Math anxiety is growing in our state.
After the first full round of testing, including the first round of retakes, 44 percent of Washington’s high school juniors haven’t passed the state test that’s required for graduation. Those juniors, the first class to face the requirement, are struggling primarily in math.
Results after August retakes of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning show impressive passing rates in reading and writing – nearly 90 percent have passed both, and those who haven’t still have two years to try.
Math is another story. More than 32,000 students still have to pass the math portion of the WASL to graduate. Most worrisome is that about 14,000 of them are deemed “well below” the passing mark.
State legislators, who so far have stayed on course with the WASL, will be under pressure this session to change that course – to delay or even drop the graduation requirement.
The latter would be an enormous mistake. For high school graduates to succeed in college or in an internationally competitive work force, they need the ability to apply mathematical thinking to real-life problems. Washington’s economy, with its growing base of science- and technology-related industries, will need workers with higher skills than previous generations had. The WASL is an important tool for ensuring students learn them.
But as our education system continues its transition to higher standards, it also must be fair to students who are trying their best but are still coming up short – especially when so many educators believe the teaching of math needs major improvement.
A group of public school superintendents from Snohomish County has put forward a thoughtful, detailed proposal to allow such students to graduate without sacrificing the substantial progress schools have made. For the next four years, their plan would allow students to meet the WASL standard in math by taking and passing a required math course in their senior year. Students who pass the WASL would be exempt from the senior-year requirement. No free pass, but a reasonable alternative that enhances students’ math skills.
In the meantime, the superintendents propose a vigorous, concerted effort to get math teaching aligned with state standards, to provide ongoing professional development so educators can teach math more effectively, and to identify students who are falling behind and get them the extra help they need to catch up.
The strength of this proposal is in its link between short-term fairness and long-term success for all students. And it keeps accountability intact, for students and schools alike.
It’s a well-considered idea that will keep education improvements on track. It deserves serious consideration in Olympia.
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