, are selected by high school Parent Association officers. A student member, a senior who is an elected leader in his or her school, is appointed by the chancellor for a one-year term. The council advises and comments on educational policy and issues an annual report with recommendations. The council was launched in 2004 as part of the overhaul of the school system under Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

City University of New York (CUNY)
Network of public institutions of higher education. It includes 11 four-year colleges: Brooklyn, Baruch, City (CCNY), College of Staten Island, Hunter, John Jay, Lehman, Medgar Evers, New York College of Technology, Queens, York. Also a part of the network is the Graduate Center; and 6 two- year community colleges: Borough of Manhattan, Bronx, Hostos, Kingsborough, LaGuardia, and Queensborough. CUNY is one of the Partnership Support Organizations (PSO) which works with some city schools. Some high schools are housed on CUNY campuses and/or have educational alliances with CUNY.

Cluster teacher
Elementary school teacher who is assigned to teach subjects such music, art, science, or computer skills and who teaches or "covers" classes to provide a preparation period for the regular classroom teacher.

Coaches (Literacy and Math)
Fulltime professionals who work in city schools to train teachers in reading and math teaching techniques.

Collaborative Team Teaching (CTT)
Teaching method used in classes where children with special needs and children who do not have special needs learn alongside each other. Two teachers – one of them trained in special education instruction – work as a team in the classroom.

College Now
A program in which students take college prep and college credit courses offered either in high schools or on a college campus. The project, a collaboration between the City University of New York and the city Department of Education, seeks to boost the academic performance of high school students and ensure that graduates can do college-level work.

Committee on Special Education (CSE)
The team responsible for conducting evaluations of students believed to have special education needs and for recommending placement in an appropriate special education program.

Community Based Organization (CBO)
A not-for-profit organization that offers services – from tutoring to counseling – to a neighborhood or the city. Recreation, legal representation, research and advocacy are other typical CBO activities. Some CBOs have contracts with the city government. A CBO can be as local as a block association or as broad as the United Way.

Comprehensive Educational Plan (CEP)
A document drawn up by each school and district describing its education goals and the methods to achieve them. A school’s CEP is developed with the School Leadership Team.

Community District Education Council
A board, made up mostly of parents, designed to address elementary and middle school concerns within a community school district. The councils– one for each of the 32 school districts – are made up of nine parent members elected by Parent s Association officers, two community members appointed by borough presidents and one non-voting student member chosen by the district superintendent. They meet with and evaluate the district superintendent. The councils meet with and evaluate the district superintendent and instructional leaders assigned to district schools. They are also responsible for zoning and other policies.

Community school district
One of New York City’s 32 elementary and middle schools jurisdictions. Each is overseen by its own superintendent and receives parent and community input from a Community District Education Council.. Before Mayor Michael Bloomberg began a massive overhaul of the city school system, school districts exercised much more authority than they do today. Each district continues to handle zoning, parent support, and supervision of school administrators. Each district is staffed by one or more district family advocates.

Community service
Student volunteer work at community organizations such as daycare or senior citizen centers. In many schools, community service is a requirement for graduation and is viewed as a way to teach kids through real world experiences.

Component re-testing
An aspect of Regents testing. Students who fail a Regents examination twice can get credit for the parts they passed and take a re-test of sections that they failed.

Constructivist curriculum
A curriculum, often found in progressive schools, that emphasizes projects aimed at allowing children to discover knowledge and, thereby, understand a topic — that is to “construct” meaning out of a variety of activities.

Cooperative learning
Education method in which students work on class projects in pairs or teams. Proponents of this approach say that each child brings unique strengths to the project and learns how to work collaboratively, as is often required in the workplace.

Co-op program
A high school work-study program in which students alternate between one week of work and one week of schooling.

Coordinator of Student Affairs (COSA)
A high school staff member responsible for developing and promoting extracurricular activities such as student government or social events.

