Our View: States make diplomas count by sticking with senior tests
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.

Opposing View: Tests punish students
By Abdi Soltani
Many people say children today are apathetic and don't care about education. But in fact, thousands of students across the country are fighting for a high-quality education. In California, at rallies and meetings with state officials, students are making a simple, but powerful point: Exit exams punish students for politicians' failure to properly invest in neglected, unequal schools.
In California, thousands of children of color and low-income students attend schools where 40% of teachers lack credentials. Schools are overcrowded and run-down. Students proceed through high school never meeting with a counselor because there aren't any left. In the subjects tested on California's exit exam — math and English — students report a succession of substitute teachers and too few textbooks to take home for homework. During the years exit exams have been in place, many of these problems have worsened, as the number of schools with large concentrations of uncredentialed teachers has increased.

Because many public schools provide a good education, these conditions may come as a surprise to many people, but not to the teachers and students who live with this reality every day. These conditions are not isolated. And they are not acceptable. Fifty years after the Supreme Court's Brown vs. Board of Education decision, a new case, Williams vs. State of California, seeks to remedy the problem. Without a plan to guarantee students' basic rights, exit exams are a cruel hoax that punishes students for politicians' failure to provide a high-quality education.

On July 9, when the California Board of Education votes whether to delay the exit exam, students and parents will deliver a clear message: A short delay of two to three years is grossly inadequate and totally unacceptable. Instead, the state needs to put first things first by providing all kids the fundamental resources they deserve.

The state board must also study alternative assessments. Standardized tests should be tools for helping teachers, parents and kids work together to succeed, not as instruments to deny students the diplomas they have rightfully earned.

Abdi Soltani is executive director of Californians for Justice, an organization of parents and students working for educational equity.