Fewer Texans are taking the new General Education Development test since it became computerized and more expensive last year. Today, the State Board of Education will start discussing whether to offer another high school equivalency test—or multiple tests. KUT’s Kate McGee has more.
Right now, Texans can only take the GED. But last year, that test got more expensive and more difficult.
The number of Texans who passed the test dropped by six percent in two years—from 59 percent to 54 percent. The number of students taking the test dropped too, by seven percent.
“It’s definitely sort of a red flag" said Chandra Villanueva of the Center for Public Policy Priorities, a left-leaning think tank.
“So when we have close to 3 million people who are lacking this very basic credential to help them move into the next stage of either their career or education, that just doesn’t bode well for Texas’ economy for the long term" Villanueva said.
So the State Board wants to collect information to see if it should expand the number of high school equivalency tests offered to Texans who do not have their high school diploma. There are two other tests that the state could adopt or offer in addition to the GED—the HiSET and the TASC test. Both of those tests are still offered on paper—and they’re cheaper.
Groups like the CPPP want Texas to offer all three options.
“We just have way too many people without a high school diploma or equivalency in Texas and making sure we have test that meets the needs to test takers in the state in decreasing that number," Villanueva said.
It’s unclear if the Board of Education will approve of these alternative tests. One - the TASC—is based on Common Core standards. It is against the law to teach Common Core standards in Texas. But an independent review of the other option—the HiSet—found that it aligns with Texas’ education standards.
