Hannan Adely

@AdelyReporter

TRENTON - Graduating high school will become harder for millions of New Jersey students under a measure adopted Wednesday by the State Board of Education that requires students to pass tests in English and math to earn their diplomas.

The new graduation requirement followed fierce public protest in the months leading up to the vote. Critics say the exams are so hard that masses of students might not earn their diplomas and that classroom time and resources are wasted in test preparation.

“I am so completely upset about this,” said Linda Reid, a parent organizer in Paterson. “I’ve seen my own grandchildren stress out taking this test and with all the testimony they had before the Board of Education and the lawsuits (against this change), and they are still saying this is way to go.”

State officials have cautioned the public not to worry about the new standards, which require students to pass the test known as PARCC in Algebra I and 10th-grade English to graduate. The change will start with the class of 2021, so students and schools will have time to get used to the test and learn from it and improve, said state Education Commissioner David Hespe.

But New Jersey is bucking a national trend in which many states have moved away from exit exams as a condition of graduation.

"The state of New Jersey hasn’t heard anything we parents have been saying over the last few years," said Lisa Vassallo of Stafford, who helped collect more than 9,000 signatures in a petition opposing the test she submitted to the state Department of Education. "I feel sorry for our students. This is going to ruin New Jersey’s public education."

In 2012, 25 states required students to pass an exit exam for graduation; but only 15 states still have this requirement, said Jennifer Zinth, director for high school and STEM education at the Education Commission of the States, a nonprofit education organization.

Some states had dropped the tests because of concerns about low passing rates and too much testing, while others got rid of end-of-course exams because they didn’t align with new learning standards called the Common Core, Zinth said. Some states have even retroactively awarded diplomas to former students who did not pass exit exams, she said.

BETTER RESULTS: PARCC passing rates rise in every grade, subject

Hespe said the PARCC tests are a better measure of skill and college readiness — a change that’s needed because many students need remedial help before they can start college even after graduating high school. He said that state law has required students to pass a test to graduate for decades and that “it has served New Jersey very well.”

“New Jersey is a leader in the country in education, and we think this is part of why we’re a leader,” he said.

“Many of New Jersey’s students have their sights set on attending college — and for good reason. Economic demand is urging more students into college classrooms in hopes of securing a better future for themselves and their families," representatives of the New Jersey Council of County Colleges said in a statement. "We see the PARCC assessments as a crucial tool in helping parents and teachers prepare students for both college and careers.”

But the test and pressure to participate were one of the reasons Jacob Hartmann, 16, of Beachwood and his parents decided to stop his education in Toms River schools and enroll in September courses at Ocean County College.

“Now by passing these kinds of laws where they’re forcing you essentially to take them (the tests), it makes you wonder now what are the rights of the students and their parents," he said. “It’s not a good situation."

EDITORIAL: Don’t lock in PARCC graduation requirements

The previous high school standardized test was easier, and most students passed. For two years, New Jersey students have taken the PARCC tests in math and English language arts in grades 3 to 11. Although scores improved last spring, most students still didn’t pass in most grade levels: 41 percent passed Algebra I, and 44 percent passed 10th-grade English, the two tests that will be required for graduation.

Education activists such as Kim Barron of Mahwah, who fears that too many students won’t be able to graduate, said the test doesn’t reflect students’ different abilities and learning styles.

“I don’t think it should be a test that is one size fits all. I don’t know how all districts and states will be the same and all students will be the same. We keep stressing diversity, and in this one instance we are completely ignoring it,” said Barron, who said she was speaking as a parent and not in her capacity as president of the Mahwah school board.

For students who are unable to pass the tests to graduate, the state would consider an appeal based on a portfolio of school work, projects and transcripts for a graduation measure.

Contributing: Amanda Oglesby

Hannan Adely: adely@northjersey.com

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