Third exit exam ruling expected today

Contra Costa Times ^ | 5/16/6

[SmithL]

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Robert Freedman is expected to rule on a third exit exam lawsuit today.

Californians for Justice filed a writ in April claiming that the state failed to study graduation alternatives to the exit exam requirement soon enough to benefit the class of 2006, the first group of students who must to pass the math and English test in order to receive a diploma.

At a hearing Monday afternoon, Freedman said that he would consider today the state's argument that the suit was similar enough to another lawsuit, Valenzuela v. O'Connell, that the writ should be invalidated.

"The factual record overlaps considerably," Freedman said.

Californians for Justice had asked the judge to permanently strike down the exam as a graduation requirement.

On Friday, ruling in the Valenzuela lawsuit, Freedman granted this year's senior class a reprieve from passing the exit exam to earn a diploma. In his decision, Freedman agreed with five students from Richmond High School who claimed that the test was unfair to English learners and economically disadvantaged students who were more likely to have unqualified teachers and insufficient supplies to learn material on the test.

State officials plan to appeal Freedman's preliminary injunction in that case.

[wyattearp]

unfair to English learners and economically disadvantaged students who were more likely to have unqualified teachers and insufficient supplies to learn material on the test.

Then how about this: Learn English before you graduate, fire the unqualified teachers, and stop wasting book money on laptop computers. That should about take care of it.

[Sergio]

Between the NEA and the ACLU, we're doomed.

All that needs to be done is to check on all the foreign students that come to this country to study engineering, medicine, architecture, math, science.

While there will be some of these students that had better facilities and supplies than those available to the students referenced in the article, I would bet that most equal or less. There is no excuse for this kind of performance. I say make them take the test. You don't pass, you don't graduate.