Corrective action schools
Federal designation for high poverty, low-performing schools that have not made adequate improvement for two years. These schools are supposed to make at least one substantial change (or “corrective action”) such as instituting a new curriculum. They also are supposed to be given extra resources, and to be closely monitored by specialists in the academic subjects where they are weakest.

Curriculum
A plan of study including topics, texts and activities for each class, subject or grade for the school year.

Direct instruction
A method of teaching in which students listen to the teacher and take notes. It is sometimes referred to colloquially as "chalk and talk." It is often contrasted with "hands on" learning.

District Family Advocate (DFA)
Each of the 32 community school districts has at least one family advocate whose mission is to advocate for parents when problems and issues arise. DFA's were formerly known as parent support officers. They report to the central Office of Family Engagement and Advocacy, (OFEA) and to the community school superintendent.

District 75
A citywide special education district that serves 20,000 severely disabled students and operates special programs and schools across the city.

Division of Youth Development
Central and borough based Department of Education teams work with schools in the areas of guidance, crisis intervention and prevention, attendance improvement, alternative schools, college counseling, school health, and youth leadership development among others.

Dual language
Programs in which students learn in two languages. Typically, half the class’ students are native English speakers, the other half are speakers of another language, usually Spanish. Classes alternate use of the languages – instruction might be in one language one day; another language the next -- so students become fluent in both.

Early Childhood Learning Assessment System (ECLAS-2)
An annual evaluation of a student’s literacy skills, conducted by the teacher in kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade. The assessment has several parts. (See E-PAL) Results are not placed on the students’ permanent record, but are kept on hand at least through the 4th grade. Each new teacher can refer to the previous year’s test to see students’ progress in writing, reading, phonics, and comprehension.

Early Intervention (EI)
Services to very young children -- birth to age three -- who have developmental or physical problems such as cognitive, physical, communication, social/emotional and or adaptive delays.

Early Performance Assessment In Language (E-PAL)
A comprehension and writing test (part of the ECLAS assessment ) given to all 3rd graders, as well as 2nd graders who have scored above a certain level on ECLAS. The test is used to help a teacher pinpoint students’ strengths and weaknesses, so the teacher can tailor instruction to the children’s needs. E-Pal is meant to be “diagnostic,” not the basis of a grading or promotion decision.

Educational option (Ed Opt)
The admissions method for a number of city high schools and programs, instituted originally in the 1980s to encourage greater minority representation. Under educational option, schools choose half of their students; the school system, through a computer program, chooses the other half. Selection is made according to a formula under which 16 percent of the students are performing above grade level, 16 percent below grade level and 68 percent at grade level on the 7th grade standardized reading exam. If you scored in the top 2% on this test and list the program first on your application, you are guaranteed acceptance.

Empowerment Support Organization (ESO)
One of the organizational options principals have for obtaining curriculum support and professional development, as well as a range of services such as such as program, scheduling, and budget. Principals in the Empowerment network were the first to exercise increased authority over key educational decisions and to be relieved of much of the paper work burden. In return, the principals signed performance agreements to assess students frequently and raise student achievement. Although the network of Empowerment schools will continue, as a school support organization, all principals now have similar flexibility and decision making through Learning Support Organizations and Partnership Support Organizations.

English as Second Language (ESL)
A program in which students – for one to three periods a day - learn to speak, read, and write English from a trained teacher, who may or may not speak the child’s native language. Students are taught completely in English. How many ESL periods a student receives a day depends on the student’s grade level and proficiency in English. The student attends regular courses in English the rest of the day.

English Language Arts (ELA)
What used to be called "Reading" or "English," ELA includes reading, writing, speaking and listening.

English Language Arts exam (ELA exam)
The New York State reading and writing test given to students in grades 3 through 8. The ELA is scored on a scale of 1 to 4, with “Level 4,” denoting performance that far exceeds grade level, the highest score, and “Level 1,” far below grade level, the lowest. In some grades, the test results take on particular importance. Third, fifth, and seventh graders who do not score at least Level 2, for example, are at high risk of being held back and are, therefore, encouraged to attend summer school and retake the exam. Some selective middle schools require high 4 th grade ELA and math test scores for admission. The 7 th grade ELA scores count heavily for admission to high school.

