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 under qualified instruction can shortchange students.

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.

With Jeremiah Dickerson.

This is a video-first episode. You can watch it now on Youtube.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

At my school, the Gender and Sexuality Alliance feels more like a social club than a space for activism. And I’m not alone in feeling that way.

In this episode, I look at how GSAs in New York City have drifted from their original purpose: organizing for change and uplifting queer voices. Once at the front lines of student activism, many GSAs now avoid political conversations and lack diversity, even as queer youth face mounting attacks across the United States.

It’s time for a GSA rebrand. To recenter activism and ensure every queer student feels seen and supported, GSAs must be spaces that are bold, inclusive, and purposeful. Queer youth have played a key role in leading social movements, and history shows that when we organize, we create change. It’s time for GSAs to reflect that legacy and reclaim their role.

With Mher Melikyan.

This is a video-first episode. You can watch it now on Youtube.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

America is in a financial literacy crisis. According to the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center, U.S. adults correctly answer less than half of basic personal-finance questions. 

As a sophomore at Stuyvesant High School and a student reporter for Miseducation, I’ve seen firsthand how we’re set up to fail. New York City, the financial capital of the world, still doesn’t require a standalone personal-finance course for graduation. Students encounter only a single unit on it, tucked inside economics class, even though managing taxes, budgeting, and loans is essential to navigating today’s economy.

This episode explores the gap between those with access to money-management lessons and those left to learn on their own. You’ll hear from David Peng, one of my teachers at Stuy who created a personal-finance course and Ashley Leftwich of Rock The Street, Wall Street. They’ll explain why mandating a full-semester personal-finance requirement is the what we need. 

Ready to get involved? See the links below for easy ways to contact your local representatives and sign the petition to require a standalone financial-literacy course in New York State. Every student deserves to be confident in their financial future. Let’s make it happen in schools, right now.

With Noa Salas Adam.

Take action in three quick clicks — then share the episode with a friend:

1. Add your name to this statewide petition calling for a standalone financial-literacy requirement in NYC.
2. Find your representative so you know exactly who to email.
3. Use these writing tips to tell them why a full-semester personal-finance course matters.

This is a video-first episode. You can watch it now on Youtube.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

By Autumn Wynn

In New York City schools, restorative justice – or RJ – has been around for almost a decade. It’s a way to repair harm by bringing together the person who caused it, the person affected, and the community.

Restorative justice circles are designed to help students heal, take accountability, and build stronger communities, but too often they feel like just another routine. Most RJ schools rely on circles — structured conversations that serve three tiers: Tier 1 community-building before harm occurs; Tier 2 conflict resolution when harm happens; and Tier 3 reintegration after healing. At my Brooklyn high school, we sit in a circle twice a week, yet phones stay out and eyes glaze over. Far from the healing practice they’re meant to be, these sessions can become checkbox exercises.

As a peer mediator and RJ leader, I’ve seen both their promise and their pitfalls. Black students are suspended 3.4 times more than their white peers. Studies show that even minor suspensions can derail academic achievement for years. A 2022 citywide study found that some students “do not care, do not pay attention, or fall asleep during circle”. I see my peers doing the same. So I started asking: What would it actually take to make it work? And how should we reassess success — beyond suspension rates — to include trust, student voice, and genuine community healing?

Join me as I dig into the gap between adult-led and student-led circles, sit down with restorative justice facilitator Javon Lomax, and make the case that real healing demands students, not just staff, at the forefront.

This is a video-first episode. You can watch it now on Youtube.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

What is happening with the youth vote during this year’s mayoral race? Are New York City’s young people tuning in? Are the candidates reaching out to young voters? And why hasn’t education been a centerpiece of the mayor’s race so far?

Producers Jojo Fofana, a senior at Fordham High School for the Arts, and Roberto Bailey, a junior at Hunter College High School, examine the 2025 mayoral race and the role of young people in the election. They dig into the candidates and their positions, what they have to say directly to students, and why only 18% of young voters actually cast ballots. 

You’ll hear from the candidates who sent one-minute videos to Chalkbeat with their direct appeal to young New Yorkers, and you’ll hear the producers share their candid reactions to these clips. And you’ll also hear what Jojo and Roberto wished the candidates would have tackled head on. In a conversation with Chalkbeat’s Amy Zimmer and Alex Zimmerman, you’ll learn more about the challenges of getting the candidates to focus on issues touching the Education Department — the city’s largest agency. 

Ultimately, P.S. Weekly’s final episode of the season is a call to action, offering tips on how young people can register to vote, research the candidates, and connect with youth-focused organizations. 

To find out more about how to register, visit Vote.org, and to learn more about how NYC high school students can get involved, check out YVote. 

If you want to find out more about the candidates views on important education issues, you can find the candidates’ responses to seven critical education questions Chalkbeat asked them or you can read a cheat sheet here. 

If you want to see which candidates best align with your views, check out the “Meet your mayor” quiz from our friends at THE CITY and Gothamist in which they asked the mayoral hopefuls where they stand on issues such as affordable housing and public safety.

P.S. Weekly is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Reach us at [email protected].

P.S. Weekly is a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell, made possible by generous support from The Pinkerton Foundation. 

P.S. Weekly episodes will also be featured in the Miseducation feed. 

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

Why do so many young people lack the fundamentals of civics knowledge? Is the education system adequately preparing future generations for active participation in democracy? Do New York City teens know there’s a big mayoral race coming up — and can they name any of the candidates?

