by NYC Private Schools on September 27, 2009
NYC Specialized High Schools are actually highly selective public high schools. They are established and run by the New York City Department of Education and created to serve the needs of academically and artistically gifted students. Admission to these schools requires that students take the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) examination. Originally known as the SSHSAT, for “Specialized Science High School Admissions Test” the name has since dropped the word “Science.” Though the three original schools requiring the exam, Bronx-Sci, Stuy, and Brooklyn Tec, all emphasized a science curriculum, the newer specialized schools have branched into other areas as well.
The NYC Specialized High Schools:
Stuyvesant High School (Manhattan)
Bronx Science High School (Bronx)
Brooklyn Technical High School (Brooklyn)
High School of American Studies at Lehman College (Bronx)
Queens High School for the Sciences at York College (Queens)
High School for Math, Engineering and Science at City College (Manhattan)
Brooklyn Latin (Brooklyn)
Staten Island Technical High School (Staten Island in the New Dorp neighborhood)
It is interesting to note that these schools have often had to fight for their specialized status as other educational departments and facilities wished to negate or benefit from them. As a way to preserve their special status, in 1972, the Hecht-Calandra Act was passed by the New York State Legislature, designating these schools as specialized science and math high schools for New York City.
by NYC Private Schools on May 19, 2009
Most discussions on testing requirements for NYC Schools generally revolve around admissions testing and requirements. There are other tests that students are asked to participate in, however, and for many reasons.
The CTP 4 is one of the tests that can be required for children in grades 1 and up and is used by many classical Christian Schools and also Gifted Public Schools as a way to measure a students academic level of achievement and pinpoint areas in need of development. The CTP 4 is considered a difficult test that is given to high-achieving students at competitive school, often in the Gifted and Talented categories.
What does the CTP 4 Test Consist of?
CTP 4 is not one test, but a battery of tests consisting of a series of multiple-choice and open-ended question tests. These are administered to groups of students over the course of several days, either in the spring or the fall. CTP 4 has 10 levels; a different level is used with each grade from 1 through 11. Students in the early grades take the test under un-timed conditions and mark their answers in the test booklet. Students in the middle and upper grades take CTP 4 under timed conditions and mark their answers on a separate answer sheet. The time limits are considered generous, with most students completing it in the time period allowed. There is also an option for schools to include open-ended reading comprehension and mathematics questions in the test that provides for full, partial, or no credit.
What does the test measure?
All 10 levels of CTP 4 include achievement tests that measure what the student has learned in the areas of reading and mathematics. In addition, levels 1 and 2 test word analysis and listening skills. Beginning with level 3 (introduced in the spring of grade 3) there are also tests that measure verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, certain kinds of writing skills, and vocabulary.
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