By DARIEN SCHULTZ
During the peak of the pandemic in New York, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) made the decision to cancel all June 2020 and August 2020 Regents examinations.
One concern for students regarding these cancellations has been graduation and prerequisite requirements. Freshman Katie W. said “I’m very concerned that I won’t know all the material required to take higher-level courses, especially in my math and science classes, where everything builds upon things we’ve previously learned.”
This problem is one that most students are experiencing. Freshman Samantha S. said “I think I will be fine for higher-level classes because everyone is dealing with the same thing, and we’re all on the same playing field.”
Board of Regents member for the tenth judicial district (Nassau and Suffolk counties) Roger Tilles explained the significant reasons for the cancellations. “There’s no question that we had to close them down. Courses wouldn’t be brought to where the Regents tests had already been prepared, and bringing kids together to take a Regents test, which wouldn’t have been online at this point, would be unhealthy,” Tilles said.
The cancellation of these exams have had profound impacts on teachers as well as students. Teachers’ curricula and their planning have been impacted. Teachers are having to figure out how to structure class time previously allotted for exam preparation and review. Geometry teacher Ms. Badalian said, “We will still take some time to review at the end of the year. Even though the Regents is cancelled, geometry topics will still appear on SAT and ACT exams as well as future math classes like algebra 2, precalculus, and calculus.”
Cancellation of the Regents exams has drastically altered teachers’ methodology. Biology teacher Ms. Lumi said, “The most obvious and difficult change for me as a science teacher is trying to provide alternatives for the lab work that students would normally do together, in class. In our present situation, this isn’t an option. Many of those activities help to reinforce concepts that are essential to the understanding of my subject. So, I find myself spending a lot of time looking for ‘virtual’ labs and other experiences, to at least give students an idea of what they would be doing and why.”
Freshman Darshini P. said “Though distance learning is sufficient for understanding material, it is still not as interactive and informative as traditional school.”
Overall, teachers are trying their best to keep students motivated and working hard during these difficult times. Ms. Lumi added, “I am trying to vary the type of work I ask my students to do with the hope that different types of tasks will appeal to different types of kids. I am also trying to give everyone feedback as quickly as possible, so they know that I am evaluating their work.”
It is easy to see how the transition to online learning and the lack of a final assessment like a Regents exam could cause many students to take their classes less seriously. However, this is not the case for most Jericho students. Freshman Darshini P. said, “Now that the Regents exams are cancelled, I feel that I can fully take the time to learn at a steadier, slower pace just for the sake of learning, without feeling stressed out about a grade.”
Jericho High School Co-Principal Mr. Cohen believes the Regents cancellations won’t have much of an impact on Jericho students. Regarding requirements for graduation he said, “For any students sitting in classes that end in Regents exams, they’ll automatically be given credit for that at the end of the year. In addition, if there were students that had previously failed a Regents exam and were signed up to take that Regents this year, likewise they will be given credit for that Regents.”
For students who were relying on a Regents exam for a diploma credential, Mr. Cohen added, “If students were enrolled in a class where the Regents was going to be able to give them extended status like an advanced Regents diploma, they’ll be given credit for that as well. The only thing is, it will default back to their averages on previous Regents.” This means that since a student needs to have an average of 90% on all of their Regents exams, they will receive a Pass on their exams from this year, and their score average will not be impacted.
In the past, a Regents exam grade averaged into a student’s final grade for the year. Mr. Cohen explained how this would be handled this year. “For classes that were planning on ending in a Regents exam, there will be some sort of activity, assignment or project. I use those terms because it may differ from course to course, just to be able to capture the learning for the year. The grade will be counted in the fourth quarter P, P+ and NC system,” he said.
I was so surprised to learn that the Regents had been canceled! It definitely makes sense, given the circumstances, but I wonder how this will impact my learning in higher-level classes.