Juniors will lose shot at test in fall

Terry Webster

Monday, Oct. 8, 2001 | 9:33 a.m.

This week will be the last time the state's juniors face the Nevada High School Proficiency Exam in the fall.

Starting next year, high schoolers will get their first shot at the exam, required for a diploma, in the spring of their sophomore year. The state Board of Education decided Saturday to move up the first exam on the heels of a new and harder exam that debuts this week.

Tenth graders who fail will get their next chance in April of their junior year. That will allow teachers time to reteach the material, state officials said.

According to state officials, the number of chances students get to take the proficiency exam -- presently eight -- is one of the highest in the country. Most states give students three or four tries, board members said.

Members of the Class of 2004 also will be able to take the exam once in the summer between the junior and senior years, four times during their senior year and once in the summer following the senior year.

To earn a diploma, students must pass reading, writing and math on the proficiency exam. Students who fail are given a certificate of attendance rather than a diploma.

During the Las Vegas meeting of the state board Saturday, some members were reluctant to give up the fall exam for juniors. They cited cases in which students told them they would not have earned their diploma if not given one extra chance.

Concerns also were raised about whether sophomores have completed the classes needed to pass the test.

Board member John Hawk, a math teacher at Silverado High School, argued to keep the fall exam for juniors in order to give students as many chances as possible to pass it. But most board members opposed it.

Board member Merv Iverson cautioned that if the exam is offered too many times, it will lack true meaning.