I am reblogging this great collection of NY State High School Student voices. These were collected by Christine Zirkelbach – an angry mom who just wants the voices of these NY state high school students heard.
The following are letters written by students from a high school in the Hudson Valley. This is very good school district, with a strong sense of community. The graduation rate is 93% (keep in mind graduation rate counts only those who graduate in 4 years). This year, special education students no longer have the Regents Competency Tests (RCTs) as a safety net if they are unable to pass the Regents. Instead, they have to pass a math, science, US History, Global History & Geography and English Language Arts Regents exam with a 55 (or borrow points if one grade is high enough to loan to another exam). These tests are meant to be challenging, which makes them unfair for students with many different learning disabilities. These students have taken some of the these exams 3, 4, 5 or more times and are now seniors. Some made it and others are ready…
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Poetic Justice 
There are thousands of stories like this across New York State, and it will become worse every year. What are young adults supposed to do if the barriers to graduation are out of reach? Keep in mind the latest Common Core English Regents required reading a passage on Physics string theory. How much longer are we going to let NYSED get away with this?
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