By Frank Mustac, Special Writer
PENNINGTON – The Board of Education on Monday approved revisions to its policy regarding the academic requirements needed to graduate from high school.
The changes reflect recent announcements by the state Department of Education that it is transitioning to the PARCC standardized test as a prerequisite for students to earn a diploma.
PARCC is an abbreviation for Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers. It is a consortium of states that collaboratively developed a common set of assessments to measure student achievement in math and English up to 12th grade, and preparedness for college and careers.
Test scores from the PARCC exam or from other standardized tests, such as the SAT or ACT, can be used by current high school students to demonstrate they meet the requirements for graduation.
However, the state Department of Education is looking to make passing the PARCC a stipulation for graduation by the end of the decade. Alternative tests, like the SAT and ACT, would no longer be accepted as a PARCC substitute.
In March, the Hopewell Valley Regional School District Board of Education passed a resolution expressing its disagreement with the Department of Education’s decisions. The resolution formally urges, in part, “that the legislature review/hold hearings on the impact of the Department’s proposed graduation rules.”
A copy of the resolution was sent to State Sen. Shirley K. Turner, a Democrat representing the 15th Legislative District, who responded to the board in a letter dated March 21.
“I, too, am concerned about the burden that the new graduation requirements will have on our students and school districts,” Sen. Turner wrote. “As the only state in the nation using PARCC to meet graduation requirements, the New Jersey Department of Education has put our students at a disadvantage.”
“I assure you that I am in communication with education advocates to determine how best to address this issue and protect our students and school districts from the emotional and economic burden this new requirement places on them,” the state senator wrote.
At the Hopewell Valley Board of Education work session on April 18, Lisa Wolff, the board president, talked about why some parents are keeping their children from taking the PARCC exam.
“One of the primary reasons that parents opt out is because they are upset about the opportunity cost of the time — the amount of time that their kids are not getting educated because they are spending time on the PARCC,” Ms. Wolff said.
