Regents advance new grad option for students with disabilities |
On Board Extra Online • June 13, 2016
Cathy Woodruff
Senior Writer
The Board of Regents today advanced a plan to empower local school superintendents to approve local diplomas for some students with disabilities, even if they do not pass all required Regents exams, as long as they pass the courses leading to the exams.
The new "superintendent review option" would take effect as a provisional regulation in time for some students to graduate this month. It is expected to join three existing graduation options for students with disabilities to graduate with local diplomas.
Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia estimated that as many as 1,300 students now in their fourth year of high school could be eligible for the new option. She estimated that as many as 600 students in their fifth year and 300 students in their sixth year also could be eligible, but she cautioned that many variables make the numbers difficult to predict with certainty.
The new review option aims to enable students who have not been able to score well on a Regents exam to demonstrate their proficiency in a subject in other ways, including class projects, tests and quizzes and other coursework. The student also would have to pass the course to be considered for the superintendent's review.
The option is open only to students with individual educational programs (IEPs). The superintendent's decision is final.
The three "safety net" options now in place for students with disabilities who are doing Regents-level coursework are:
- A low-pass safety net. Students pass five Regents exams with scores of 55 to 64.
- Low-pass safety net with appeal. Students can appeal at least one Regents exam score up to three points below a score of 55.
- Compensatory safety net. Students with one Regents exam score between 45 and 55 can use another Regents exam grade of 65 or higher to compensate for the low score.
The plan also includes an expansion of the compensatory safety net to include an appeal option for Regents exams in math and English language arts.
Under the new superintendent review option, the students still would need a minimum score on both the English language arts and math Regents exams.
Also, a superintendent may undertake the review automatically, on his or her own initiative. A specific request from the student is not necessary.
The change was discussed by a key Regents committee today. The full Board of Regents is expected to vote on the new option at their meeting on Tuesday.