OHIO SCHOOL DISTRICTS New 10th-grade test fuels some changes

The Toledo district is making an adjustment to its curriculum.
TOLEDO (AP) -- The state's new 10th-grade test, which students must pass to graduate, has teachers tweaking their classroom instruction and curriculum to prepare students, school officials say.
The new tests, which students will take for the first time in March, replace the ninth-grade tests as the measure of proficiency in reading, writing, math, science and social studies.
If a sophomore fails any sections of the test, those parts are offered again that summer, twice during junior year, once the following summer and three times during senior year.
Toledo Public Schools is adjusting its curriculum to help students prepare for the test, said Craig Cotner, chief academic officer. The new test represents a "quantum leap" of what students should expect, he said.
"The bar is raised not in increments of inches but in feet," Cotner said. "We are adjusting the material and went back to grade seven to prepare students to master the test."
Melissa McGhee, a 15-year-old sophomore at Bowsher High School, said she is anxious about taking the test despite taking preparatory courses and practice tests.
"I really want to pass the first time and get it out of the way," she said.
Rewrote lessons
Officials at Findlay City Schools rewrote its course lessons for ninth and 10th grades in anticipation of the new tests, said Sandra White, director of secondary education.
"Everybody is worried about it because it's at such a higher reading level than any of the other tests have been," White said. "The thing that personally worries me the most is that the child will be 16 the first time he takes the test, and if he doesn't do well at it, he may get discouraged and drop out of school."
The test reflects an increase in expectations of students who will be tested on material taught through 10 grades instead of eight, as in the test it will replace.
The Bowling Green district's adjustment of its curriculum should pay off, said Kathy Zachel, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.
"The teachers had some concern at first, but since we did some pilot testing for the state, they are a little more comfortable with it," Zachel said.
The new tests will also test students' problem-solving techniques.
"They warned us to explain our answers because, like on the math section, we'll have to write out why you got that answer," said Nick Oblizajek, a sophomore at Central Catholic High School in Toledo. "In our homework, the teachers are making us explain things a little more."