“Education Research Group Moves Toward Action”

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

Regarding the article “Education Research Group Moves Toward Action,” any light shed on schools data is welcome but this private initiative should not supplant independent public accountability [New York, July 28, 2008].

The Research Alliance for New York City is best suited to assist researchers in obtaining customized datasets so that the Department of Education can apply study results to school improvement.

But the Alliance, with its interlocking financial and political interests, will always lack credibility in collection and dissemination of basic data, which the Department of Education will continue to control.

The best solution to this issue is to give the city’s Independent Budget Office statutory authority to obtain not only full DOE financial information — which the mayor’s office has stymied — but also non-confidential student and other data. The IBO has proven to be a reliable source of objective, professional budget analysis. Its apolitical institutional culture is above reproach.

Enlarging its portfolio for education — making it not only equivalent to its model, the Congressional Budget Office, but also to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (formerly the General Accounting Office) — would give the IBO an enforceable role as a reliable public source of public information.

DAVID BLOOMFIELD

Associate Professor,

Brooklyn College, CUNY

Brooklyn, N.Y.


The New York Sun

© 2024 The New York Sun Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The material on this site is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used.

The New York Sun

Sign in or  Create a free account

or
By continuing you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use