Understanding the Pythagorean theorem and knowing the difference
between their, they’re and there could now be essential to
obtaining a high school diploma, as such concepts will be found on
the California High School Exit Exam (CASHEE).
Early in the new year, State Superintendent of Public
Instruction Jack O’Connell unyieldingly insisted that high
school students pass the exit exam before receiving a diploma or
taking part in graduation ceremonies.
“I am convinced that the only way to make sure all of our
graduates have the critical skills they need in adulthood is
through requiring passage of the high school exit exam. The 2006
date is firm. There will be no more delays,” O’Connell
said in a statement.
In the Los Angeles Unified School District, about 7,500 of the
30,000 students who comprise the upcoming graduating class have yet
to pass the exam.
In effect beginning with the graduating class of 2006, the exam
consists of two portions: English, aimed toward an eighth-grade
reading level; and math, aimed toward ninth- and tenth-grade
levels.
Students have five opportunities to pass the exam between the
beginning of their sophomore year and the end of their senior year.
If a student passes one section of the exam, that section does not
have to be repeated.
A September report estimates that about a fifth of the class of
2006 (i.e., 100,000 California students) had not passed the exam by
their junior year, but O’Connell says he still expects 90
percent to pass before graduation.
The California Business Alliance for Education Excellence, a
coalition of business owners, showed support for the exit exam,
explaining in a statement that it helps ensure students will
graduate high school with fundamental and basic skills that
“mean something in the real world.”
“It shouldn’t be left to our colleges, universities,
or the student’s future employer, to provide the remedial
training students should have mastered before they left high
school,” coalition President Jim Lanich said in a
statement.
But some students are against the idea, arguing that a high
school diploma should not be based on one exam.
“If you do well in the classes with the grades necessary,
you should be able to graduate. It shouldn’t depend on one
test,” said Ryan Espinoza, a second-year international
economics student.
The exam has also been criticized as unfair to certain groups of
students, as a state-funded review found that students from areas
with large numbers of minorities or lower-income families are less
likely to pass the exam. Exam supporters believe this problem
originates from a lack of teacher proficiency and educational
funding in these areas.
Faced with the possibility of a substantial portion of students
not passing the exam, state and local school districts have taken
actions to help students succeed on the test, as well as to
accommodate those who do not pass.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that every student is
given every opportunity to be prepared for, and to pass, the
CASHSEE. We are exploring every possible way to work with these
students to provide their passage to the next stage of their
future,” said Bob Collins, LAUSD chief instruction officer,
Division of Secondary Instruction. According to the California
Department of Education, it will be the school district’s
responsibility to provide additional instruction to help students
who do not pass the exam.
LAUSD spent an additional $7.7 million this year to fund
educational programs aimed at helping students who had not yet
passed the exam, and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said earlier this
month that his budget will include $20 million of funding for
tutorial programs to help students pass the exam and graduate.
UCLA students have also worked to help high school students pass
the exam.
At UCLA, the Student Initiated Outreach Committee offers exam
help and preparation to local high schools and communities.
The Student Initiated Outreach Committee “does a lot of
work with the university on behalf of the students, and tries to
enhance their preparation for the University of California system.
I think it’s a vital and good service that they
provide,” said Robert Naples, assistant vice chancellor of
student and campus life.
Written in 1999, the law was originally intended to go into
effect for the graduating class of 2004, but was stalled by a
lawsuit filed on behalf of California students with disabilities,
an issue which has been a major concern with the test. Some have
worried whether accommodations will be made for students with
disabilities.
O’Connell said he has been working with lawmakers in hopes
of presenting legislation that would provide special education
students with a one-year waiver.
California, along with Florida, North Carolina and New York, is
among the 20 states that require exit exams.
Some states have considered allowing a specific minimum ACT or
SAT score to substitute for taking the exit exam, while others are
attempting to prepare students for the test at a younger age,
around seventh grade.
The California Department of Education has considered several
options, including alternative tests, a portfolio or a senior
project, but O’Connell rejected these alternatives, insisting
an exam must still be implemented.
With reports from Bruin wire services.