English Language Learner (ELL)
A student whose native language is not English and whose English skills (as measured on a test known as the Language Assessment Battery-Revised or LAB-R) are limited. Students who score below a level designated by New York State must receive bilingual or English as a Second Language instruction.

English proficiency
The extent of a person’s command of the English language, as measured by the LAB-R test, which is given to new students whose native language is not English. If needed, students may be placed in bilingual education or take English as a Second Language (ESL) classes. Students take the New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT) annually until they master English.

Extended day
Any one of a number of different programs that lengthen the school day beyond conventional hours. One program instituted by the city in early 2006 extended the day by 37-and-a-half minutes for children who needed extra academic help. Some schools use the term “extended day” to refer to mandatory student activities, either academic or otherwise, that take place after the regular school day. Others use the term casually to refer to optional after-school programs.

Extracurricular or co-curricular
Activities that support the school program and take place either before or after the school day or on weekends. Activities include clubs, shows and dances.

Free and Appropriate Education (FAPE)
Federal law entitles children with special needs to a “free and appropriate public education,” often referred to as FAPE.

General Equivalency Diploma (GED)
Diploma issued to students who have passed a qualifying exam, but who have not graduated from high school and are 17 or older -- that is, beyond the age when they must attend school.

Gifted and Talented (G&T)
School or program for what the Department of Education describes as “exceptional students.” Students are selected to enter kindergarten through 2 nd grade G&T classes based on the results of two tests: the Otis-Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT) and the BSRA (Bracken School Readiness Assessment ). The tests are administered by the department in schools. Students in upper grades may be selected for G&T classes based on their standardized test results, an interview, audition, grades or other criteria. Some gifted programs are open to students who live outside the program’s school zone or district. G&T programs often teach material that is one or two years above the students’ grade level.

Gifted Rating Scale (GRS)
The gifted rated scale is part of the city's test to see if a child is qualified to attend a gifted program. . It is an observational check list given to nursery school or pre-school teachers who are asked to judge such things as a child's creativity and commitment to completing a task. It was replaced by the BSRA in the 2007-08 school year.

Grade Point Average (GPA)
Numerical average of a student’s grades in major subjects.

Guided reading
A method of reading instruction in which students with similar reading skills or difficulties meet for lessons in small groups with a teacher. It is akin to the reading-group instruction familiar to students of another era, except that in the older method students generally stayed put throughout the school year, while in guided reading, kids can easily move among different groups based on their skills.

Hands-on instruction
A teaching method in which students are engaged in activities that can range from counting or sorting objects to building with blocks to performing experiments. Hands-on teaching is often contrasted with “direct instruction,” in which students listen to the teacher and take notes. Most schools use both methods, with differing emphasis, depending on the school’s educational philosophy.

Heterogeneous grouping
The practice of placing children of various abilities or levels of achievement in the same class.

High School Superintendent
The High School Superintendent oversees and supports high schools as assigned by the chancellor. High School Superintendents perform statutory duties for schools, including appointing principals, approving teacher tenure decisions, and acting as rating officer for principals. These Superintendents also serve as liaisons to the citywide High School Education Council. (see also Superintendent)

Homogeneous grouping
Placement of students of similar abilities or levels of achievement – as determined by test scores or other measures – in the same classes. Sometimes called “tracking.”

Holdover
A student who has failed to meet standards -- measured by attendance, student work, teacher observation, and standardized test results -- and must repeat a grade. Teachers must let parents know early on -- as soon as the fall parent/teacher conference -- if a student’s work is faltering and the child is at risk of being held over. The school must also give the student special help to catch up, and if that does not work, the student is asked to attend summer school. The final decision about promotion is based on results of a test given in August.

Honors program
Class or classes, usually in high school but sometimes in middle school, for high achieving students. Unlike AP courses, honors program classes are ineligible for college credit.

