Oregon students can now graduate high school without being able to read or do math
Declining academic standards in college are now spilling over into K-12 schools.
'Campus Reform' has previously reported on elite universities lowering their standards for students and applicants.
This school year, Oregon high school seniors who cannot read or do math will still be allowed to graduate in accordance with a new law that suspends key academic graduation requirements.
According to Senate Bill 744, signed by Gov. Kate Brown without any announcement last month, states that “a student may not be required to show proficiency in Essential Learning Skills as a condition of receiving a high school diploma” through the next three school years.
The move follows Oregon State University and the University of Oregon going “test-optional” last year, meaning that applicants to those schools are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores.
Oregon students aren’t alone.
Thousands of American students will encounter declining academic standards when they return to school this fall.
Nevada’s Clark County School District, which covers Las Vegas, will no longer dock a student’s grade for missing class, missing assignments, or failing to participate in class, according to 8 News Now. Because late work will not be penalized, deadlines for students to turn in their assignments are effectively moot.
The University of Nevada Reno and the University of Nevada Las Vegas are both test-optional, though the latter requires either a GPA or advanced high school diploma in lieu of test scores.
In Colorado, the Douglas County School District has changed its grading scale so that a score of 52% or higher is a passing grade. The Denver Channel notes that this drop in grading standards follows Colorado State University and the University of Colorado dropping the requirement for applicants to submit an SAT or ACT score.
[RELATED: Colleges are dropping testing, curriculum standards in order to create ‘diversity’]
As Campus Reform has reported, the coronavirus pandemic accelerated the pace at which colleges dropped their standardized testing requirements - at least temporarily. With campuses set to reopen in weeks, however, it appears the testing requirements at many colleges are gone for good.
