Our school is moving in a very positive direction this summer by offering students the opportunity to retake their NYS Regents exams in August. Traditionally, these exams were only given in our school in January and June. By adding this exam session to our local schedule, students will now have a familiar environment to take their high stakes tests and I hope this will make all the difference in their success!

Organizing these summer exams has led me to reflect on three important things that schools can do to help students achieve: ensure access, reflect on equity and give additional support.

1. Access- Ensure that all students have a fair opportunity to take courses and exams and that student choices are not inhibited by cost or location. For instance, these summer exams would normally cost students one hundred dollars per exam to retake at a private school a distance away.  By offering these tests at the student’s home school, there will be reduced economic pressure for families and make transportation more convenient for everyone.

2. Equity- Reflect on whether all students have the same “level playing field.” For example, some school districts have a policy where AP students pay for their own books. This makes it a challenge for all students to take advanced classes. Every student should have the right to an education, including the books necessary to take the course.  This type of policy would make it impossible for economically disadvantaged students to take higher level courses and would give wealthier students an unfair advantage. Additionally, higher-level courses also typically have expensive culminating test fees which might inhibit some students from taking the class. The Dobbs Ferry School District in Dobbs Ferry, New York is a great example of a district that conquered this issue and made it possible for all students to take advanced classes. The Board of Education decided early on in it’s adoption of the International Baccalaureate Program that all exams would be paid for by the school district. Since 1998, Dobbs Ferry has been paying all of the cost for students to take their exams and this has resulted in many more students having greater access to this quality program.

3. Support-Reach out to students who might need extra support during exams or stressful situations.  This past week, I called several students who I felt needed that dose of extra support for these critical exams.  In each conversation, we talked briefly about their summer and about what they needed to be successful on the upcoming tests.  Hopefully, reconnecting with these students after a long summer will give them the extra push necessary to be successful.

I believe putting a renewed focus on these three areas is a key component to increasing student achievement, creating a supportive culture and building stronger relationships with parents and the community.