IEP (Individualized Education Program)
For children in need of special education services, a large document that, in accordance with federal law, must include: the child’s present levels of educational performance; a list of measurable annual goals for the child; the special education, related services, modifications and supplementary aids and services to be provided to the child; an explanation of how much the child will participate with non-disabled children in the regular class; statement of when their services and modifications will begin; the frequency, location, and duration of those services and modifications; testing modifications the child needs to participate in city and state-wide tests; or if the child will not participate in those standardized tests, an explanation of why that assessment is not appropriate for the child and how the child will be assessed; and beginning at age 14, and updated annually, the transition service needs of the child.

IEP Diploma
A diploma offered to students who have met the goals of the IEP. Note: An IEP diploma is not equivalent to a regular high school diploma.

Inclusion
Term used to describe the “least restrictive environment” (LRE) for educating children with special education needs. "Collaborative team teaching" is a form of inclusion in which classes have two teachers, one of whom is certified in special education, and a mix of, for example, ten children with special education needs and 15 children in general education. In other forms of inclusion, there may be just one or two children receiving special education services in a class of 30 or more. In these classes, children receive special services from a teacher who "pushes in" to a class or pulls a child out for part of the day.

Instructional Support
Student services, including counseling, after-school activities, and programs in drug prevention and school attendance.

Integrated Service Center (ISC)
Borough offices for the Department of Education that bring together under one umbrella, services to schools including: budget, human resources, procurement, technology, facilities, transportation, school food, grant management, health and safety, student suspensions, youth development, and some elements of special education including administrators of special education (formerly Region based).

Interdisciplinary
Referring to the interweaving of two or more academic subjects, so that students see the relationship between them.

Itinerant teacher
A teacher who works with special needs students enrolled in general education classes. Described as “itinerant” because teacher often works with a number of children in different classes, and, therefore, moves from classroom to classroom, or even school to school.

Junior ROTC (Reserve Officers’ Training Corps)
School program that prepares students to enter the military. It is led by members of the armed services.

LAB-R (Language Assessment Battery-Revised)
A test to measure the English Language skills of new students whose native language is not English.

Learning Support Center
Under the 2003 reorganization, an office -- operated by each of the 10 school regions in the public school system -- that handled school-related business, and addressed concerns and questions that could not be resolved within a school. Each center contained a “parent support office” to assist parents. In 2007, regions were dismantled and with them the Learning Support Centers. Many of their functions are now shared among borough enrollment offices, district offices and Integrated Service Centers.

Learning Support Organization (LSO)
One of the organizational options principals have for obtaining curriculum support and professional development, as well as a range of other services. There are four LSOs, each headed by a Department of Education superintendent: Community Learning Support Organization; link Integrated Curriculum and Instruction Learning Support Organization; link Knowledge Network Learning Support Organization; links and Leadership Learning Support Organization. Schools may choose to join an LSO regardless of geographical location.

Levels 1, 2, 3, and 4
Grades on standardized tests taken by most New York City public school children from 3rd – 8th grade. Level 1 is the lowest ranking, indicating student performance that is far below standards; Level 4 is the highest, denoting performance that far exceeds standards. Level 3 means the student meets standards; Level 2 indicates that the student meets some standards.

Lottery
Method to ensure random selection of students for school admission. Charter schools are required to pick students by lottery; some other schools choose to use it.

LRE (Least Restrictive Environment)
A key requirement in special education: children with disabilities should, to the maximum extent appropriate, be educated with their non-disabled peers, or – as the law puts it – in the “least restrictive environment.” The only time a child should be placed in a setting away from the general school population is when he or she cannot be educated in a regular class, even with supplementary aids and services.

LYFE (Living for the Young Family through Education)
Program providing child care services in some high schools for students who are the parents of very young children -- birth to 33 months old.

Mainstreaming
The placement of special education students in a general education classroom with their peers. Mainstreaming can occur in academic classes or other settings, such as gym, vocational or career training classes, or extracurricular programs.

