September 22, 2014
Mariah Timms
News Writer
Maryland News
More than half of Montgomery County High Schools had failure rates of over 70% on June’s Algebra 1 final exam. Additionally, eight middle schools had failure rates from 20 percent to 43 percent, although 18 did have only five percent or less failure rates. These details, just released, explain why district-wide report cards were delayed and the schools undertook massive grade recalculations over the summer. Montgomery has a long history of low math scores. Apparently, students have been relying on the grading system that allows them to fail the final while maintaining a passing grade on the strength of their coursework and may focus their studying elsewhere. This is not always effective in the long run, as the Washington Post reports many students may pass lower level courses but do not have the proper foundation for the higher level ones they take next. One in seven students were enrolled in special remedial summer math courses.
