Sunday, 16 January 2000
http://www.azstarnet.com/public/dnews/LD0516.html
PHOENIX (AP) - Students whose English is limited should be
exempt from the AIMS graduation test, a group of five school districts
argues.
``I do agree with the test, but I just want a level playing field,''
said John Clark, superintendent of the Whiteriver Unified School
District in eastern Arizona. Eighty percent of the district's
students have limited English proficiency.
Other members of the coalition include Kayenta Unified, Ganado
Unified and Pinon Unified school districts, all on the Navajo
Indian Reservation, and Union Elementary School District, in western
Phoenix. Others contemplating joining include the Douglas, Nogales
and Window Rock unified school districts, Clark said.
All the districts have large numbers of Hispanic or American Indian
students.
Janet Martin, president of the Arizona Board of Education, said
that while she still believes limited-English students should
take AIMS, she also thinks it's important that educators have
a chance to vent this displeasure and then ``put their heads together.''
``They become a better force to help get their kids better prepared,''
Martin said.
Pupils in third, fifth and eighth grades may take a Spanish version
of AIMS once. High school students must take it in English.
Beginning with the current sophomore class, students must master
the reading, writing and math exam to graduate.
Nogales parents filed a class-action lawsuit claiming the test
discriminates against limited-English students. A federal judge
in Tucson is expected to rule early this year.
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Visit the Arizona Department
of Education for more information about AIMS.
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Check out how students fared on the AIMS
test, the state's first mandatory graduation test.
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