Manipulatives
Materials such as blocks, tiles, and “Cuisenaire” rods believed to add a “multi-sensory” dimension to learning math. Coins, beads, and beans can also be used to learn addition and subtraction.

New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT)
An annual test to measure the progress of English Language Learners. Students take the test every year until they master English.

No Child Left Behind ACT of 2001
Massive overhaul of the main federal law regarding public schools in the United States, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, passed originally in 1965. (The often-mentioned “Title I,” which authorizes special funding for schools with large numbers of disadvantaged students, refers to Title I of the law.) No Child Left Behind is a huge and complicated law, but one of its key features is the requirement that schools receiving federal funds develop goals, known as targets, to bring all students to “academic proficiency” by the end of the 2013-14 school year. Students at schools failing to make sufficient improvement after two years may transfer to another school or receive tutoring. Some people believe that NCLB is creating an over-emphasis on standardized testing throughout the United States, and that it places many mandates on schools without sufficient federal funding to back them. It may be years, however, before the true impact of this legislation can be assessed.

Noteworthy schools
Schools that, in the opinion of the staff of Insideschools, serve their communities well. Reviewers for Insideschools look at the whole school, not just the test scores. Noteworthy schools come in all shapes and sizes. Some have outstanding art programs. Some teach immigrants well. Some offer a challenge to gifted children, while others are particularly good at helping kids who are struggling. All strive to create an atmosphere in which staff, children, and parents work together productively.

Occupational education
Also known as career and technical education or vocational education. Course of study that integrates academics and technology education in preparation for higher education or career.

Office of Family Engagement and Advocacy (OFEA)
Headed by a Chief Family Engagement Officer, the office oversees school-based parent coordinators, and district family advocates. The office is pledged to promote contacts between parents and schools and create new opportunities for parents to have meaningful input as new policies are implemented. In addition, the office seeks new strategies to inform parents of school related matters in a timely manner. The office also oversees and supports Parents Associations and Community District Education Councils.

Office of Student Enrollment Planning and Operations (OSEPO)
A central office and borough offices in charge of student enrollment. These offices handle applications for school choice programs at elementary, middle, and high school levels; gifted and talented programs; and transfers. Although districts may have varying options, final decisions are made in OSEPO offices.

The Otis Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT)
The OLSAT is part of the citywide test to see if a child is qualified to attend a gifted and talented program. It includes both verbal and non verbal items and is administered on a one to one basis by a teacher who is trained for the task.  The child's score is a combination of the OLSAT and the Gifted Rating Scale (GRS) with a greater weight given to the OLSAT. 

Open door policy
A century-old diplomatic term (describing the granting of equal trade status to all countries doing business in a given area) that schools now use informally to describe their friendliness to parents and students. Principals with an open door policy make themselves readily available to teachers, students, and parents; teachers with an open door policy give parents easy access to the classroom.

Other support services (OSS)
Student services including transportation and meals.

Parent Advisory Council (PAC)
Parent group to help develop guidelines for local programs receiving funding under “Title 1,” the shorthand name for a portion of federal law targeted at assisting schools in high poverty areas. Council members must be parents of children receiving Title 1 services

PAL (Performance Assessment in Language)
Test given to measure 6th graders’ reading and writing skills.

Para (paraprofessional)
Short for paraprofessional. A classroom assistant who may work with an entire class or one student with a disability. Paraprofessionals are not trained teachers, but must have a high school diploma.

Parents Association (PA)
Organization, open to all parents, required in every city public school. Rights and responsibilities of parents associations are detailed in Chancellor’s Regulation A-660 and in a Department of Education policy statement called Parents Associations and the Schools, aka “The Blue Book.” Some schools choose to have a Parent Teacher Association (PTA), which includes teachers as well as parents.

Parent coordinator
Full-time employee, required at every school, to handle parent outreach, encourage development of parent organizations, address parent concerns and make the school “parent friendly.” Coordinators work on-site and are hired by the principal.

