Maryland’s leaders are schizophrenic. On one hand they say we are not graduating enough students skilled in math and science to power our economy. On the other they permit students who can barely read and write and do basic math the right to graduate with a high school diploma.
So what does the state want? A highly skilled work force or one holding meaningless credentials? We can’t have both.
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Members of the state school board gave us a decision Tuesday. They voted 7-4 to require students to pass state exams to graduate, heeding the advice of the vast majority of the state’s public school superintendents.
The vote is a big step in recognizing that education must be about results — for both students and schools.
As Baltimore City schools chief Andres Alonso, whose students are most at risk for failing in the state, said at the meeting, “To tell a child to move forward when they are not prepared is to lie to them. We should not be in the business of lying.”
The fact that the school board — at the behest of Vice President Blair Ewing — had to debate the issue is discouraging. The tests measure skills that should be acquired by ninth grade. But the vote means employers can start to trust that a job candidate with a high school diploma has basic reading, writing and math skills.
The tests do not guarantee a student will thrive in college — as the requirements for graduating do not mesh with those necessary for succeeding in higher education. But they are a benchmark and a recognition that you cannot contribute to society without understanding English, algebra, biology and government — the four subject tests.
An estimated 9,000 students may fail this year, many of them in Baltimore City. But about 90 percent of the state’s seniors are on track to pass according to the most recent data.
With the vote behind us, we can now focus on helping those 9,000 improve their knowledge instead of setting them up for low-wage jobs or the street upon graduation.
