Credit Before Grade 9 & Course Equivalency Exams
Procedure Manual
South Dakota Department of Education
800 Governors Drive
Pierre, SD 57501-2294
February 2017
Table of Contents
Purpose...... 3
Administrative Rules…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….….…3
Waiver Application……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..3
Exam Guidelines…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………4
State-Created Exams………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….5
District-Created Exams……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….6
Administering Exams…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…...7
Exam Results……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...8
Course Records…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..8
Credit Before Grade 9/Course Equivalency Flow Chart………………………………………………………………………………9
Appendix A: Blueprint Alignment Form………………………………………………………………………………………………………10
Appendix B: Test Security Agreement……………………………………………………………………………………………………….11
Appendix C: Security Plan Checklist…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..14
Appendix D: Guidelines for Calculator Use……………………………………………………………………………………………….15
Appendix E: Formula Sheets……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..16
Appendix F: Parent Letter………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….22
Appendix G: Score Reporting Information…………………………………………………………………………………………………23
Appendix H: Score Reporting Form……………………………………………………………………………………………………………24
Purpose:
South Dakota provides opportunities for students below grade 9 to earn high school credit by completing a course taught by an instructor certified to teach at the high school level, teaching to the high school standards, and meeting the requirements set by their local districts. All school districts wishing to participate in any high school credit before grade 9 program must apply for, and receive a waiver from administrative rule.
The South Dakota Course Equivalency Exam is required when students, grades 9-12, want to ‘test out’ of a high school level course without taking the actual class and still receive high school credit on their transcripts. This credit will be “Pass” only and will not be calculated as part of a student’s cumulative grade point average. The student must not have been enrolled in the actual class in the current accredited school to be eligible for testing. The student must pass this exam with a minimum proficiency of 85% and no retakes are allowed. Failed attempts will not be included on a student’s transcript.
Districts must apply for, and receive a waiver in order for students to participate in an End of Course Exam or Course Equivalency Exam.
Administrative Rules:
(March 2016) Administrative Rule in South Dakota (ARSD) 24:43:11:01 governs the accreditation requirements for grades 9-12, stating that “required units for high school graduation must be earned in grades 9 through 12.”
(December 8, 2009)Administrative Rule in South Dakota (ARSD) 24:43:01:01 (53) governs the accreditation requirements for earning a unit of credit. This rule states that a unit of credit is equivalent to 146 hours. In the event that a school district would like to deviate from this rule and offer credit for an eligible high school course by the passage of an equivalency exam, the district may apply for a waiver from the administrative rule. The specific rules outlining the structure of this process are found in ARSD 24:43:08.
As defined by the Department of Education, a district may apply for a waiver from an administrative rule when the intent of the waiver is to better meet local learning goals, enhance educational opportunity, promote equity, or increase accountability. (ARSD 24:43:08:02)
Waiver Application:
In the event that a school district would like to be deviate from these administrative rules and offer courses for high school credit prior to grade nine or through test out, the district may apply for waivers from these administrative rules.
Application for a waiver is available from the Department of Education and must demonstrate the district’s rationale for either offering high school credit to students before grade nine or offering high school credit by test out through a course equivalency exam. This rationale will include a statement as to how the waiver outlined in the application will better meet local learning goals, enhance educational opportunities, promote equity, or increase accountability. The application must also include the evidence of continuing educational opportunities. This should include a description of what furthering educational opportunities the participating student(s) may have available in the content area in which the district is applying for a waiver.
Additionally, faculty teaching waivered courses in any content area must be South Dakota certified to teach the content area waivered. The teachers of courses for which waivers are approved must be high school certified and the waived courses must remain at high school-level rigor. A waiver must be in place for each content area the district wishes to administer an exam.
Waiver Application (cont.):
Waiver for Before 9th Grade End Of Course: http://doe.sd.gov/oatq/documents/EOCAppbg9.doc
Waiver For 9th-12th Course Equivalency: http://doe.sd.gov/oatq/document/WaiverApp.doc
An approved waiver shall take effect at the beginning of the next school fiscal year on July 1. The department must receive an application for a waiver at least 60 days prior to the start of a new school fiscal year July 1.