Parent-Teacher Conferences
Brief meetings between parents or family members and the child's teacher scheduled for the fall and spring at which parents learn of their child's progress in school. Sometimes children are asked to attend the meetings as well.

Partnership Support Organization (PSO)
One of the organizational options principals may choose to obtain curriculum support and professional development as well as a range of other services. Partnership Support Organizations are led by nonprofit groups that have a history of working with schools. Current PSOs are: Academy for Educational Development, American Institute for Research, Center for Educational Innovation-Public Education Association, City University of New York, Fordham University, Learning Innovations at WestEd ,New Visions for Public Schools, Replications, Inc., and Success for All Foundation. Schools may choose to join a PSO regardless of geographical location.

Periodic Assessments
Schools are required to administer assessments of student progress four or five times a year. These are separate from required state standardized tests. There are four different types of periodic assessments, chosen by the principal and the School Leadership Team (SLT).  Choices are: tests that are predictive (how the student will do in the ELA and Math exams); computer generated (the computer recognizes what the student is getting right and wrong;); teacher assessment (the teacher measures what students are learning in class); or progress (measures effect of specific interventions from assessment to assessment.)

Phonics
Method of reading instruction in which children learn the sounds of different letter combinations.

Placement Exception Request
Permission, given by the Department of Education, that allows students to transfer from their zoned school to another school in or out of district. Also refered to as a variance.

Portfolios
Collections of student work, such as research, writing, and art. A number of progressive schools judge a student’s performance by the work he or she has performed and assembled over the school year. In some elementary schools, that work is placed in portfolios, the large, ribbon-tied cardboard folders used by many artists.

Professional development
Training provided by the School Support Organizations or other outside experts to boost teachers’ skills.

Progressive Education Network of New York (PENNY)
Network of progressive, New York City public schools offering a forum for parents, teachers, administrators, university teachers, and researchers and others to discuss issues related to small schools.

Progressive schools
The term "progressive" was originally applied to schools that followed the philosophy of the Progressive movement in early 20th America. It is now used to describe schools that stress "child-centered" (rather than "teacher-centered") learning. Progressive educators believe that children learn best through experience and hands-on projects, and that lessons should be based on a child's own interests. They believe that it's more important to learn to gather and interpret information than to memorize facts. A progressive classroom may have tables and chairs, or rugs and bean-bag chairs, rather than desks in rows. Children may work individually or in small groups, rather than listen primarily to lessons offered by the teacher at the front of the room. See traditional schools.

Progress report
An annual report of school and student progress by which schools are held accountable by the Department of Education beginning with the 2007-08 school year. Different factors carry varying weights. Attendance, student, parent and teacher survey results count for 15%; standardized exam scores, 30%; and individual students' progress as measured by change from assessment to assessment, 55%. A school's grade (A – F) is posted online. Progress reports will identify schools that need improvement and what measures will be used to aid them. Schools that fail to move above levels D and F will be targeted for intervention and possible school closure.  Schools that have A ratings and also score high on their Quality Review, may be rewarded with extra funds or, be a demonstration site for exemplary practice. A and B rated schools will get bonuses for accepting NCLB transfers.

PSAL (Public School Athletic League)
Board governing school team sports. It sets rules and regulations, and supports leagues and competitions.

PSAT
An examination taken by high school students in the 11th grade. Many college and university admissions offices consider applicants' scores a critical measure of students' abilities. The scores also select students for national merit scholarships. All students in NYC take the practice PSAT in the 10th grade for the first time.

Quality Reviews
Schools are visited by experienced educators who spend up to three days observing the teaching in classrooms, and interviewing the principal, teachers, parents, and students. Each reviewer scores the school overall and in subcategories based on their observations and how schools are using information to improve learning. Reports on each school are available to all parents after the review is completed. See also Progress Report.

Regents, Board of
The 16-member governing body of the University of the State of New York. Elected by the legislature for five-year terms, the governors oversee all levels of education, nine licensed professions, the state archives and museums. The board sets policy and appoints a commissioner to carry it out.

