Pennsylvania is poised to again delay its high school graduation exam, granting a reprieve to current high school seniors.
After lawmakers paused the mandate in 2016, the Class of 2019 was supposed to be the first group of graduating seniors that had to pass the Keystone Exams to earn a diploma.
Gov. Tom Wolf's office said Monday that he plans to sign into law a bill that provides alternatives to passing high-stakes tests to demonstrate readiness to graduate from high school.
The bill passed the state Senate 49-0. It would allow students that don't pass all three Keystones to earn a diploma via alternative means, like gaining admission to a four-year college, getting a passing SAT score -- a standard to be set by the State Board of Education -- or passing military entrance exams.
In 2009, the Board of Education made passing the Keystones a graduation requirement and set 2016-17 as the year the mandate would go into effect. Pennsylvania spent more than $70 million to develop the end-of-year tests in algebra, biology and English.
But lawmakers have twice delayed the implementation of the exit exam after opposition grew from some parents and educators.
Critics argued that test remediation was taking students away from real learning and too much emphasis was being placed on standardized testing. Some feared the exam would lead to higher drop out rates and that it discriminates against poorer schools.
The bill headed to Wolf's desk further delays implementation until alternative pathways to passing the exams take effect, starting with this year's freshman class.
Bill sponsor Sen. Tom McGarrigle, R-Delaware County, said he introduced the measure to return graduation requirements to their original intent: ensuring students can show proficiency in the knowledge and skills relevant to their individual career pathways.
Pennsylvania State Education Association President Dolores McCracken praised McGarrigle last week for rejecting a "one-size-fits-all approach to something as important as a high school diploma."
"No single standardized test should overshadow a student's academic record of accomplishments," McCracken said in a statement. "Students should be able to draw on multiple academic achievements to demonstrate their readiness to graduate high school."
The testing requirement was put into place as a way to make a Pennsylvania high school diploma signify a graduate's readiness to enter college, the military or the workforce.
It came at the request of employers, military officers, and higher education institution officials who were finding students exiting high school ill-equipped to succeed in their post-graduation pursuits. At the time, they pointed to a 20 percent discrepancy in 461 school districts between the number of students who achieve passing scores on state exams and their graduation rates.
But even organizations that supported the testing requirement came to recognize the one-size-fits-all approach might not work. They succeeded in getting provisions added to the bill to strengthen some of the graduation options and add more transparency and oversight, so they no longer oppose the bill.
However, Ron Tomalis, former state education secretary who played a key role in working to implement the testing requirement, sees the measure as lowering the bar for students to graduate.
"The results from the Keystones were telling us that in far too many instances students were not meeting the minimalists of standards," Tomalis said. "When you create as many loopholes to graduate as this appears to do, it drastically lowers our expectations for our students. In the long term, that's good for neither the student nor the Commonwealth."
Here's a breakdown of the many ways students could earn a diploma under the proposal:
- Attain a proficient or advanced score on the three Keystone Exams in Algebra I, biology and literature.
- Attain a proficient score on at least one of the Keystone Exams and at least a basic on the other two and have the combined scores of these exams meet or exceed a state-specified score determined to be acceptable.
- Meet or exceed local grade requirements in areas tested in the Keystone Exams and one of the following: attain at least a state-specified passing score on the SAT, PSAT, ACT, Advanced Placement exam in any subject area, international baccalaureate exam in any subject area, earn a gold or platinum score on a Work Keys certificate exam that determines career readiness, pass the military entrance exam, complete a dual enrollment course in any subject area, complete a pre-apprenticeship program, or gain acceptance into a four-year higher education institution and show evidence of the ability to handle college-level work.
- Meet or exceed local grade requirements in areas tested in the Keystone Exams and obtain an industry-based competency certification related to the career and technical education student's program of study or demonstrates a likelihood of success in an industry-based competency exam.
- Meet or exceed local grade requirements in areas tested in the Keystone Exams and three pieces of evidence demonstrating "readiness for meaningful postsecondary engagement" consistent with the career plan that students, starting this year are required to develop. The evidence must include one of the following: a silver score on the Work Keys exam, a state-specified acceptable score on the SAT, acceptance into community college or postsecondary institution other than a four-year college and proof of ability to handle college-level work, attaining an industry-recognized credential, attaining at least a state-set score on an Advanced Placement exam or international baccalaureate exam, or completing a dual enrollment course. Additionally, this option allows for the following to be evidence of graduation readiness: completion of a pre-approved service learning project, attaining a proficient or advanced score on a Keystone Exam, a letter guaranteeing full-time employment, completion of an internship/externship/cooperative education program, attaining at least a 2.0 in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's core courses for college-bound student athletes, or meeting or exceeding local grade requirements in any science, technology, environment and ecology course.
- Satisfactory completion of the program developed by an individualized education program team in the case of a student with disabilities.
PennLive.com reporter Jan Murphy contributed to this report.
Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.