More than 4,000 city public-school classrooms are overcrowded – and that’s an improvement, according to the United Federation of Teachers.
The union yesterday released its annual report on classes that exceed contractual size limits. The number was 4,303 as of Wednesday – a 31 percent decline from last year.
Queens and Manhattan schools were the hardest hit, with 1,630 jammed classes in Queens and 1,065 in Manhattan. And for the second year running, Francis Lewis HS in Fresh Meadows led the charge, with 259 classes violating size limits, the union said. The UFT contract limits classes to 32 students in elementary schools, 33 in middle schools and 34 at the high-school level.
Department of Education spokeswoman Debra Wexler said the city has reduced class size at every grade level over the last five years.