High school exit exam bill heads to Assembly on Thursday | EdSource

High school exit exam bill heads to Assembly on Thursday | EdSource:

High school exit exam bill heads to Assembly on Thursday

 The state Assembly Appropriations Committee on Wednesday unanimously approved SB 725, which would eliminate the requirement for class of 2015 seniors to pass the California High School Exit Exam.

Some seniors who were planning to take the exam in July are in limbo after the California Department of Education abruptly cancelled it.

The bill, which originally called for the development of new visual and performing arts content standards, this week was gutted and amended by its author, Sen. Loni Hancock, D-Oakland. The action will replace language in the original bill with new wording exempting the students from the requirement to pass the exam to receive a diploma.

“She wanted to put this forward because of the 5,000 students who can’t graduate because they can’t take a test that doesn’t exist anymore,” said Larry Levin, a spokesman for Hancock. “That’s why it was amended into another bill of hers.”High school exit exam bill heads to Assembly on Thursday | EdSource: