Ohio Graduation Test
Encyclopedia
The Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) is the high school graduation examination
given to sophomores in the U.S. state
of Ohio
. Students must pass all five sections (reading
, writing
, mathematics
, science
and social studies
) in order to graduate. Students have multiple chances to pass these sections and can still graduate without passing each using the alternative pathway. In 2009, the Ohio legislature
passed an education reform bill eliminating the OGT in favor of a new assessment system. The development and transition to this new assessment system will take several years.
test.
In 2001, the Ohio legislature directed the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) to develop the OGT based on the soon-to-be-adopted academic content standards. The first official OGT was given in March 2005. It replaced the ninth grade proficiency test as a graduation requirement for the class of 2007. The last administration of the ninth grade proficiency test was in 2006.
. Each of the five sections is formatted differently, but they each contain multiple choice
, short answer, and extended response questions:
Each exam has approximately six extra questions that are being field tested for future OGT tests. Students are not penalized for incorrect answers on field tested questions. Students have up to two and a half hours to complete each section of the test. Typically, the tests are split up so that there is only one per day (for five days).
, Chinese
, and Somali
. Students with an Individualized Education Program
(IEP) may be exempted from the requirement to pass all sections of the OGT or may take another assessment if the plan allows. For students with significant disabilities, there is an alternate assessment that requires a collection of evidence that demonstrates knowledge appropriate for the student’s disabilities.
The academic content standards and the model curriculum must be finished before the new assessment system can be developed to assure alignment. Work will begin on developing this new system in 2011. There is no set date for the beginning of the new assessment system, but the 2013-2014 school year has been targeted. The OGT will be phased out over several years as students who unsuccessfully attempted to pass it retake the exam.
$4.35 billion incentive program was announced. It included up to $350 million for common assessment development. Various consortia of states formed to compete for this grant. Ohio signed memorandums of understanding
with two groups: Smarter Balance and Achieve. Whatever assessment systems these groups design may supersede the modified Ohio Achievement Assessment (grades 3-8), the three part assessment system, and the composite score passed by the Ohio legislature.
, and former 98 Degrees
singer Justin Jeffre filed a formal letter of complaint asserting the OGT is "unfair" according to guidelines set forth in the Ohio Administrative Code.
High school graduation examination
A high school graduation examination is a test that students must pass to receive a diploma and graduate from high school. These are usually criterion-referenced tests which were implemented as part of a comprehensive standards-based education reform program which sets into place new standards...
given to sophomores in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. Students must pass all five sections (reading
Reading (process)
Reading is a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols for the intention of constructing or deriving meaning . It is a means of language acquisition, of communication, and of sharing information and ideas...
, writing
Writing
Writing is the representation of language in a textual medium through the use of a set of signs or symbols . It is distinguished from illustration, such as cave drawing and painting, and non-symbolic preservation of language via non-textual media, such as magnetic tape audio.Writing most likely...
, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and social studies
Social studies
Social studies is the "integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence," as defined by the American National Council for the Social Studies...
) in order to graduate. Students have multiple chances to pass these sections and can still graduate without passing each using the alternative pathway. In 2009, the Ohio legislature
Ohio General Assembly
The Ohio General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio. It consists of the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives and the 33-member Ohio Senate...
passed an education reform bill eliminating the OGT in favor of a new assessment system. The development and transition to this new assessment system will take several years.
History
Prior to the OGT, passing the ninth grade proficiency test was required for graduation beginning with the class of 1994. It had the same five subjects, apart from the social studies test was referred to as the citizenshipCitizenship in the United States
Citizenship in the United States is a status given to individuals that entails specific rights, duties, privileges, and benefits between the United States and the individual...
test.
In 2001, the Ohio legislature directed the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) to develop the OGT based on the soon-to-be-adopted academic content standards. The first official OGT was given in March 2005. It replaced the ninth grade proficiency test as a graduation requirement for the class of 2007. The last administration of the ninth grade proficiency test was in 2006.
Development
Questions are developed by ODE staff, sent through committees, and placed on exams before official inclusion on the OGT. First, the Content Advisory Committee runs the ODE developed question past parents and educators to see if it addresses the content. Second, the Fairness Sensitivity Review Committee helps ensure that questions are fair and do not put any student at a disadvantage because of a student’s moral values, social status, or religious beliefs. Third, the question is field tested. It is placed on an exam, but does not count towards the score of the student. Finally, the committees evaluate the performance data and decide if the question is to be used.Questions
The OGT is made up of five tests: reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies. These sections match the core school subjects and fulfill the high school testing requirement in reading, mathematics, and science under the federal No Child Left Behind ActNo Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
. Each of the five sections is formatted differently, but they each contain multiple choice
Multiple choice
Multiple choice is a form of assessment in which respondents are asked to select the best possible answer out of the choices from a list. The multiple choice format is most frequently used in educational testing, in market research, and in elections-- when a person chooses between multiple...
, short answer, and extended response questions:
| |
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | |||
| Writing | |||
| Mathematics | |||
| Science | |||
| Social Studies |
Each exam has approximately six extra questions that are being field tested for future OGT tests. Students are not penalized for incorrect answers on field tested questions. Students have up to two and a half hours to complete each section of the test. Typically, the tests are split up so that there is only one per day (for five days).
