WASL still a roadblock for many

Nearly half of Washington’s high school juniors face the possibility of no diploma in 2008 after two failed attempts at passing the WASL, now a requirement for graduation.

Results from retakes of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning administered in August show 55.5 percent of the state’s high school students meeting standard in reading, math and writing on the high-stakes test.

“I want the parents to know we are not crazy; we see these numbers and we are going to be doing some very hard work,” said state Superintendent Terry Bergeson.

Minority students did so poorly that educators are now “in a crisis mode,” Bergeson said.

Less than 30 percent of Hispanics and African Americans in this year’s junior classes have passed all three portions of the WASL, and only 36 percent among Native Americans. Low-income kids, regardless of race, are also doing poorly, at 34 percent.

According to the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, 11,673 students retook one or more sections of the WASL in August. About 70,000 students statewide took the test in the spring, and scores released in June showed nearly half of those students failed the math portion of the test.

Scores released Wednesday illustrated an even deeper concern about math results for students who struggled with the first exam and about scores for minority students.

Of the 8,306 who made a second attempt at the math test in August, only about one quarter met the standard.

Slightly more than half the students who retook a reading test passed, and 68 percent passed writing.

Students have five chances to take the test, and after two failed attempts students can show skill through alternative methods, including passing the math section of the SAT.

This summer, WASL remediation programs – funded with $28.5 million approved by the Legislature – were offered to students before the retake in August.

But about 70 percent of students who signed up for the WASL summer programs did not retake the test in August, state officials said. Many who are considered a level 1 – those who score in the lowest of four levels on the test – were encouraged to try again in spring 2007.

In addition to summer school, the state will pay for after-school and test preparation seminars and tutoring for students during the school year, though it appears few students are tapping into those opportunities.

Many Spokane schools offer WASL skill-building courses outside of regular classroom lessons, but not many students are taking advantage, said Terren Roloff, district spokeswoman.

“We really need parents to encourage their kids to do that, and we need students to come,” Roloff said.

In Spokane, 28 percent of students who made a second attempt at the math section passed; 55 percent met standard in reading, and 72 percent met standard in writing.

“I don’t use the F-word. … it’s not about failure,” Spokane Superintendent Brian Benzel said. “It’s about students who have some more to learn, and it’s our job to help students get there. We also need students to put in that effort.”

The WASL is the state’s answer to the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which set the goal of having every child proficient in reading and math by 2014. The 2001 law is up for reauthorization this winter.

Bergeson has said she will not recommend that the WASL math and science graduation requirements – science will be a requirement in 2010 – be delayed, though some legislators and education officials say students are not ready, using scores as evidence.

“We’re going to have a debate in the Legislature about what to do with kids who are trying hard but still struggling,” Bergeson said. “I don’t know what that answer is yet.”