Florida college readiness test faces questions

A new college-readiness test for high school students has raised concerns among Pasco County school officials who worry it casts too wide a net, covering even students who don't plan to attend college.

The Florida Postsecondary Education Readiness Test, being administered for the first time this school year, is given to students who score at level 3 or lower on the 10th-grade FCAT reading exam and level 4 or lower on the math exam.

High school juniors who fare poorly on the readiness test must take remedial classes as seniors.

That's all well and good for students who plan to attend college, school officials say, but it could be frustrating for students whose goal is to head straight into the job market.

Pasco school board member Steve Luikart, a former high school assistant principal, predicted the dropout rate could increase as some already at-risk students realize they must take remedial courses their senior year instead of the electives they prefer.

"They are going to tell us to take a hike," Luikart said. "They are not going to do that."

The college-readiness test was one of the top areas of discussion last week at a joint workshop held by the Pasco and Hernando school boards and the Pasco-Hernando Community College board of trustees. The three groups met at PHCC's Spring Hill campus.

The intent behind the test is good, but goes too far when it is mandated even for students who aren't college bound, Luikart said.

Board member Allen Altman expressed similar concerns. Altman said there needs to be an acknowledgement at the state level that there is a large group of students who can be successful in life, but have no plans to attend college.

Instead, they may have a vocation lined up or plan to take over a family business.

Tallahassee, though, seems to push a "singular path" for everyone, Altman said.

"That's doing a disservice to those students," he said.

Bryan Blavatt, superintendent of schools for Hernando, said the test is a reflection of an education direction coming out of both Tallahassee and the White House.

The focus, he said, is to prepare students for their post-secondary life – specifically a life that includes college – but "it never articulates into a particular approach or the funding necessary to do it properly."

"The PERT test in itself is not necessarily evil," Blavatt said. "But how it is being used and what it is doing to kids is not good."