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NY Students Get Out of Taking Regents Exams; Can Graduate Without Them

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Due to the interruption of the school schedule for thousands of high school students in New York City’s public schools because of the emergence of the deadly Coronavirus, last week state education officials announced that these students will not be required to take the state Regents exams in order to graduate, according to a report in the New York Post.

The educational guidelines normally require students to earn passing grades in five of these exams in core subjects in order to receive their diplomas.

The last time students were not required to take a state regents exam was back in 1976, when the exam was stolen by a student and the answers were being sold.

Rather than take the exam this June, students will be graded on whether they pass the courses in the subjects associated with the exams such as math, English and science.

In a statement released to the media, Board of Regents Chancellor Betty A. Rosa said: “In Times of crisis difficult decisions must be made, and the Board of Regents knows these are ultimately the right ones for New York’s students. She added that “These are extraordinary decisions for an unprecedented time, and we thank our school communities for their support and continuing dedication during the statewide school closure.”

The decision to nix the exams were borne out of concern that the interrupted school year would not allow for enough time for students to prepare for the exams and as a result that could possibly delay their expected graduation dates.

The Post reported that the New York State Education Department announced that a reshaping of the Regents exam would be delayed by a year because of complications caused by COVID-19.

Students who do not pass their Regents exams can appeal the decision that would prevent them from graduating and added alternatives to graduation have been added.

If a student has already passed a course but was planning to take the exam in June, they will also be exempt from the exam. If a student fails the course, they must take summer school and pass the class in order to earn the diploma credit by August, according to a report on the Chalkbeat web site.

The graduation rate for New York City students has improved over the years. Last year, for example, 77 percent of students did graduate and that marked a 1.4 percent increase over the previous year.

Back in 2005, the graduation rate amongst students was in abysmal shape, as less than half of students made it to graduation.

In terms of graduation success among minority students, the Post reported that among those students who began their high school careers back in 2015, 88.2 percent of Asian students graduated, followed by 85% of white students, followed by 73.7 percent of black students and 72 percent of Hispanic students.

 

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