California High School Exit Examinations

To ensure that students are ready to leave high school and enter the real world, California has developed the California High School Exit Examinations (CAHSEE). This test determines if a student is ready to graduate. This new system has been put into place effective in the year 2006. The tests were designed to ensure that students were ready to graduate and created something for students to strive for.

CAHSEE tests two specific areas. These two areas are English and Language Arts and Mathematics. The reading part of the test deals with reading comprehension, vocabulary and analyzing what students have read. There is also a writing part involved. This area covers the basics of writing such as proper punctuation and spelling. The math area of the CAHSEE focuses on the basic fundamentals of math along with basic algebra equations typically learned in sixth or seventh grade so that students can exhibit an understanding of the materials covered.

The Test For California Students

The CAHSEE test was designed after the education department in California discovered that its students were falling well behind the national average on testing. The test was designed to help motivate students and teachers to progress more. Set dates are created each year by the school board and tests are only to be taken on these dates. The CAHSEE began its test run in 2001 on a voluntary basis, but is now a requirement for graduation.

Since California passed the CAHSEE, it is now a requirement for graduation. The test is first administered to tenth graders. Those who do not pass must retake it until they do pass, but are only required to retake the part they did not pass. Retakes are offered twice during eleventh grade and again three times during twelfth grade so everyone has a plenty of opportunities to pass. Students with disabilities can receive a waiver to bypass this requirement. Exemptions are evaluated on a case by case basis.