Sophomores in Santa Maria and other area school districts made modest gains this year on a standardized test that determines whether they can receive a high school diploma, according to statewide results released Tuesday.

The California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) measures basic English and math skills that the state feels all high school graduates need to function well in the world, local school officials said.

The CAHSEE passage rates of students in the Santa Maria Joint Union High, Lompoc Unified and Lucia Mar Unified School Districts improved an average of one to two percentage points from last year.

“(The CAHSEE) is really there as an opportunity” for students to prove what they know, Lompoc's Director of Student Services Jesse Bass said.

Beginning with the senior class of 2006, students had to pass the proficiency standards in English and math to receive their high school diplomas.

Those students unable to pass the exam but who successfully complete the required high school curriculum receive a certificate of completion instead.

This year, 82 percent of Santa Maria district sophomores passed the math portion of the test, up from 77 percent last year.

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Students also improved slightly on the English portion of the test, with 75 percent passing it, up from 74 percent last year.

While Righetti and Pioneer Valley High Schools' CAHSEE scores were right around district and county average, Santa Maria High School struggled in the language arts category, with only 61 percent of students passing that portion of the test.

However, this was still an improvement over last year's passage rate of

60 percent.

Santa Maria district and Santa Maria High officials were unavailable for comment Tuesday.

Statewide, 78 percent of sophomores passed the math portion of the CAHSEE and 79 percent passed the English/language arts portion in 2008.

Eighty percent of Santa Barbara County students passed the CAHSEE math test, and 78 percent passed the English/language arts exam.

In San Luis Obispo County, 85 percent of 10th-graders met the CAHSEE math requirements, and 87 percent met the English/language arts requirements.

In southern SLO County, Lucia Mar students performed better than the San Luis Obispo County or state average.

Eighty-eight percent of 10th-graders in the Lucia Mar district passed the English/language arts portion of the CAHSEE, and 87 percent passed the math portion.

In 2007, 84 percent of Lucia Mar's sophomores passed the math portion of the CAHSEE, and 86 percent of students pass the English portion.

“We had focus groups and we really try to make sure we reach all the students by having support classes,” Lucia Mar Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum Sharon Roemer said of her district's strong results.

Local district officials said they have not calculated how many members of the class of 2009 at either school still need to pass both parts of the exam to graduate, but that support services, such as a special remedial class, are available to anyone who needs them.

Students remain eligible for support services to help them pass the exam up until two years after graduation through the Adult Education Department.

In Lompoc, 77 percent of students met the CAHSEE math requirements, and 80 percent of students met the CAHSEE English requirements.

That's an improvement over the 2007 test, when 76 percent of students passed the math and 77 percent of students passed the English CAHSEE tests.

“I think we did pretty well,” Bass said. “Last year, at the end of the (2007-2008) year, we had fewer than 30 that didn't pass the CAHSEE and need to retake it to get their high school diplomas. We're generally very pleased with the results that we have.”

Natalie Ragus can be reached at 347-4580 or nragus@santamariatimes.com

September 10, 2008