The Class of ’09 outscored their fellow students across the
state on last year’s California High School Exit Exam, according to
scores released this week by the California Department of
Education.
Morgan Hill – The Class of ’09 outscored their fellow students across the state on last year’s California High School Exit Exam, according to scores released this week by the California Department of Education.
Morgan Hill Unified School District students topped statewide averages by 4 percent on the “English
language arts” portion of the test and 7 percent on the math section. Students are required to pass the exam before they can receive a high school diploma.
Of last year’s 10th-graders, 81 percent passed the English section of the test and 83 percent passed the math portion. The scores represent a bit of role reversal
compared to the class of 2008, who as
sophomores had an 85-percent pass rate on English and 82 percent on math.
“While we are proud of our students’ achievement, there still are students who need more assistance to meet the CAHSEE requirement,” said Superintendent Alan Nishino. “Our goal is for 100 percent of our students to pass the CAHSEE in tenth grade.”
At Live Oak High School, 78 percent passed the English section, while 83 percent passed math. At Sobrato High School, 85 percent passed both English and math. Seventy-six percent of Central Continuation High students passed both portions of the exam.
Tenth-graders across the district faced the test for the first time last spring. Students take the test in two parts, one linked to state standards in math through algebra 1 and the second part dealing with English standards through 10th grade. Questions are in multiple-choice format, with two written essays included in the English portion.
Students who fail one or both parts of the exam in 10th grade can repeat the test twice in their junior year and three times in their senior year.
District officials said there are plans to help students who didn’t pass on the first try.
“District office staff is currently working with (school) staff to further analyze the data, closely examining subgroup data including ethnicity, language fluency and economic status,” Nishino said. “We will review and revise, as necessary, our supplemental instruction to insure that it is aligned to state academic content standards to support the students in the class of 2008 and 2009 who have not yet passed the exam.”
