CALL TO ACTION: Recalculate Algebra 2 Course Grades for Students Harmed by Eliminated Algebra 2 EOC
Please help us encourage Governor Scott and the Board of Education to recalculate the course grades for students harmed by the eliminated Algebra 2 End of Course exam.
Our readers know we believe the Algebra 2 EOC was the worst of Florida’s state mandated End of Course exams. We have fought against it since its first disastrous administration in 2015. Now that HB7069 has eliminated it, we have called for the recalculation of Algebra 2 course grades for the more than 140,000 students whose course grades and high school GPAs suffered from this bad assessment. Despite appeals from legislators and parents, the Department of Education has repeatedly responded that such decisions have been left to local districts, and further action would require legislation.
It is time for a massive email campaign.
Please send emails to Governor Scott, Commissioner Stewart and the State Board of Education (contact info below). Here is a sample letter. Feel free to cut and paste. If you know a student negatively affected by this exam, please consider including their story and copying your local school board, as well. Send your email today and share this blog, encouraging others to write as well.
Dear Governor Scott, Commissioner Pam Stewart and Florida Board of Education Members,
HB7069 eliminated the Algebra 2 End of Course exam. In doing so, it exposed an extremely unfair situation for the students who took Algebra 2 during the 2 years the EOC was scored.
- The Algebra 2 EOC had excessive failure rates and led to a dramatic decrease in student participation in higher math. It was a bad exam.
- 141,826 failed the now extinct exam. Those students saw their class grades and high school GPAs suffer since, by statute, the exam was worth 30% of their final course grade.
- Since the exam’s elimination, some districts have chosen to retroactively re-calculate course grades for students who were negatively affected by the Algebra 2 EOC.
- Given the problems with the assessment, grade recalculation could be argued for both the 2015-16 and 2016-17 school years. Some districts have only recalculated for the final 2016-17 year. In other districts, no re-calculation of Algebra 2 course grades occurred, at all.
- Additionally, the State does NOT provide guidance to districts on how to convert End of Course exam scores to final course grades, resulting in at least 18 different methods of conversion to final grades. With such variation from district to district, even students who scored WELL on the Algebra 2 EOC, saw their course grades fall, merely because of the county in which they lived.
For example, a student with a 91% (an A) going into the Algebra 2 EOC and scoring a Level 4 would:
- Earn an A if she lived in Brevard, Broward, or Monroe.
- Earn a final grade of a B if she lived in Escambia, Levy or St. John’s.
- This could be the difference between acceptance and rejection to a highly selective university.
This system, with the final calculation of course grades depending on which county a student lives in, is clearly unfair to the students who were required to take the Algebra 2 EOC.
Such a system places some students at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to course grade calculation, high school GPA, eligibility for Bright Futures Scholarships, Dual Enrollment, and sports participation, and, ultimately, admission to highly selective universities.
In essence, the Algebra 2 EOC was a standardized test with unstandardized scoring and grades. Now that the exam has been eliminated, ALL students who were negatively affected should have their course grades recalculated in a manner that is fair and consistent across the State of Florida.
Please insist that these Algebra 2 students be treated in a fair and equitable way and require the re-calculation of course grades for ALL students negatively affected by this bad exam.
Thank you,
Contact info:
- (850) 488-7146
- rick.scott@eog.myflorida.com
- Office of Governor Rick Scott
State of Florida
The Capitol
400 S. Monroe St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001
- (850) 245-0505
- Commissioner@fldoe.org
- Chair, Marva Johnson – Marva.Johnson@fldoe.org
- Vice Chair, Andy Tuck – Andy.Tuck@fldoe.org
- Gary Chartrand – Gary.Chartrand@fldoe.org
- Ben Gibson – Ben.Gibson@fldoe.org
- Tom Grady – Tom.Grady@fldoe.org
- Rebecca Fishman Lipsey – Rebecca.Lipsey@fldoe.org
- Michael Olenick – Michael.Olenick@fldoe.org
As a parent of a student who was negatively affected by this test (As throughout the entire year in Algebra 2, didn’t do well on the EOC and her A was brought down to a C for her final grade, which is the ONLY Algebra 2 grade listed on her high school transcript), I have written to all of the above. Our county decided to not recalculate, leaving these students at a disadvantage when it comes to applying for colleges and scholarships. I work at a university and see this first hand.
Please remember that there are two (at least) issues:
1) Nonuniformity in conversion of all EOC test scores among districts, which results in a variance of final grades of students. This applies to Algebra 1 & 2, Geometry, Biology and American History. At least 20 different methods leads to the following range of conversion scores:
Level 1 0-75%
Level 2 60-79%
Level 3 70-100%
Level 4 80-100%
Level 5 90-100%
Any variation should be unacceptable!
2) Lack of guidance on recalculating grades regarding negatively affected students who took Algebra 2 during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 school years. These children will be graduating at the same time as students who do not have this disastrous requirement. Any variation should be unacceptable!
Please address both issues if you email!
Something else to think about –
If districts are not going back to re-calculate the grade prior to the elimination of 7/1/17, which SPP are they really using? If a student took the test in 2015/2016, that student was allowed to re-take the test several times to improve their score before graduation. There was no limit & no time line as to when the test had to be retaken prior to graduation. So, why isn’t the option in the SPP for 2015/2016 being adhered to? Since you cannot retake the test now since it’s been eliminated, it would be logical to just eliminate the score all together since the student’s option was taken away.