New York City is planning to overhaul the school assessment system by getting rid of "A" through "F" grading. 

Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina announced the new plan while speaking at P.S. 503 in Brooklyn.

Instead of letter grades for assessing performance, Farina announced two new accountability tools for New York City public schools. 

 

The first is called the school quality guide. It includes multiple years of data, so that a school's progress can be easily tracked over time.

The second element is the school quality snap shot, which is designed to replace, what Farina calls, "the one size fits all letter grade system." The snap shot looks at six areas of the school's strengths and weaknesses including quality reviews, progress on state tests, and student achievements.

Farina says the new changes to the school assessment system will create more transparency and will help better prepare students to compete in the 21st century.