Credit Recovery: A Second Chance to Pass or Fail?
By Jeremiah Dickerson
Thousands of New York City students rely on credit-recovery programs to earn course credit they need for the next grade or graduation. But do these second chances to pass give the system permission to fail?
A 2018 audit at a Brooklyn high school found that 96 percent of recovered credits were improperly awarded, exposing how uneven oversight and underqualified instruction can shortchange students.
In some credit‑recovery programs, students complete digital lessons to make up failed credits without repeating classes or attending summer school. Photo by Izusek.
In this episode, I share my own observations, along with my classmate Hawa’s firsthand experience navigating credit recovery. I also sit down with Shante Martin, a Williamsburg Charter High School administrator who sees the program’s promise, but also proposes changes such as limiting eligibility to seniors and raising the minimum grade requirement for a student to enter credit recovery.
A genuine second chance shouldn’t mean cutting corners. If credit recovery remains part of our school system, then it must deliver on the education it promises.
This is a video-first episode. You can watch it now on YouTube.
Miseducation is The Bell’s flagship podcast, which gives New York City public high school students the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.
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