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Q: What is the High School Exit Examination (HSEE)?
State law (Senate bill 2), passed last spring, authorized
the development of the High School Exit Examination that students in California
public schools will have to pass to receive a High School Diploma, beginning
with the graduating class of 2004.
Q: What is the purpose of the HSEE?
The purpose of the HSEE is to improve student achievement in
high school. It is also to help ensure that students who graduate from high
school can demonstrate competency in the content standards for reading,
writing, and mathematics, adopted by the State Board of Education (SBE).
Q: Who will have to take the HSEE?
Beginning in 2000-2001, students in grade 9 may, but will
not be required to, take the exam. Beginning in 2001-2002 students in grade 10
will take the examination. Students in the graduating class of 2004 will have
to pass all sections of the HSEE to receive a high school diploma.
Q: Why will the students have to take the HSEE in grade 10?
Students must have many opportunities to meet the HSEE
requirement for a high school diploma and to receive proper instruction on the
standards covered by the test. Requiring the exam to be taken for the first time
in grade 10 provides the opportunity for students who are unsuccessful to
receive additional instruction and to retake the exam.
Q: Will English language learners (ELLs) have to take the
HSEE?
If a school district determines that a student does not possess
sufficient English language skills to be assessed, the district may defer the
requirement that the student pass the HSEE for a period of up to 24 calendar
months from enrollment in the California public school system until the student
has completed six months of instruction in reading, writing, and comprehension
in the English language. English language learners must pass the exit
examination to receive a high school diploma.
Q: Will special education students have to take the HSEE?
Yes. Special education
students cannot receive their high school graduation diploma without passing
the HSEE. The HSEE may be administered
with appropriate accommodations as required in each student's Individual
Educational Plan (IEP). All special
education students are required to take the HSEE unless the student's IEP does
not lead to a high school diploma.
Q: What if parents do not want their students tested?
All students will be required to pass the examination to get
a high school diploma from a California public school.
Q: Will there be a pilot or field test of the test questions
before the HSEE is administered to students in the spring of 2001?
Yes. Field testing
for the HSEE will occur from May 15 through May 24, 2000 and again in the fall
of 2000. The purpose of this field
testing is to ensure that the test questions and rest scores are of the highest
technical quality possible and the decisions made using the HSEE results can be
fully supported.
Q: How was the content determined for the high school exit
examination?
The HSEE Panel reviewed the standards in English language
arts and mathematics and recommended standards they felt were essential for
students to master for graduation from high school. Additionally, the Governor
addressed the SBE stating that the English language arts examination should
assess the standards through grade 10 and include a writing sample. He also
stated that the HSEE should include an assessment of mathematics through
first-year algebra.
Q: What will the reading and writing HSEE field test cover?
The HSEE field-test in reading and writing addresses
SBE-adopted standards through grade 10. The field test will consist of
multiple-choice questions and two written essays. The reading portion of the
test is to cover vocabulary, informational reading, and literary reading. This
section will include 50% literary texts and 50% informational texts. The texts
will be graded appropriate and accessible to students in grade 10 who perform
at a basic level.
The writing portion will cover writing strategies, applications,
and conventions. The field test will also have one written response to
literature and one written response not related to a reading text.
Q: What will the mathematics HSEE field test cover?
The HSEE field test in mathematics addresses the SBE adopted
standards through algebra I. The mathematics test will include statistics, data
analysis and probability, number sense, measurement and geometry, mathematical
reasoning, and algebra. High school graduates should also demonstrate a strong
foundation in arithmetic, including work with decimals, fractions, and
percents. The field test will consist of all multiple-choice items.
Q: How was it determined that the content of mathematics
through algebra I be tested?
The mathematic standards at grade 8 through 12 are organized
by discipline rather that by grade level. These standards indicate that all
students are expected to master algebra I, geometry, algebra II, and
probability and statistics by the end of grade 12. Many schools and districts
are just beginning to implement the standards. It was recommended that the
initial examination include all of mathematics trough algebra I and that more
advanced geometry, algebra II, and probability and statistics be added in
future years.
Q: When will the test be finalized?
The test content and format of the HSEE must be adopted by
the State Board of Education in October 2000 before the first test is given in
the spring of 2001.
Q: Will there be alternatives to the HSEE?
The law authorizing the HSEE states that after initial administrations
of the exit examination, the State Board of Education, in consultation with the
State Superintendent of Public Instruction, shall study the appropriateness of
other criteria by which high school students may demonstrate their competency
and receive a high school diploma.
Q: How can students prepare for the HSEE?
It will be important that students take classes that include
instruction in state content standards for English/language arts and math.
Students will need to use their knowledge of content identified for the test.
Q: What if my district doesn't use the same standards as the
content standards adopted by the State Board?
Districts are responsible for preparing students to pass the
HSEE. Districts will need to examine the content standards designated for the
HSEE and ensure that their students have the opportunity to achieve those
standards.
Q: What is my responsibility as a teacher?
Teachers are responsible for providing instruction aligned
to the content standards designated for the HSEE and for helping students reach
a proficiency in these standards.
Q: Will students and parents be able to see the HSEE before
the test is administered?
Only the students will see actual test questions when they
take the examination. This security measure will ensure that the examination is
fair for all students. A test guide will be developed to provide sample test
questions and other information.
Q: What if a student is absent on testing days?
The HSEE will be administered only on the examination or
make up days designated each year by the Superintendent of public Instruction.
Q: How and when will parents get their student's test
results?
Test results must be returned to students within eight weeks
of administration. Specific details about the reporting process to students and
parents have not yet been finalized.
Q: What will happen if a student doesn't pass the HSEE?
Students will be able to take the test until all the
portions are passed, and they will retake only those portions not previously
passed. Districts must provide supplemental instruction aligned to the state
content standards to assist students who do not pass the test. They will also
provide summer school programs for students who need additional assistance.
This will include summer school for seniors who do not pass the exam.
Q: Will districts still be required to give the minimum
proficiency exams currently in place?
For many years, districts have been required to adopt
standards of proficiency in basic skills, and students have been required to
achieve mastery of these skills as a condition of receiving a high school
diploma. The Education Code no longer requires locally developed proficiency
exams. A school district may continue to require students to pass proficiency
examinations approved by the district's governing board as a condition for
graduation.
Additional information about the HSEEE is posted on the
California Department of Education website as http://www.cde.ca.gov/cilbranch/sca/hsee.html
(Internet)
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