Over 26,500 students don't make it to a diploma in 2005

30,800 students don't get a regular diploma

Governor Warner’s press release touting a graduation rate of 94.6% for the Class of 2005 nimbly hides the actual facts.   In fact, only 73.6% of the original Class of 2005, i.e., those who entered 9th grade four years before, graduated. To see how various localities fared, click here.

Who counts as a graduate?

Additionally, Governor Warner’s definition of graduation, and thereby his reported graduation rate, includes all diploma options (none of which count towards graduation under No Child Left Behind rules), including Modified Standard Diplomas, Special Diplomas, and General Achievement Diplomas (passing a GED).

What happened to the original cohort of the Class of 2005?

Of the original 100,237 students who were in 9th grade four years ago, only 69.3%  received a Standard or Advanced Diploma. This is a slight decrease from the original Class of 2004, of whom 69.4% earned a regular diploma four years after entering 9th grade.  In contrast, the Class of 1997 awarded Standard or Advanced Diplomas to 75.5% of its seniors. 

From the original 100,237 students four years ago, only 77,945 made it to their senior year.  Of that number, only 73,735 got any kind of a diploma. Only 69,429 got a regular (Standard or Advanced) diploma. 

The percentage of students graduating with regular diplomas (Standard or Advanced Studies), whether you look at only the students remaining for their senior year or the group as they entered high school four years earlier) declined in 2004.

 

Graduation year

Percentage of 12th grade membership receiving regular diplomas

Percentage of 9th graders receiving regular diploma four years later

      2005

       89.1%       69.3%

2004

89.5%

69.4%

2003

93.1%

74.4%

2002

91.5%

71.8%

2001

92.1%

73.2%

2000

92.9%

72.5%

1999

92.7%

72.4%

1998

93%

73.2%

1997

93.9%

75.5%

 

Are Advanced Studies diplomas really rising?

From when SOL testing began in 1998 until the Class of 2004, the percentage of students receiving Standard diplomas has risen as the percentage receiving Advanced Studies diplomas has fallen. As in 2004, the Governor points out that the number of Advanced Studies Diplomas given in 2005 outnumbered the number of Standard Diplomas. The percentage of seniors receiving Advanced Studies diplomas rose about 1% this year but has not matched the percentage of seniors receiving Advanced Studies diplomas in 2001, 2000, and 1999. The percentage of students receiving Standard diplomas dropped from 44% last year to 42% this year.

Why are there less Standard Diplomas being awarded? 


This reduction in the percentage of graduates receiving Standard or Advanced Studies Diplomas is a result of more of Virginia’s students being pushed into other high school tracks, such as the Modified Standard Diploma, that require passing fewer SOL tests and have a very low cut score (between 12 and 15 out of 42 on the 8th grade English SOL test and 25 out of 60 questions on the 8th grade math SOL test). About 5.5% of the diplomas were Modified Standard Diplomas, Special Diplomas, or General Achievement Diplomas.  This is up from less than 2% in 2001 and earlier. 

This diversion of students from regular diplomas, along with the 26,500 students who didn’t even make it to graduation day, should raise even more questions about the achievement effects of the SOLs.