The State Board of Education voted unanimously Wednesday to stay
the graduation requirements of the California High School Exit Exam
for two years, a decision local educators say was needed.
The State Board of Education voted unanimously Wednesday to stay the graduation requirements of the California High School Exit Exam for two years, a decision local educators say was needed.
Originally, students graduating from high school in the class of 2004 would not have received a diploma without passing both the English-language arts and math sections of the exit exam. Stating that not all students have been properly prepared to pass the test, the Board stayed the requirement until the class of 2006.
“I think it’s probably the only thing the state board could do,” said Jean Burns Slater, superintendent of the San Benito High School District. “Students weren’t passing at the rate they (Board members) originally anticipated.”
The decision spares about 800,000 students in the classes of 2004 and 2005. Students who have already passed the CAHSEE will receive a certificate of accomplishment.
Parents and Students for Educational Justice member Ray Rodriguez said the delay of the exit exam will give schools more time to better prepare students.
“It’s great news on one front,” he said. “It gives us 24 months to work on it, but schools still have a lot of work ahead of them. Students on the bottom of the totem pole are responsible for the education they receive. If we have a bar, the students shouldn’t be the only ones facing the consequences.”
Even though educators and advocacy groups applauded the move, the decision came as a surprise.
“This postponement was not unexpected because of the potential legal challenges that had been threatened,” said Tim Foley, county superintendent of schools. “We still have a commitment to all graduates in our county.”
Other considerations include pressure from groups against the exam; educators who argue students have not been exposed to aligned content standards that the exam tests; and the findings of Assembly Bill 1609, an independent study seeking to evaluate if the exam meets standards for development and use for the class of 2004.
While Slater said two years should be enough time to increase the passing rate, she said middle and high schools, especially those in different districts, need to articulate and realize the exit exam measures knowledge acquired before high school.
State Board of Education President Reed Hastings said the two-year delay will allow students more time to prepare while keeping pressure on schools to educate students. A proposal to delay the CASHEE for three years failed by a 4-5 vote at the Wednesday meeting.
“The 9-0 decision shows a unanimous opinion that more time is needed to improve the challenging task at hand and be fair to all students involved,” Foley said. “Students are not off the hook at all.”
Based on Assembly Bill 1609 and his belief the state board would delay the exam’s requirements at its July meeting, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell canceled the July administration of the test in mid June. At the meeting, he recommended delaying the exit exam requirement until the class of 2006 and reducing the length of the test and the number of days it is administered.
“It’s quite a big step,” Slater said in June. “I think, with looking at shortening the test, he’s (O’Connell) starting to see the impact of testing. With the No Child Left Behind Act … there’s an overwhelming burden on schools.”
Assembly Bill 1609 focused on the test development process and implementation of standards-based instruction. Released May 1, the study found the exit exam meets all test standards for use as a graduation requirement; the exit exam graduation requirement has lead to “dramatically” increased coverage of the California Content Standards and the high-school and middle-school levels; many courses of initial instruction and remedial courses have limited effectiveness in helping students master the required standards; and effectiveness for standards-based instruction will improve for each succeeding class after the class of 2004.
O’Connell said he would also cancel the September and November tests, if the Board voted to postpone it as a graduation requirement.
Hastings had said that it wasn’t a question of whether to postpone the exam, but for how long.
Under a 1999 law, supported by O’Connell while an Assemblymember, the class of 2004 was supposed to be the first that would have to pass the exit exam to graduate. Students have eight chances to take the test during their high school years. The exam – one day of math and two days of English tests – are aligned with the academic standards California adopted in 1997.
