Using graduation exams to set floor of performance

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Using graduation exams to setfloor of
performance

• 25 states have put high school graduation exams
  in place

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Why Are States Instituting High School Graduation
Exams?
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Too many U.S. students drop out of the education
pipeline
Source National Center for Public Policy
Higher Education, Policy Alert, April 2004. Data
are estimates of pipeline progress rather than
actual cohort.
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Too many students drop out of the education
pipeline
Source National Center for Public Policy
Higher Education, Policy Alert, April 2004. Data
are estimates of pipeline progress rather than
actual cohort.
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College bound does not necessarily mean college
ready
Percentage of U.S. first-year students in
two-year and four-year institutions requiring
remediation

• Nearly three in 10 first-year students are placed
  immediately into a remedial college course.

Source National Center for Education Statistics,
Remedial Education at Degree-Granting
Postsecondary Institutions in Fall 2000, 2003.
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Most U.S. college students who take remedial
courses fail to earn degrees
Percentage not earning degree by type of remedial
coursework

• Many college students who need remediation,
  especially in reading and math, do not earn
  either an associates or a bachelors degree.

Source National Center for Education Statistics,
The Condition of Education, 2004.
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High school graduation rate United States
trails most countries
Source Organisation for Economic Co-operation
and Development, Education at a Glance 2004, 2004.
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College graduation rate U.S. also lags behind
most developed countries
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A high school diploma is not the last educational
stop required

• Jobs that require postsecondary education will
  make up more than two-thirds of new jobs.

Source Carnevale, Anthony P. and Donna M.
Desrochers, Standards for What? The Economic
Roots of K16 Reform, Educational Testing
Service, 2003.
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Many high school graduates cite gaps in
preparation
How well did your high school education prepare
you for college or the work/jobs you hope to get
in the future?

• Very well generally able to do whats expected

• Somewhat well some gaps

• Not well large gaps/struggling

• Extremely well prepared for everything

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53
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High school graduates who went to college
High school graduates who did not go to college
Source Peter D. Hart Research Associates/Public
Opinion Strategies, Rising to the Challenge Are
High School Graduates Prepared for College and
Work? prepared for Achieve, Inc., 2005.
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College instructors/employers confirm high school
graduates lack of preparation
Average estimated proportions of recent high
school graduates who are not prepared
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High school graduates not prepared for
college-level classes
High school graduates not prepared to advance
beyond entry-level jobs
Source Peter D. Hart Research Associates/Public
Opinion Strategies, Rising to the Challenge Are
High School Graduates Prepared for College and
Work? prepared for Achieve, Inc., 2005.
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American Diploma Project

• What does it take to be
• prepared for postsecondary
• education and work?

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The American Diploma Project

• Partners Education Trust, Thomas B. Fordham
  Foundation, National Alliance of Business
•  2 years of research on essential math English
  skills
•  2004 report Benchmarks to be successful in
  college or work
•  Follow up reports Exit exams (2004), course
  requirements (2004), poll (2005)

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Expectations are the same for both college
good jobs

• ADP found high degree of convergence
• The knowledge skills that high school graduates
  will need in order to be successful in college
  are the same as those they will need in order to
  be successful in a job that
• pays enough to support a family well above the
  poverty level,
• provides benefits,
• offers clear pathways for career advancement
  through further education training.

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Even blue-collar jobs require high-level skills

• Requirements for tool and die makers
• Four or five years of apprenticeship and/or
  postsecondary training
• Algebra, geometry, trigonometry and statistics
• Requirements for sheet metal workers
• Four or five years of apprenticeship
• Algebra, geometry, trigonometry and technical
  reading

Source American Diploma Project, 2002.
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ADP expectations ensure high school graduates are
prepared to succeed

• In English, the benchmarks cover
• Language
• Communication
• Writing
• Research
• Logic
• Informational text
• Media
• Literature

• In math, the benchmarks cover
• Number sense and numerical operations
• Algebra
• Geometry
• Data interpretations, statistics and probability
• Math reasoning skills

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To be college and work ready, students need to
complete a rigorous sequence of courses
To cover the content in the ADP benchmarks, high
school graduates need

• In math
• Four courses
• Content equivalent to Algebra I and II, Geometry,
  and a fourth course such as Statistics or
  Precalculus

• In English
• Four courses
• Content equivalent to four years of grade-level
  English or higher (i.e., honors or AP English)

