Schools
Hispanic, Black Students Narrow Gap On High School Exit Exams
Riverside County students make gains on high school exit exams with 82 percent of sophomores passing state-mandated test.
Riverside County sophomores topped their classmates from the previous year on the California High School Exit Exam, with 82 percent of students passing both the English and math sections of the test, according to results released Wednesday.
Last year's sophomores had an 80 percent pass rate, according to the county. Temecula Valley Unified School District ranked among the top five in Riverside County as one of the top performing school districts. Murrieta Valley, Corona-Norco, Beaumont and Riverside also made the top five.
Riverside County Superintendent of Schools Kenneth M. Young said the county's overall pass rate in math ranked seventh among the state's 16 most populated counties – up three places from last year. In English, the county also ranked seventh, up from ninth last year.
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“Our students have come a long way since this test was created, and they're rising up through the ranks of students in comparable counties,” Young said. “That's a great sign of discipline and determination among our students.
“They understand the importance of graduating from high school and the CAHSEE is a major milestone. They're taking it seriously and working hard to succeed.”
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All students in California must take the exit exam during their sophomore year. They have two more opportunities to pass it in the 11th grade and three chances as seniors.
According to county officials, differences in scores remain but are narrowing between ethnic subgroups. Figures showed 90 percent of white students passed both halves of the CAHSEE. However, Hispanic and black students each topped out at 78 percent on the English language portion of the exam. The passage rate for Hispanics on the math section was 79 percent, and 75 percent for black students.
Statewide, 82.7 percent of 10th graders passed the math portion of the test, while 82.4 percent passed the English portion.
According to the CDE, 94.6 percent of students in the class of 2011 across the state passed the overall exam, up from 94.5 percent last year.
