Robert Maass, Assessment Specialist for the San Francisco Unified School District, helped parents understand what this is all about, on January 23rd, at the regular meeting of the Community Advisory Committee for Special Education. Complete information is on the website http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/hs/ The following highlights are just a quick look.

A student doing average work in Grade 10 will be fine. A parent who wants to help would do well to concentrate on Writing and Math. The English-Language Arts portion must be passed with 60%. The Math level is Grade 7 plus high school Algebra I, and must be passed with 55%. All students should take the exam in the Spring of 10th Grade (March 4-6, and May 13-15 are the dates, in 2003).

Special Education families: be alert to a unique definition of the word "waiver". Here it refers to the means by which a Special Ed student passes the exam with accommodation (also called modification). Three modifications are available: use of a calculator; use of a spell-checker; and use of a live reader. Students who pass using one of these accommodations receive their high school diplomas from the Board of Education rather than from their school. That happens after they present to the Board their passing score, their Individual Education Plan, and proof that the classes they've taken are standards-based classes. (So parents: you also need to be alert to getting your kids into the right classes: not all English or Math classes qualify!)

The exam applies to adult learners and English-as-a-Second -Language learners. No student MUST take it. Students who refuse, however, will not receive diplomas.

Perhaps the most important thing to notice is that the exam is UNTIMED. Completing the Math portion can take up to a whole day. Completing the English-Language Arts portion can take up to two days. Requests for extra time and requests to break up the exam into intervals are NOT considered modifications. So make such requests if you feel extra time will be helpful.

Sections of the Math portion are Probability, Number Sense (positive/negative, fraction-decimal conversions, ratios), Algebra & Functions (pre-algebra--just one variable usually), and Measurement & Geometry.

At http://score.kings.k12.ca.us/standards.matrix.html if you click on each type of problem under Grade 7, you'll see specific problems in these categories. If you scroll down to the next section, Grades 8-12, and select the first category Algebra I, you'll see specific problems in that category too.

Sections of English-Language Arts portion are Word-Analysis, Reading Comprehension, Literary Analysis, and four Writing Sections (Strategies, Conventions, and two Essays).

Families of students who are struggling may find this federal website useful: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/parents/Homework/part5.html It's called "How to Help". It's short, and has simple, helpful suggestions.

Helpers who want to go the extra mile can look at the work sheets on the state exit exam website http://www.cde.ca.gov/statetests/cahsee The part you want is an Acrobat file called "School Curriculum Alignment to State Content Standards Worksheets". Don't slog through all 56 pages. Just see pages 7-11 of Sample Worksheet One on English-Language Arts, and pages 16-22 of Sample Worksheet Two on Math. They give the actual content of the critical questions in Language and on the Grade Seven Math. The more your own special student is familiar with the level of detail that's expected, the more confident she is likely to be. Students may take the test up to eight times; so if one or two sections don't turn out well at first, it's not a problem. We'd love to hear from you on this: let us know what works at YOUR house.