Over 20,000 Florida Seniors Denied Diplomas by State Exit Exam Policy

We know of the dropouts, and some have heard of the pushouts--those that are forced out of school so they won't bring down school test scores and, thus, threaten AYP. But there is another group of losers in the testing derby who we may call the testouts. Florida has over 20,000 testouts this year, and to save a million bucks, the State of Florida will offer no summer retakes this year for the high school exit exam that the testouts failed.

If 20,000 seniors walked out of schools across Florida on the same day, that would be a big story, yes? In Florida, the shocking and shameful facts for the Sunshine State testing factories earn a sidebar in the Miami Herald, which was more intent on talking about the 5,590 seniors from South Florida that will not get their diplomas because of the state exit exam.

From the sidebar:

Florida high-schoolers must pass the reading and math sections of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test to graduate with a standard diploma. The last chance for students who wanted to graduate with the rest of the class of 2009 was in March -- and for the first time, students won't have a chance to retake the exam until October. Here is how they did:

Miami-Dade

Of 4,874 seniors who took the reading test, 877, or 18 percent, passed.

Of 1,927 seniors who took the math test, 424, or 22 percent, passed.

Broward

Of 1,896 seniors who took the reading test, 303, or 16 percent, passed.

Of 700 seniors who took the math test, 154, or 22 percent, passed.

Florida

Of 22,925 seniors who took the reading test, 4,585, or 20 percent, passed.

Of 8,540 seniors who took the math test, 2,220, or 26 percent, passed.

SOURCE: Florida Department of Education