CAHSEE in CTA Magazine

[George Sheridan <learn@jps.net>]

In the March 2006 California Educator, this letter from me appears on page 
5, directly opposite President Barbara Kerr's column.

*

California is poised to deny diplomas to tens of thousands of students 
because of low scores on the High School Exit Exam - among them many 
students who actually know the material. Test makers admit such tests are 
not accurate enough for high-stakes decisions at the individual level. 
That's why nearly every state with an exit exam also uses an alternative 
assessment to provide students a chance to demonstrate knowledge without 
relying on one test alone.

English language learners will be denied diplomas because they can't pass 
the test without a dictionary, even when these students use English well 
enough to master biology, algebra, history, government and economics. Wise 
policy would base decisions on the totality of evidence about an individual 
student, not simply on test scores.

Schools with low pass rates are often critically overcrowded and lack 
resources. Test results should be considered with other data to identify 
schools needing improvement, and then to provide those schools the tools 
they need. With adequate and equitable resources and with multiple pathways 
to a diploma, California can guarantee students a real opportunity to succeed.


George Sheridan