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Things You Should Know About High School Equivalency in New York

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Saved by mark.trushkowsky@mail.cuny.edu
on October 31, 2013 at 3:37:15 pm
 

 

11 Things You Should Know About High School Equivalency in New York

 

The Main Idea

 

  • Beginning in January 2014, the GED® exam will most likely not be available in New York State. And if it is, it will no longer be free.

 

  • Beginning January 2, 2014, our students will be taking a new assessment called the TASC (Test Assessing Secondary Completion), developed by CTB/McGraw Hill.

 

  • Before this change takes place, we need to get as many students to pass as possible. This means favoring students who have passed several sections of the GED® exam.

 

The Basics

 

  • When someone passes the current GED® test, they earn a High School Equivalency (HSE) diploma, awarded by the NYS Board of Regents. There is no such thing as a “GED diploma”. New York State will use the TASC to award High School Equivalency (HSE) diplomas. 

 

  • TASC will be based on the Common Core Standards. The Common Core Standards (CCS) are a single set of educational standards for K – 12, designed to ensure that students who graduate high school are prepared to enter credit bearing college programs or enter the workforce. The New York State Department of Education has stated that adult education in NY will be fully aligned with the Common Core by 2017.

 

Wrapping Up the Current GED® Exam

 

  • New Development! - On September 16, 2013, the NYS Board of Regents voted to grandfather in past work. Students who have passed a section on the current G.E.D. will have that passing score counted until 2016.

 

  • There are many partial passers on the current GED® exam. There is a strong push to get as many of them as possible to re-test in 2013 before the GED® changes.

 

  • Test takers are usually limited to taking the GED® test 3 times during a 12 month period. NYSED has announced testers can take the GED® test three times in 2013, regardless of how many times they took it in 2012.

 

 

The New Test: TASC (Test Assessing Secondary Completion)

 

  • In March 2013, NYSED awarded a three-year contract to CTB/McGraw Hill to create a new high school equivalency assessment for NY- the TASC. The TASC is the NYSED sanctioned test and beginning in January 2014 it will be the primary pathway to earning a HSE diploma in NY. The TASC will be free to test takers. Many of our campuses will be involved in the pilot testing and norming.

 

  • The TASC will start out as a paper-based test. In 2014, it will be similar to the current GED® test, in terms of format and the kinds of questions (multiple-choice, bubble fill-ins and a writing prompt). 

 

  • Over the course of the three year contract (Jan 2014-Dec 2016), the TASC will become more and more aligned with the Common Core. That means the content will become increasingly challenging. The TASC will require more sophisticated uses of technology allowing for more complex kinds of questions. It is expected that 60% of testing in NY will be computer-based by the end of 2016.

 

 

The GED Testing Service® 

 

  • There are two possibilities that may allow test takers in NY to take the GED® exam after January 2014.
    • The GED® test might become another pathway towards earning a HSE diploma. This would be in addition to the TASC. This possibility would require repealing or amending NYS Education Law 317 (which prohibits charging test-takers a fee for the HSE test). This possibility would also require state approval from the Board of Regents.
    • The GED Testing Service® may decide to give the test, independent of state approval. This possibility would not result in an HSE diploma from the NYS Board of Regents. The GED Testing Service® may do this because they believe the name recognition of the GED® would be enough for colleges and employers to accept their credential. 
    • Under both possibilities, test takers would be charged $120.

 

     

 

Prepared by the CUNY Adult Language and Literacy Program                                                                             

Updated September 2013

 

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