Testing Dates
The OGT is first given to students in the spring of their sophomore year. If they do not pass all five sections, they can continue to retake the exam. The OGT is administered in the fall (October), spring (March), and summer (June) each year. Not all schools offer the summer OGT, but students can be directed to one that does. Summer testing also requires a student to take at least 10 hours of preparatory programs beforehand. A typical student will have seven opportunities to pass the OGT before they are scheduled to graduate.Accommodations
There are special accommodations of the OGT for students with special needs. These accommodations include tests with readers, in large print, and different languages like SpanishSpanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, and Somali
Somali language
The Somali language is a member of the East Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Its nearest relatives are Afar and Oromo. Somali is the best documented of the Cushitic languages, with academic studies beginning before 1900....
. Students with an Individualized Education Program
Individualized Education Program
In the United States an Individualized Education Program, commonly referred to as an IEP, is mandated by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act...
(IEP) may be exempted from the requirement to pass all sections of the OGT or may take another assessment if the plan allows. For students with significant disabilities, there is an alternate assessment that requires a collection of evidence that demonstrates knowledge appropriate for the student’s disabilities.
Alternative Pathway
Passing all five of the OGT tests is required to earn an Ohio diploma for both public and private school students (excluding IEP issues). However, there is an exception for students who come very close. The alternative pathway lets student who meet seven specific requirements to graduate without passing all five tests. High school guidance counselors determine if students qualify for this option. A student qualifies for the alternative pathway if they:- Pass all the tests but one, and earn at least a 390 on the failed test;
- Have a 97% attendance rate, not including excused absences, for each of the last four years;
- Have not been expelled in the past four years;
- Have a GPA of 2.5 out of 4.0 in the subject area of the failed test;
- Complete the high school curriculum requirements;
- Have taken “intervention programsTest preparationTest preparation or exam preparation primarily refers to educational courses, tutoring services, and educational materials/learning tools designed to increase students' performance on standardized tests, particularly entrance examinations used for admissions to institutions of higher education,...
” to help their performance on the tests and have a 97% attendance rate, not including excused absence, in those programs; and - Receive a letter recommending graduation from each of the student’s high school teachers in the subject area of the failed OGT and the student's high school principal.
Ohio Reforms
In 2009, the Ohio legislature passed an education reform bill that, among other things, called for the OGT to be replaced. To receive a diploma, students will have to earn a certain composite score drawn from a new three part assessment system:- A national standardized assessment (such as the ACT or SATSATThe SAT Reasoning Test is a standardized test for college admissions in the United States. The SAT is owned, published, and developed by the College Board, a nonprofit organization in the United States. It was formerly developed, published, and scored by the Educational Testing Service which still...
) that assesses science, mathematics, and English language arts - A series of end-of-course examsEnd of Course TestThe End of Course Test is an academic assessment conducted in many states by the State Board of Education. Georgia, for example, tests from the ninth to twelfth grades, and North Carolina tests for any of the four core class subjects .North Carolina schools administer an EOCT in English I, Algebra...
in English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies - A senior projectSenior ProjectSenior ProjectStudents, usually in their senior year of high school, choose a topic of interest to them and create a senior project that consists of the four P's:* Paper* Project* Portfolio* Presentation-How it works:...
by a student or a group of students
The academic content standards and the model curriculum must be finished before the new assessment system can be developed to assure alignment. Work will begin on developing this new system in 2011. There is no set date for the beginning of the new assessment system, but the 2013-2014 school year has been targeted. The OGT will be phased out over several years as students who unsuccessfully attempted to pass it retake the exam.
National Assessments
Also in 2009, the federal Race to the TopRace to the Top
Race to the Top, abbreviated R2T, RTTT or RTT, is a $4.35 billion United States Department of Education competition designed to spur innovation and reforms in state and local district K-12 education...
$4.35 billion incentive program was announced. It included up to $350 million for common assessment development. Various consortia of states formed to compete for this grant. Ohio signed memorandums of understanding
Memorandum of understanding
A memorandum of understanding is a document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action. It is often used in cases where parties either do not imply a legal commitment or in...
with two groups: Smarter Balance and Achieve. Whatever assessment systems these groups design may supersede the modified Ohio Achievement Assessment (grades 3-8), the three part assessment system, and the composite score passed by the Ohio legislature.
Criticisms
The OGT receives many of the same criticisms as other states’ standardized tests. Chief among them is that the assessments drive instruction, give students increased testing anxiety, and test preparations distract from classroom learning. The activist, perennial candidatePerennial candidate
A perennial candidate is one who frequently runs for public office with a record of success that is infrequent, if existent at all. Perennial candidates are often either members of minority political parties or have political opinions that are not mainstream. They may run without any serious hope...
, and former 98 Degrees
98 Degrees
98 Degrees is an American adult contemporary boy band consisting of four vocalists: brothers Nick and Drew Lachey, Justin Jeffre, and Jeff Timmons. The group was formed by Timmons in Los Angeles, California....
singer Justin Jeffre filed a formal letter of complaint asserting the OGT is "unfair" according to guidelines set forth in the Ohio Administrative Code.
See also
- List of state achievement tests in the United States
- Standards-based education
External links
- Department of Education OGT section of the Ohio Department of Education Website
- Ohio’s Statewide Testing Porthole Released OGT questions and practice questions
- Results Results from each administration of the OGT