Albert Einstein once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over and expecting different results.” If Einstein is right, then the New York City Department of Education’s handling of specialized high school admissions fits that bill.

This year’s results have shown much of the same as we have seen in years past — black and Latino students are vastly underrepresented, which does not show the Department of Education’s commitment to “creating and supporting learning environments that reflect the diversity of New York City.”

These schools’ admissions are largely based on the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test. The city unveiled a plan to phase out the test within three years while also reserving seats for students in low-income areas who barely missed the score cutoff. However, early returns haven’t been positive. We have to wonder, what happens to these students when they have to attend a nonspecialized high school?

We need to see uniformity for all high schools. Students are zoned for high schools in the city and often don’t have the option to attend certain institutes or take classes beneficial to them. Devoting resources to specialized schools is great, but the city also needs to create a benchmark for public education. There is no reason two students who receive the same “basic,” nonspecialized public school education in other schools should receive any different of an education.