Sessions to start soon for OGT-failing seniors

The test will be offered again during the last week of July.

By HAROLD GWIN

VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — The 64 city school seniors who failed to pass the Ohio Graduation Test and weren’t able to graduate this month will get another shot at it.

They can still be part of the 2007 graduating class, provided they successfully complete a summer intervention program and then pass the section or sections of the OGT they failed in March.

They will be counted as summer graduates and added to the total graduating class in Youngstown for this year.

The intervention program will be held at the new P. Ross Berry Middle School at 940 Bryn Mawr Ave.

Students will be able to register on site between 8 a.m. and noon Monday and Tuesday of next week. The classes are free for city residents. Nonresidents can attend but will have to pay a fee of $50 for the first session and $25 for each additional session.

Those who successfully complete the program can take the OGT again during the last week of July.

The intervention classes are designed to meet the individual needs of participants and will include direct instruction and group activities with special attention to low scoring sections of prior OGT tests.

Only students who have taken the test at least once before are eligible for the program.

All sessions will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, and transportation will be provided from a central location on each side of town.

Reading and writing sessions will meet only Mondays: June 18 and 25 and July 2, 9 and 16.

Mathematics will meet only Tuesdays: June 19 and 26 and July 3,10 and 17.

Social studies will meet only Wednesdays: June 20 and 27 and July 11 and 18.

Science will meet only Thursdays: June 21 and 28 and July 5, 12 and 19.

In addition to classroom work, there will be assignments, work sheets and activities to be done as homework.

The OGT has been around for several years, but this was the first year that graduating seniors must have passed all five sections of the OGT to receive a diploma.

The Ohio Department of Education reported that, statewide, 12,387 seniors took the test and 8,956 failed one or more parts of it. Of that number, 4,251 failed only one section of the test.

Students who passed the test as sophomores or juniors didn’t have to take it again.

gwin@vindy.com