Producers Jasmyn Centeno, a senior at Uncommon Leadership Charter High School, and Annie He, a senior at John Dewey High School, tackle these questions head on. They talk to their P.S. Weekly peers who are focusing on the upcoming mayor’s race to hear more about Gen Z’s behavior: They may actively repost social media content about politics, but that doesn’t necessarily translate into voter action. 

Jenna Ryall, the Education Department’s director of Civics for All, explains the city’s efforts to get young people to “practice” democracy before they’re expected to participate as adults. The goal, she says, is to help students engage in civil conversation and make sense of the information around them. 

Civics education isn’t about teaching students what to think, Ryall said. “We are teaching them how to think.”

P.S. Weekly is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Reach us at [email protected].

P.S. Weekly is a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell, made possible by generous support from The Pinkerton Foundation. 

P.S. Weekly airs Thursdays this spring. Episodes re-publish in the Miseducation feed on Mondays.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

It’s been five years since COVID shut down New York City schools. How are kids faring with the aftermath? How do they talk about the pandemic – or not? 

The fallout is often framed around “learning loss” or dips in test scores, but what about some of the social impacts, like the quiet shifts in students’ personalities or the mounting mental health struggles many are still confronting? 

Producers Mateo Tang O’Reilly, from Central Park East High School, and Katelyn Melville, from the Brooklyn Institute for Liberal Arts, explore the ripple effects that continue to weigh on young people’s lives, such as “school refusal,” which is when severe anxiety or other mental health issues prevent students from attending class. 

Chalkbeat’s Amy Zimmer discusses how the prolonged isolation exacerbated school refusal, highlighting the challenges schools face in getting kids back into the classroom. Anika Merkin, a Chalkbeat Student Voices Fellow, shares her personal experience as someone whose struggles with obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, led to school refusal, and how she managed to do the hard work in therapy to turn things around. Her story serves as a reminder to hold onto empathy and grace for the students whose lives continue to be profoundly touched by the pandemic. 

P.S. Weekly is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Reach us at [email protected].

P.S. Weekly is a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell, made possible by generous support from The Pinkerton Foundation. 

P.S. Weekly airs Thursdays this spring. Episodes re-publish in the Miseducation feed on Mondays.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

What is the state of youth climate activism in New York City? 

The momentum of the climate protests at the start of the 2019-20 school year may have slowed since the pandemic, and many students remain apathetic, but climate anxiety continues to fuel some students into action. 

Producers Sanaa Stokes, a senior at Manhattan’s Professional Performing Arts High School, and Aponi Kafele, a junior at Manhattan’s Essex Street Academy, tackle the issue head on — and help make a difference along the way. 

They spotlight the work of Alice Schwartz, an Essex Street student, who has been tirelessly pushing to implement a mandated composting program at the school, only to be met by bureaucratic hurdles and logistical challenges. 

But her persistence — and the power of student journalism — pay off. As the producers dig into the reasons for the delayed composting program, they connect Alice with an Education Department official, who realizes the oversight and rectifies the situation. It’s a moment of triumph and hope, revealing how climate advocacy and holding institutions accountable can lead to small victories.

P.S. Weekly is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Reach us at [email protected].

P.S. Weekly is a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell, made possible by generous support from The Pinkerton Foundation. 

P.S. Weekly airs Thursdays this spring. Episodes re-publish in the Miseducation feed on Mondays.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

Cutting class. Fights. Vaping. School bathrooms have long been notorious for all sorts of illicit behavior. And in response, many schools now significantly restrict access to bathrooms or are adding surveillance tools, including vape detectors. 

Producers Isabella Mason, from Midwood High School, and Bernie Carmona, from Beacon High School, wade into the debate over school bathroom policies.

At Midwood, for instance, the school locks bathroom doors for the five minutes while changing classes, and bars access during the first and last 10 minutes of class. The school’s assistant principal of safety and security, Richard Franzese, discusses the evolution of the policy and the lengths the school has gone to crack down on incidents. Beyond limiting the times the bathrooms are open, the school has bathroom sign-in sheets, allowing up to three students in at a time, and has school aides stationed outside.

“There's no perfect solution,” he said. 

And Chalkbeat reporter Michael Elsen-Rooney sheds light on how schools are specifically responding to student vaping, illuminating the tension between simply enforcing rules versus dealing with larger issues related to addiction and mental health. 

P.S. Weekly is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Reach us at [email protected].

P.S. Weekly is a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell, made possible by generous support from The Pinkerton Foundation. 

P.S. Weekly airs Thursdays this spring. Episodes re-publish in the Miseducation feed on Mondays.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.

P.S. Weekly airs on Thursdays this spring. Subscribe wherever you get podcasts.

Episodes republish Mondays in the Miseducation feed.

There’s no way to ignore the rise of AI in schools. 

Students are embracing it. Educators are battling it. Policymakers are trying to get ahead of it. There's no turning back.

But are there some classes where AI just doesn't belong?

Producers Annie He, a senior at John Dewey High School, and Roberto Bailey, a junior at Hunter College High School, explore how AI use among students is exploding and question its effect on creativity.

Writing teachers are especially worried. To combat these new, rapidly evolving tools, some teachers are resorting to old ones: pencil and paper.

Miseducation is a podcast of The Bell that equips New York City public high school students with the tools to report on inequities in the nation’s largest school system.