What is CAHSEE, the high school exit exam?
Created in 1999 as part of then Gov. Gray Davis’ education reform package, the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) finally became a graduation requirement for the graduating class of 2006. The test is composed of two sections, Language Arts and Mathematics, and students can pass each section separately — if a student has passed the Math section but failed the Language Arts section, that student needs only to take and pass the Language Arts test at a subsequent testing date.
What exactly does the CAHSEE test? First, here’s what it’s not. The exit exam is not a college entrance. Instead, its purpose supposedly is to test whether students have mastered the academic skills necessary to succeed in the adult world. However, since it is first administered in the 10th grade, it does not cover most of the material taught in high school. It focuses on material taught in middle school and the first two years of high school. Here is a breakdown of the topics and their weighting in each of the two parts of the CAHSEE.
Mathematics: (80 multiple choice items)
Grade 6-7 Statistics, Data Analysis and Probability: 12 items
Grade 7 Number Sense: 14 items (fractions, decimals, percents, exponents)
Grade 7 Algebra and Functions: 17 items (graphing, exponents, roots, equations)
Grade 7 Measurement and Geometry: 17 items (perimeter, area, volume, conversions, Pythagorean theorem)
Grade 7 Mathematical Reasoning: 8 items (estimation, making generalizations from data)
Algebra I: 12 items (equations, graphs, word problems, slopes, systems of equations)
Language Arts: (72 multiple choice items, 1 essay writing sample)
Grade 9-10 Reading: 45 items
Word Analysis/Fluency/ Vocabulary: 7 items
Reading Comprehension: 18 items
Literary Response and Analysis: 20 items
Grade 9-10 Writing: 27 items
Writing Strategies: 12 items
Written and Oral English Conventions: 15 items
Statewide, about 81% of high school sophomores pass the Mathematics exam and about 81% pass the Language Arts exam although only about 65% pass both sections. This percentage steadily increases as students retake needed parts of the exam during their junior and senior year until a little over 94% of seniors have passed both parts. Students with disabilities have a pass rate on both parts of about 53% by the end of the senior year. (All figures from the Class of 2010)
There is a persistent achievement gap between students based on ethnicity and other factors as seen below although almost all groups increase passing rates between 2009 and 2010:
|
Subgroup |
% Passing Senior Year (2009) |
% Passing Senior Year (2010) |
| All Students |
90.6% |
94.5% |
| Asian |
95.3% |
97.4% |
| Hispanic |
86.6% |
91.6% |
| African American |
81.4% |
89.7% |
| White |
95.9% |
98.1% |
| English Learner |
73.6% |
81.2% |
| Economically Disadvantaged |
85.6% |
91.3% |
| Students with Disabilities |
56.6% |
53.4% |
These gaps have been narrowing noticeably (at least among first-time test takers) by 5.1 percentage points in Language Arts over the last three years comparing Hispanic vs. White students and 5.6 points in Mathematics. Comparing African American vs. White students, the gap in Language Arts has narrowed 3.8 points and 5.5 points in Mathematics over three years. These gaps have led to several legislative and judicial attempts to eliminate CAHSEE as a graduation requirement on the grounds that minority and disadvantaged students’ have not had an equal “opportunity to learn.” Thus far none of these attempts has succeeded.
Students who do not pass all or part of CAHSEE have at least five opportunities while still in high school to pass the exam. About 45,000 members of the Class of 2009 did not meet the requirement but this number dropped dramatically for 2010 with fewer than 25,000 students failing to meet the requirement. These students were eligible for summer school remediation programs prior to attempting to pass the exam at a later date and have adult school and community college options as well.
The Legislature has appropriated substantial money for students who need extra help to pass the exam: $69.6 million for 2007-08, $61.6 million for 2008-09 and $58.3 million for 2009-10, including after-school tutoring and Saturday classes. During the last two years, districts were given more flexibility over how they spent “categorical” grants, including CAHSEE remediation.
Bob Nichols is education manager for the Silicon Valley Education Foundation.
