(The Center Square) — The Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is moving ahead with plans to create waivers for high school graduation requirements critics believe will hurt students that need help the most.
BESE will publish a proposed rule in the Louisiana Register next month to allow students not meeting the current graduation standard to complete a project or portfolio that would be graded by their teacher. If the students receive a passing grade on the assignment, they would receive a diploma that would count toward their school’s accountability rating score.
“There are many examples throughout our state of students with unique testing difficulties being tested repeatedly without success, despite having a strong understanding of the content,” said BESE President Holly Boffy, elected to District 7. “The goal of the policy … is to provide an appeals process for these students in confirming their graduation eligibility and readiness for postsecondary opportunities.”
BESE voted to adopt the policy earlier this month following a presentation by Boffy and Belinda Davis, an at-large member appointed by Gov. John Bel Edwards. The move followed discussions that date back to last year that was initially aimed at finding a solution to help middle and high school students with limited English proficiency.
“Somehow that has morphed into this universal policy for all kids, who are … proficient in English,” said Erin Bendily, vice president for policy and strategy at the Pelican Institute.
Louisiana’s longstanding academic standard for public school graduation requires students to score at the “approaching basic” level or above on high school end-of-course LEAP tests in English, math, and either biology or U.S. History. The LEAP test consists of five levels, with approaching basic one level above failing.
Critics argue the relatively low bar for graduation is a significant factor in thousands of graduates who require remediation as freshmen in college and employers struggling to find graduates with basic skills.
Louisiana’s high school graduation rates increased by double-digits when the LEAP requirement was waived for all students during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, compared to pre-pandemic rates. An emergency waiver issued for seniors last year is expected to have a similar result.
Statewide, just over a third of Louisiana public high school students perform on grade level, yet 70% of schools are rated “A” or “B,” a situation that has prompted efforts to reform the system.
Bendily contends the recent BESE proposal would further distort the school accountability system and ultimately result in less focus on helping students achieve basic proficiency.
“This is going to further inflate already inflated high school scores in our state,” she said. “I worry if this actually gets implemented there’s going to be even less of a demand to help these kids.”
“I just feel like the focus of the conversation is not recognizing the problem and how schools could do better. We know which kids are not on track. Why aren’t they getting … the interventions necessary to meet this very meager standard?”
Brigitte Nieland, government affairs director for Stand for Children Louisiana, expressed similar concerns.
“I think this is going to lead to … even fewer services to students who have more needs,” she said, adding that the change will “create a false sense of success where there isn’t one.”
“The portfolios are going to be judged by the teachers, who will be pressured to have more graduates,” Nieland said. “There are so many issues at play that have nothing to do with education of students.”
The proposal is slated to be published in the Louisiana Register on July 20, after which the public will have 30 days to weigh in.
Gov. John Bel Edwards, a communist Democrat lowering standards, so he can have these incompetent, so called “graduates”, vote communist Democrat in the future. The dumbing down of America.
“The move followed discussions that date back to last year that was initially aimed at finding a solution to help middle and high school students with limited English proficiency. “Somehow that has morphed into this universal policy for all kids, who are … proficient in English,” “
If a student does not learn the requires standards, DON’T lower the standards. Require the students to learn the standards or repeat the school grade year until they do learn.
STOP trying to teach our children the racist “Critical Race Theory” or the LGBTQ sexual confusions.
The destructive Democrats have turned our schools into a political indoctrination centers, where their Democrat Party’s political agendas are more important than Reading, Writing and Arithmetic.
And many don’t speak English?? How do you graduate and not speak or read English? HOW???
Because they STOPPED DEMANDING/Requiring it, decades ago.
Just another planned Democrat party Alinsky plan to degrade American excellence in leadership and pave the way not for the best and brightest to run the country, but for people whose overeducated mental capacities are way too limited to absorb even their own mind bending social indoctrination, by wasting more educational dollars on people too DNA deprived of the ability to mentally process information for the good of THE PEOPLE, who end up disorienting and blocking cogent clear minded people who can, but must get WOKE pushed to the back of the bus and die in the same social crashes they and their own fools drive our country into, who get their leadership drivers licenses based upon their ability for signing up to vote Democrat, not ability to steer the ship of state to safe harbors and productive destinations.
Makes me wonder, how do kids nowdays, EVEN PASS the written test FOR a drivers license!!
School accountability rating score seems more important than students actually getting an education. If too many students can’t graduate, just lower the standards rather than requiring teachers to actually teach to get up to standards. We are creating several generations of uneducated children to the point that a huge number can’t read, do simple math like making change, know nothing about what made this country great and in many cases can barely put together a coherent thought in speech. It’s even leeching over into the quality and capability of our elected officials. The premise of the movie “Idiocracy” is on full display in our society today
Maybe more about the teachers than the students
Haven’t they been lowered enough already??? What high school seniors reading at a 3rd grade level. See cat run? Run cat, run.
Not to those wanting to RUIN OUR nation..
I read on msn China just built a new high tech plane. They already Manufacturer electronic parts. But Demon rats lower education standards. See the problem. If our future workers can’t read it write how will we Compete In the open market and in the military??
Sure glad my kids didn’t have to go to school in Louisiana! Pennsylvania was bad enough. The bar has now been set so low in the Pelican State, all you need to do is exhibit a pulse to get a high school diploma. Remember that the next time the kid at McDonalds screws up your order, or the Amazon person delivers your package to the wrong house because they can’t read!
IF they can’t read though, HOW DID THEY EVEN get those jobs?!
Many believe kids should go to school all year long. Move to 11th only if you pass the tenth, period.
I do wonder, WHY they have so damn many breaks…
Here’s a thought. For all these leftist schools who are now saying drool like “English is racist, Capitalism is racist etc”.
FINE. THEN MOVE OUT OF THE USA and stop taking AMERICAN dollars!