(SDAR 24:43:08:04)
Unless the application requests a shorter term, an approved waiver will remain in effect for five years from the start date of July 1. Before March 1 of the year the term of the waiver expires, the school district or nonpublic governing body may request and be granted approval of the same waiver for a period of up to five additional years if it can be demonstrated that the school or program is meeting the objectives for which the waiver is granted. (SDAR 24:43:08:05).
For more information on Administrative Rule waivers, please visit the DOE website http://doe.sd.gov/oatq/adminrulewaivers.aspx or call 605-773-3134 for assistance.
Exam Guidelines:
When using a course equivalency exam, the student must pass the exam with at least 85% proficiency in order for high school credit to be issued.
A course equivalency exam may only be administered one time.
State Created Exams:
State-created end of course/course equivalency exams are available in the following content areas:
Algebra I Physical Science
Algebra II Spanish I
Geometry Civics/Government
All state exams must be delivered online through the South Dakota Assessment Portal (https://sdap.emetric.net).
General Guidance for Administering State & District-Created Exams:
A credit before grade 9/course equivalency exam may be administered to one student, a small group of students, or an entire class.
There is no time limit for a student taking a credit before grade 9/course equivalency exam. However, the credit before grade 9/course equivalency exam must be completed in one session.
If a credit before grade 9/course equivalency exam is stopped for any reason and completed in more than one session, the exam proctor must complete a test irregularity form explaining the test irregularity.
Students will be allowed to use permissible calculators on Math and Science exams. A list of all permissible and prohibited calculators can be found in Appendix D or online at http://doe.sd.gov/oats/documents/EOC_CalcU.pdf . On the day of testing, proctors should check each student’s calculator to verify if it is a permitted type and that the memory is cleared. Also, proctors should monitor calculator use to ensure the student does not store test material in the calculator’s memory, does not share calculators, and uses a backup calculator only if a primary calculator fails.
Formula sheets have been developed for the state-created end of course exams for use in Chemistry, Geometry, Physical Science, and Physics. These formula sheets, and the Periodic Table, are located in Appendix E or online at http://doe.sd.gov/oats/documents/EOC_PrdcT.pdf. The formula sheets and periodic table may be printed off for student use during the exam. Formula sheets and periodic tables, as well as any scratch paper, should be collected by the proctor and securely destroyed, e.g. shredded.
Administering State-Created Credit Before Grade 9/Course Equivalency Exams:
1: Ensure the school district has an administrative waiver in place which provides permission to administer the requested end of course/course equivalency exam. These waivers should be submitted at least 60 days before July 1, the start of the new fiscal school year. Each test requires its own waiver application.
2: Download the iTester Client software located within the South Dakota Assessment Portal to any computers students will use for testing. For directions on how to download the iTester Client software, please see the following Help Guide: http://doe.sd.gov/oats/documents/SDAPinstall.pdf
3: Complete an online test security agreement located here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/JPNJFLD . Paper copies of test security agreements will no longer be accepted for state-created exams. Once the test security agreement is completed, contact Chris Booth at to schedule a test.
4: Schedule the exam within the South Dakota Assessment Portal. The timeframe for giving a credit before grade 9/course equivalency exam is determined by each district according to student needs and scheduling. It is recommended to allow some time for makeup tests. For directions on how to schedule the exam within SDAP, please see the following Help Guide: http://doe.sd.gov/oats/documents/EOC16Inst.docx
Exam Results and Data:
Test scores for state exams are available to students, test proctors, and the South Dakota Department of Education in SDAP soon after exams are submitted. School districts do not have to submit a separate student score report to the South Dakota Department of Education when using the South Dakota Assessment Portal to deliver end of course/course equivalency exams.
Course Records:
Upon passage of a credit before grade 9 course, a letter grade shall be recorded on the student’s transcript and the course shall be calculated as a part of the student’s cumulative grade point average. (ARSD 24:43:08:12)
Upon passage of the course equivalency exam, the credit shall be included on the student transcript as a “pass” grade only. The pass grade shall not be calculated as a part of a student’s cumulative grade point average. A failed attempt on the course equivalency exam shall not be included on a student’s transcript and shall not be calculated as a part of a student’s cumulative grade point average. (ARSD 24:43:11:09)
If a student wishes to have a letter grade for the course equivalency exam included on his or her transcript as a means of scholarship eligibility or entrance into a post-secondary institution, a formal request may be made to that student’s school district to have a “course grade” included. The “course grade” should be a letter grade that is equivalent to the student’s test score on the course equivalency exam. The “course grade” shall not be calculated as a part of the student’s cumulative grade point average. (ARSD 24:43:11:09)
APPENDIX D
GUIDELINES FOR CALCULATOR USE
Students in all grades will be allowed to use permissible calculators.
