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Something isn\u2019t adding up.<\/p>\n
Math teachers at a Queens high school are being forced to pass failing kids, including those who can\u2019t be bothered to show up to class, according to allegations that are under investigation.<\/p>\n
The city Department of Education is probing the underperforming Flushing High School\u00a0after an explosive QNS report\u00a0<\/a>revealed the concerning policy.<\/p>\n The math department at Flushing High School allegedly implemented a lenient policy that passes students who don\u2019t even bother to show up to class. James Messerschmidt<\/p>\n \u201cMy mother saw it,\u201d one student told The Post ahead of morning classes, referring to the story in the local paper.<\/p>\n \u201cShe said kids are becoming more stupid and not having enough knowledge.\u00a0She said she believes that\u2019s\u00a0the reason why phones are taken away.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n The school\u2019s entire math department was ordered to spend Wednesday in training workshops so they could learn \u201cabout the grading system,\u201d The Post has learned, though the DOE wouldn\u2019t say if it was brought on by the explosive allegations.<\/p>\n Three math teachers told QNS that their department is forcing them to pass their struggling students \u2014 and that they were shot down numerous times when they raised concerns about the lenient policy.<\/p>\n The average for one class last year was 70%, but only 30% passed the Regents Exam, one teacher said. vchalup \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n Even students who play hooky and neglect to hand in assignments are allegedly given passing grades.<\/p>\n The passing rate for one class last year was around 70%, but only 30% of those students passed their New York State Regents Exams, the educators claimed.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve tried to have conversations with my students and explain to them the benefits of trying to pass all three math Regents in terms of college preparation,\u201d one teacher told QNS.<\/p>\n \u201cBut they\u2019re pretty much being told it doesn\u2019t matter.\u201d<\/p>\n An email sent to the department stated \u201cstudents cannot be penalized or punished for not completing work.\u201d Obtained by The NY Post<\/p>\n The issue apparently began in December 2024, when math assistant principal Chaunte Thompson implemented a department grading policy that gave students a minimum 55% score on tests and assignments, according to an email obtained by QNS.<\/p>\n \u201cStudents cannot be penalized or punished for not completing work,\u201d as per a school-wide policy \u2014 and kids who get anything below 100% on a given task can take comfort in knowing it \u201cwill not be included in their final grade,\u201d the email states.<\/p>\n There was also a 35% weighted grading policy for all students, which would significantly boost their low test scores.<\/p>\n The directive allegedly came directly from Thompson, who created and is enforcing the policies despite intense pushback from the teachers, one teacher told The Post.<\/p>\n Grades below 100% \u201cwill not be included in their final grade,\u201d the email states. Obtained by The NY Post<\/p>\n Most of the teachers have filed complaints about the policy, calling it a disservice to the students, but nothing has been done, the educator griped.<\/p>\n \u201cI have no flexibility in terms of passing or failing students now,\u201d\u00a0a teacher told QNS.\u00a0\u201cI can\u2019t, as a teacher, focus on getting students to do well if I\u2019m being told that I just need the students to pass.\u201d<\/p>\n When the educators try to rally the kids, they simply respond: \u201cWhat\u2019s the point?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like it\u2019s going to be a complete disaster in the future when these same students act like this in the real world,\u201d said another.<\/p>\n Flushing High School has struggled academically for years. James Messerschmidt<\/p>\n The issue is especially concerning, considering public school students in the state are\u00a0underperforming well before they get to high school\u00a0<\/a>\u2014 only 53% of students in grades 3-8 were deemed \u201cproficient\u201d in English Language Arts, according to the state DOE\u2019s 2024-25 report card, while 57% made the grade for math.<\/p>\n Flushing, the Big Apple\u2019s first public high school, has been plagued with poor academics for years \u2014 and was the focus of a shady city-led effort to\u00a0push 150 failing students through to graduation back in 2015.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/28a6274f8af863df1cca42a9fccdbda0.jpeg\"\/)
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