Regents diploma
Diploma awarded to graduating high school students who pass Regents exams in English; math; global history and geography; US history and government; science and a language other than English.

Regents examinations
State tests in various subjects that students must pass to earn a Regents high school diploma.

Region
Former jurisdictional division of city schools.  From 2003 to 2007, the city's 32 community schools districts were grouped into ten regions, each headed by a superintendent appointed by the chancellor. In 2007 the regions were dismantled and their functions re-deployed to each of  the 32 districts, borough offices, and School Support Organizations. See also the LSO, Empowerment or PSO, ISC and OSEPO offices.

Related services
Services to help children with disabilities benefit from special education. They include, but are not limited to, transportation; physical and occupational therapy; therapy for speech-language, hearing and vision problems; psychological and social service counseling; and recreation.

Remediation
Extra instruction for students having difficulty learning.

Resource room
A room, separate from the regular classroom, offering materials and instruction tailored to the learning styles of students with special education needs. Generally, students are pulled out of their regular class for part of the day for specialized teaching in the resource room. See SETSS.

ROTC (See Junior ROTC)

Rubrics
Criteria used to grade student work. Rubrics are the details of what student work must include to merit the score it receives. One rubric for an excellent student essay, for example, might be error-free spelling, while the rubric for a satisfactory essay would be minor spelling errors.

SAT Prep
Program offered by many high schools and private companies to teach kids content and test-taking strategies for the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT).

School Based Option (SBO)
Initiative giving individual schools the right to modify provisions of the contract with the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) teachers union concerning such matters as class size, rotation of assignments and teacher schedules. These and other modifications of the contract require a vote of 55 percent of the schools ' pro f essional staff.

School district
One of 32 groupings of city school districts. Also referred to as community school districts. The districts’ community school boards have been replaced by Community District Education Councils.

School Leadership Team (SLT)
State-required committee that develops a school's education plan and budget. Half the members must be parents of students in the school, elected by the parents association. Principal, teachers and others make up the balance.

School Support Organization (SSO) 
As of 2007, all schools are required to choose a School Support Organization which will supply curriculum support and professional development as well as a range of other services. The SSO function is to support student learning, while the Department of Education retains management and supervision, standard setting, student placement, funding, teacher recruitment, hiring and firing of principals and other mandated functions. There are three types of SSO: Empowerment, Learning, and Partnership. Principals may choose which SSO to join regardless of geographical location.

Screened
A high school admissions method under which students who apply are ranked by a school based on their academic record, standardized test scores, and attendance. There may be other items that schools use to screen applicants such as an interview, essay or test. Schools that use this method may also be referred to as selective. Middle schools may also have screened or selective admission methods.

Second Opportunity School (SOS)
Second Opportunity Schools are suspension sites for students who have been removed from their home school for up to one year as a result of serious disciplinary infractions. SOS sites are located outside of school buildings and are run by District 79, the DOE office in charge of alternative programs. These sites are divided for middle school students and high school students and must provide all students with a full-day educational program.

Section 504
Portion of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 banning discrimination on the basis of physical or mental disability in federally-funded programs, such as New York City public schools. It is intended to level the playing field for people with disabilities by eliminating disability-related barriers, so, for example, students can fully participate in school. It also requires a free, appropriate education to all eligible children. The law protects not only children whose disabilities directly interfere with their ability to learn, but also children whose physical or mental disabilities substantially limit one or more "major life activities," such as seeing, breathing, walking or learning. Children eligible for special education services are also covered by Section 504.

Selective school
One that uses test scores or other types of evaluations -- such as measures of a child’s talent in music -- to choose its students. Also referred to as screened.

Self-contained classes
Classes composed entirely of students with special education needs.

Special education
Students are eligible for special education if they have a disability or a serious academic or behavioral problem affecting their ability to learn. See Basic Information .