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Achieves Analysis of Graduation Exams
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Participating States
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Analysis of the WASL

• A Commission, OSPI, and Partnership for
  Learning asked Achieve to
• Compare 10th grade WASL in reading, writing, and
  math to exit exams in other 6 states using same
  methodology as in earlier study
• Analyze both 2002 and 2003 WASL
• Summarize results of analysis (2003 WASL only)
  for October 2004 ACommission meeting
• Provide OSPI with more detailed report in January
  2005

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Achieve Study Criteria

• Content
• Cognitive Demand
• Approximate Grade Level
• Reading Passage Demand
• Reading Rigor
• Writing
• Cut Scores

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The tests we analyzed
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Distribution of Math Points by Item Type
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Distribution of English Language Arts Points by
Item Type
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Content of Reading Items Across States
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Cognitive Demand of Reading Items Across States
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Average Reading Passage Demand Across States
LEVELS
High School
Middle School
Elementary School
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Average Reading Rigor Across States
HIGH
LOW
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Passing Each State's ELA Test Based on ACT Scale?
ACT (11TH/12TH)
ACT PLAN (10TH)
ACT EXPLORE (8th/9th)
NJ
TX
MD
MA
FL
WASL Proficient (2003)
WASL Basic (2003)
OH
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WASL Writing is as sophisticated as the best
Achieve has studied

• The WASL Writing Test is made up exclusively of
  on-demand writing tasks, with no multiple-choice
  writing or language questions
• Washington also sets itself apart from the other
  states by requiring students to pass the writing
  assessment in order to graduate

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WASL Writing reflects skills that colleges and
employers want

• Exemplary features of Writing Test
• Students respond to two writing promptsone
  expository and one persuasive
• Prompts and rubrics emphasize developing a clear
  thesis structuring ideas in a logical fashion
  supporting an argument with relevant details and
  providing a coherent conclusionthe American
  Diploma Project defines these as essential skills
  for success in college and the workplace
• Requirement of 17 out of 24 to pass helps ensure
  that passing students can write at an adequate
  level by the time they graduate

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Content of Math Items Across States
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Algebra Content of Math Items Across States
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Average Level of Math Content Across States on
the TIMSS International Grade Placement (IGP)
Scale
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Cognitive Demand of Math Items Across States
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What does it take to pass math exams on the the
TIMSS International Grade Placement (IGP) Scale?
Not required for graduation.
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What does it take to pass math exams in terms of
Cognitive Demand Scale?

Not required for graduation.
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WASL Analysis Key Conclusions

• Writing test is exemplary
• Proficient level reflects competent writing
• Basic level reflects less than competent writing
• Reading test is roughly comparable to other
  states
• Proficient level is comparable to average of
  other states passing levels
• Basic level is slightly lower
• Math test is less rigorous than other states
  primarily because of less challenging content
• Proficient and basic levels require less
  challenging content than passing level in other
  six states
• Proficient level requires slightly higher
  cognitive demand than basic level

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Achieve Graduation Exam StudyKey Conclusions

• The tests are not overly demanding
• The questions reflect material that most students
  study early in their high school years.
• The tests set reasonable expectations
• States should not lower the standards or delay
  their implementation
• States should strengthen the exams over time
• Exit exams must keep pace with workplace and
  postsecondary expectations
• States should not rely exclusively on these tests
• Additional measures may be necessary to assess
  material beyond the scope of exit exams

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The Massachusetts storyMore students passing
graduation exam
95
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The Massachusetts Story Gaps in passing rates
closing
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The Massachusetts StoryNext challenge All
students proficient
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Achieves Analysis of High School Graduation
Requirements
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43 states require students to take certain
courses to graduate from high school
Source Achieve, Inc., The Expectations Gap A
50-State Review of High School Graduation
Requirements, 2004.
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21 states require Algebra I
Source Achieve, Inc., The Expectations Gap A
50-State Review of High School Graduation
Requirements, 2004.
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12 states require Geometry
Source Achieve, Inc., The Expectations Gap A
50-State Review of High School Graduation
Requirements, 2004.
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Only 4 states require Algebra II
Source Achieve, Inc., The Expectations Gap A
50-State Review of High School Graduation
Requirements, 2004.
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Expectations Gap

• In nearly every state, students can earn a
• high school diploma without the skills
• necessary for success in college and work.

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