Three out of four 10th-graders pass the WASL

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Story Published: Jun 18, 2009 at 5:58 PM PDT

By Keith Eldridge

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OLYMPIA, Wash. -- The final scores from the statewide testing system known as the WASL indicate three quarters of the state's10th graders have passed.

State Superintendent Randy Dorn says that's good news, but says he's alarmed by the resulting drop-out rate.

The state's schools are waving goodbye to the WASL and getting ready to greet a new statewide test next year.

But Dorn says what's more important is getting kids to stay in school long enough to even to take the test. Numbers indicate one in four students in the class of 2009 dropped out, leaving behind 18,500 empty chairs.

Among those who stayed in school and took the spring WASL, 75 percent of the sophomores passed -- a one-percent boost from last year.

Overall 93 percent of this year's seniors met the graduation requirement.

"For those students that actually made it, I want to congratulate them," said Dorn.

But Dorn says the focus must be on students who, for whatever reason, drop out.

"Those numbers, I think, will shock a few people," he said.

Fellow students are trying to figure out why so many kids drop out. They don't believe it's the WASL's fault.

"It served its purpose well, along with the ITBS test and stuff like that, to show that kids understand the necessary skills needed to do well in the workforce and stuff and basic skills, like math and reading. I think that's crucial," said Kentridge High student Todd Farnham.

"I think they just didn't care," said student John MacKinnon. "I think they probably didn't have a strong family background telling them, 'Go to college, get a job.'"

Next year there won't be a WASL. Dorn is introducing a new High School Proficiency Exam which, he says, will be shorter, but just as comprehensive.

"I think some sort of standardized testing is important because we're sending kids off to college and the workforce, and it's important that they can read and do a certain amount of math," said MacKinnon.

Under current rules, students graduating in 2013 must pass the math and science portions of the new exam. But Dorn says he'll ask the Legislature to delay that requirement for one more year.

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