Posted on 06/23/2003 12:53:34 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Parents hearing recent news reports about ''exit exams'' that high school seniors must pass to earn a diploma probably assume they're a bad idea doomed to a well-deserved death.
In Massachusetts, where 4,800 seniors were denied diplomas for failing the mandatory tests, state authorities had to quash a rebellion among superintendents planning to give out diplomas anyway. This month in California, state school officials retreated from a plan that would have denied diplomas to tens of thousands of students likely to fail exit tests, which now won't be used until 2006. And Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has been hounded by protesters demanding diplomas for 14,000 seniors who flunked the exams.
Yes, denying diplomas to seniors who fail a test is harsh. But that decision was made intentionally by 24 states to ensure that diplomas signify more than just 12 years of attendance. If states abandon exit exams just as the first consequences are kicking in, school officials only confirm their earlier fears: that high school diplomas are no guarantee to colleges, employers or taxpayers that graduates have mastered key information.
The value of high school diplomas has been slipping for years. While 63% of teachers believe high school grades reflect a student's abilities, only 23% of college professors agree, according to a 2002 survey by Public Agenda, a public policy polling group.
The credibility gap among employers is almost as wide. While 78% of high school teachers say diplomas prepare students for the workforce, only 41% of employers agree, according to a 2001 Public Agenda survey.
The problem is that grades alone are a poor indicator of learning. Consider:
* In a 1997 survey by a Georgia State University researcher, 86% of teachers said students' ''efforts'' were part of their grade.
* Using data from a 1988 federal test, U.S. Department of Education researchers found that ''A'' students in schools in poor neighborhoods had the same reading scores as ''D'' students in schools in affluent areas.
That's why exit exams were devised -- to ensure that a diploma means something.
Critics say the tests are unfair to minorities. And they cite education experts who say a student's fate should not rest on a single exam. Both points are valid. As are parents' complaints when suddenly told that their children won't graduate. Even so, those problems reflect how some states implement the exams -- not their worth.
Minorities do fail the exams at higher rates, a gap that shows up on all standardized tests. Ideally, that fact should pressure states and schools to do more to help minority students, well in advance of graduation.
Critics also rightly point out that a diploma should not hinge on a one-time test. The sensible solution is to provide students with multiple chances to pass it.
What's more, districts that require exit exams can ensure that students have a fair chance of passing by offering early tutoring for those who struggle. And states can give alternative, lower-level diplomas that signify attendance, but not mastery of the material.
Doubts over the soundness of exit exams were dispelled by New York State. In 1996, critics predicted disaster when the state announced that all students would be required to meet the high standards for Regents diplomas, which had been earned mostly by college-bound students. But in the class of 2002, the first required to pass four Regents exams, 93% of seniors graduated.
That shows exit exams, when administered properly, can be a powerful tool for school reform. And they give students a diploma that recognizes real achievements.
Bump!
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It's a real shocker when you've been sporting a "My Kid is on the Honor Roll" bumper sticker!
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***Minorities do fail the exams at higher rates, a gap that shows up on all standardized tests. Ideally, that fact should pressure states and schools to do more to help minority students, well in advance of graduation. ***
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Yes, by having teachers qualifed to teach the subject matter, teaching English-only and dumping the "education's a white man's game" attitude.
I went to have some blinds cut the other day. I had to show the cutter how to read the markings on the table measure. This is criminal. We must demand students understand the material or they DON'T advance a grade!! Also dump tenure and get ignorant teachers away from students.
Thomas Sowell would have a fine old time with this. The refusal to disaggregate below the suggestive but unspecific "minorities" implies that there are critical differences hidden in the aggregate -- differences too embarrassing for these "critics" -- also unspecified, both in identities and affiliations -- to allow the public to learn about them.
"Figures cannot lie, but liars can figure." -- Mark Twain.
Freedom, Wealth, and Peace,
Francis W. Porretto
Visit The Palace Of Reason:
http://palaceofreason.com
Bump!
"Figures cannot lie, but liars can figure." -- Mark Twain.
My mother often used this quote.
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