Special Education Teacher Support Services (SETSS)
A type of assistance given to students with special needs; until recently known as “resource room.” SETSS teachers work with students for short periods during the day either in their classrooms or in "pull-out" sessions in another room. Children generally receive these services to augment their general education classes.

Superintendent
An educator with administrator credentials appointed by the chancellor to head community school district or high school offices. In schools that serve students in kindergarten through grade eight, a superintendent oversees and supports the schools in each community school district. He or she performs statutory duties for each school, including appointing principals, acting as rating officer for principals in the district, approving teacher tenure decisions, and approving school budgets. The superintendent also communicates regularly with all parent associations in the district and serves as a liaison to the Community Education Councils (CEC). High school superintendents provide the same functions to a network of high schools.

Supplementary aids and services
Various forms of assistance to enable children receiving special education services to be educated to the maximum extent appropriate in the least restrictive environment (LRE). Examples include assistive technology and help from paraprofessionals and consultant teachers.

SURR (School Under Registration Review)
School that spent two years in corrective action without sufficiently improving and was then placed under state management and reorganization. If the reorganization is not successful, the school is supposed to be closed.

State University of New York (SUNY)
Network of public colleges located throughout New York State.

TASC (The After School Corporation)
A non-profit group that funds tutoring and athletic programs during and after school in many schools.

Teach for America
Not-for-profit organization that recruits recent college graduates, many from elite universities, and places them for two-year commitments in teaching jobs in low-income schools.

Teaching Fellow
Member of Department of Education program that trains recent graduates and non-education professionals –accountants, lawyers, nurses, and a range of others seeking a second career – to be teachers.

Team teaching
A teaching method in which two teachers collaborate or share a class. Also, a classroom arrangement in which general education students and students receiving special education services are taught side by side in the same classroom by a general education and a special education teacher. Also called collaborative team teaching. See Inclusion.

TERC math
Math curriculum developed by the Teacher Educational Research Center, a non-profit organization in Cambridge, Mass. The approach encourages students to learn math through use of manipulatives, to approach problems from many angles and to understand the theories underlying math formulas.

Title I
Nickname for section of federal education law authorizing funding for technical assistance and professional development to high-poverty-area schools with students who need significant academic help.

Traditional schools
Schools that emphasize students’ mastery of a body of knowledge and basic skills. Some traditional schools maintain strict behavior and/or dress codes, and have teachers doing most of the talking in rooms where desks are placed in rows. See progressive schools.

Transfer high schools
Option for students who are floundering in their high schools, and often are over-age for their grade and behind in credits. They are referred to the transfer school by the guidance counselor in their current school.

Tweed
See Department of Education.

Uniform curriculum
See city curriculum.

Universal Pre-K
Pre-kindergarten programs funded by New York State. Districts must use some of the funding to pay for programs not in schools, but in sites such as community centers and daycare facilities.

Unscreened
An admissions method used by many city high schools and programs under which students who apply are selected randomly by computer.

Variance
Permission, given by the Department of Education, that allows students to transfer from their zoned school to another school in or out of district. Also called Placement Exception Request.

Whole Language
Method of teaching reading that downplays sounding out words, instead encouraging children to learn whole words through the context in which they are used. Often children are not given Dick-and-Jane-style readers, but “real” books.

Writing Process
Method of teaching writing, developed by Columbia University’s Teachers College. Children learn, often before they can read, to express themselves in print by stringing together whatever letters they know that sound like the word: “hsptl” for “hospital,” for example. Later, kids learn to revise and refine their work. They write about topics that interest them, and read and critique other students’ work.

Writers' Workshop
Method of teaching reading and writing developed at Columbia University’s Teachers College and now mandated by the city Department of Education for use in most of the city’s public schools. Children write multiple drafts of their papers, offer editing suggestions to one another, then “publish” their essays for their classmates and parents to read.

Zoned school
A neighborhood school for all students who live in a designated area. A student’s zone is determined by the address where he or she lives Each district sets the zone boundaries. The central Office of Zoning monitors the line-drawing for fairness and compliance with non-discrimination regulations.