All students should have access to school-owned or student-owned calculators for use on the appropriate Credit Before Grade 9/Course Equivalency Exam. All students should be familiar with the calculator they are to use. Students may use any four-function, scientific, or graphing calculator, unless it has features described in the following PROHIBITED list.
For models on the PERMITTED WITH MODIFICATION list, proctors will be required to modify some of the features of the calculator before it is used.
The following types of calculators are PROHIBITED:
• Pocket organizers
• Handheld or laptop computers
• Electronic writing pads
• Calculators built into cellular/mobile phones or other wireless communication devices
• Calculators with a QWERTY keyboard
• Calculators that make noise, such as a calculator with a paper tape or a talking calculator, or calculators that have power cords/USB cables
· Calculators with CAS (computer algebra systems) technology – Prohibited calculators in this category include all calculators in all of the following series:
o Casio CFX-9970G and Algebrafx2.0 have built-in Computer Algebra Systems.
o Texas Instruments TI-89 and TI-92 (including TI-92 Plus). All calculators in the Texas Instruments TI-92 series are prohibited because they have QWERTY (typewriter) keyboards and built-in Computer Algebra Systems.
o Hewlett-Packard HP-40G and HP-49G. Calculators in the Hewlett-Packard HP-38G series and HP-48G series may be used only if the infrared communications port is covered with heavy, opaque material.
· Any electronic device that has scanning or camera functions
The following types of calculators are PERMITTED WITH MODIFICATION:
• Calculators with paper tape—Remove the tape.
• Calculators that make noise—Turn off the sound feature.
• Calculators that can communicate wireless with other calculators— Completely cover the infrared data port with heavy, opaque material.
• Calculators that have power cord—Remove all power/electrical cords.
On the day of testing, proctors should check each student’s calculator to verify that it is a permitted type. Also, monitor calculator use to ensure the student uses a backup calculator only if a primary calculator fails, does not share calculators, and does not store test materials in the calculator’s memory. If a calculator has characters one-inch high or larger, or a raised display, proctors may seat students where no other student can see the calculator.
APPENDIX E
FORMULA SHEETS
APPENDIX E (cont.)
FORMULA SHEETS
APPENDIX E (cont.)
SCIENCE FORMULA SHEET
Equation Variables
v = velocity
d = displacement
t = time interval
W = work
W = F x d F = force
d = displacement
P = power
W = work
t = time interval
a = acceleration
= change in velocity
= change in time
F = force
m = mass
a = acceleration
PE = gravitational potential energy
PE = mgh m = mass
g = acceleration due to gravity
h = height
APPENDIX E (cont.)
SCIENCE FORMULA SHEET
Equation Variables
KE = kinetic energy
m = mass
v = velocity
v = wave velocity
= wavelength
f = frequency
l = current
V = potential
R = resistance
p = momentum
p = mv m = mass
v = velocity
APPENDIX E (cont.)
PHYSICS FORMULA SHEET
Formulas
Average Speed = ∆d F=G_m1m2_ p=mv
∆t d2
Average Acceleration = ∆v KE=1mv2 V=IR
∆t 2
∆d = vi ∆t + 1a(∆t2) W=F∆d P=IV
2
vf = vi + a∆t PE=mg∆h Q= mc∆T
vf2 = vi2 +2a∆d P=W v=fλ and λ=c
∆t f
F=ma T=1
f
Variables
a=acceleration PE=gravitational potential energy
c=specific heat Q=heat
d=distance R=resistance
∆d=change in distance ∆t=change in time
f=frequency v=velocity
∆T=change in temperature ∆h=change in height
F=force T=period
I=current ∆v=change in velocity
KE=kinetic energy V=voltage
λ=wavelength W=work
m=mass p=momentum
P=power
Subscripts:
i=initial and f=final as subscripts
Definitions
G=universal gravitational constant=6.67 x 10-11 N·m2
kg2
c=speed of electromagnetic waves = 3.00 x 108 m/s
g ≈ 10 m/s2 1N = 1kg ·m 1J = 1N · m 1W = 1J
s2 s
APPENDIX E (cont.)
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