S.Md. High Schools Meet HSA Standards

Southern Maryland's classes of 2009 met the state's testing requirements as part of the first students required by Maryland to pass the High School Assessment exams to graduate.

The High School Assessment exams were introduced in 2002 by the State Board of Education in part to prepare high-schoolers for college. The Class of 2009 was the first required to pass the exams to graduate.

Seniors must show proficiency in four subjects -- algebra, biology, English and government -- by passing all four tests or getting a combined score of 1,602 points. Students can also show mastery of a subject by completing a state-designed project.

Southern Maryland seniors surpassed the state's average passing rate on all four tests, 68 percent.

In Calvert County, almost 90 percent passed all four exams; in Charles, 73 percent; and in St. Mary's, 84 percent, according to data released last week by the State Department of Education.

In Calvert, about 9 percent of students passed the HSAs under the combined score option, and 2 percent completed projects. There were no waivers, which are granted on a limited basis in special circumstances.

On average, Calvert's seniors scored 97 percent in algebra, 96 percent in biology, 94 percent in English and 98 percent in government. Nearly 98 percent of the county's Class of 2010 has already passed all four tests or achieved the 1,602 points in the combined score option.

That is good news, said Gail Hoerauf-Bennett, spokeswoman for Calvert public schools, because less classroom time will be spent in remediation and on projects, freeing students "a little bit to take higher-level classes."

The HSA results on English and algebra exams and data on graduation rates are used to measure annual yearly progress under the federal No Child Left Behind law.

Maryland has set a goal of a 90 percent graduation rate by the 2013-14 school year. If high schools show a small increase each year but do not meet that standard, they can still be counted as making adequate yearly progress, which is a measure of test participation rates and scores and graduation rates.

Taken as a whole, Calvert's four high schools achieved adequate yearly progress with a graduation rate of nearly 92 percent, an increase from 88 percent five years ago.

Only Calvert High School didn't make adequate yearly progress, because its special education students didn't meet the state requirement in reading proficiency. As a result, the school has been identified as "in need of local attention" by the state and will see more "targeted interventions" and support from the central office, Hoerauf-Bennett said. If that group of students does not make the required progress next year, the state can intervene.

About 19 percent of Charles County's Class of 2009 passed the HSAs under the combined score option, and less than 8 percent completed a project. There were no waivers.

Charles's graduating seniors scored an average of 90 percent in algebra, 85 percent in biology, 84 percent in English and 96 percent in government. More than 94 percent of the county's juniors have passed the HSA requirements to graduate.

"Our high schools and instructional staff worked hard to track the progress of individual students and to provide a plan to help them be successful on the HSA," Superintendent James E. Richmond said in a statement.

Charles's system and its six high schools achieved adequate yearly progress and met the state's graduation requirement with a graduation rate of 88 percent, an increase from 85 percent five years ago.

In St. Mary's County, 14 percent of graduating seniors passed the HSAs using the combined score option, and nearly 2 percent completed projects. Two waivers were given, and one student failed.

On average, St. Mary's seniors scored 93 percent in algebra, 96 percent in biology, 90 percent in English and 97 percent in government. Nearly 94 percent of the county's Class of 2010 has achieved the scores to graduate.

St. Mary's three high schools made annual yearly progress systemwide, but Great Mills High School did not make the cut with its graduation rate of 76 percent. Scott Smith, director of St. Mary's secondary schools, said Great Mills had a 5 percent drop in its graduation rate from 2007-08 to 2008-09 because 26 seniors withdrew last year.

The St. Mary's school system had a graduation rate of 86 percent rate, down from 88 percent in 2004. Smith attributes to the drop to the attrition at Great Mills.

To combat the problem, Smith said, St. Mary's has opened Fairlead Academy, which targets middle-schoolers who might need an extra boost in ninth grade. The goal is to identify struggling students and offer early intervention, such as evening classes, before they fail core classes, he said.

Smith said that 14 of the 26 Great Mills students who dropped out last year attended summer school and recovered their missing credits. They graduated after summer school.

"We are striving towards the state goal of a 90 percent graduation rate, for not only the entire county, but for each of the individual schools," Smith said.