72,000 kids face ‘F’s’ due to bug delay

Nearly 72,000 New York City high school students who didn’t pass a course last spring are in danger of receiving a permanent failing mark if they don’t complete their missing work by the end of the month, officials warned Wednesday.

The city Education Department instituted a temporary grace period for students during the early months of the pandemic, allowing them until the end of January to make up missing work.

But the extension ends in just over a week, and city educators and students are scrambling to turn “course in progress” — or “NX” grades — into passing marks, DOE officials said during a City Council hearing.

“Our determination is and always has been to resolve the NX grades” into passing grades, said First Deputy Chancellor Donald Conyers, noting the grace period “emanated from a demonstration of mercy and understanding.”

The DOE said the 72,000 students who received NX grades last spring — roughly one in five high school students — is still 26% smaller than the number of students who received a failing mark the previous year.

Students receiving special education services and English language learners were more likely than their classmates to receive an NX grade, as were Black and Hispanic students, according to city data.

Some students regained their credit during virtual summer school, but officials acknowledged the program was less effective than expected.

“There were fewer students who took advantage of that summer opportunity than we’d hoped,” said Chief Academic Officer Linda Chen.

Some schools have organized committees to help students with NX grades, and social workers and guidance counselors are working overtime, Conyers said.

But the challenges are steep, since students have to make up their missing work on top of their current class schedules.

“They’re taking 8 or 9 classes,” said one Manhattan principal who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “It’s an impossible task for someone passing all their classes, let alone someone who didn’t pass.”

City Council Education Committee chair Mark Treyger demanded that DOE officials not issue any permanent failing marks to students who struggled with technology or other remote learning barriers.