Students ace Regents exams
02.05.10
One hundred percent of Tech Valley High School juniors passed the English Regents Exam this January, school officials announced on Friday.
In what is the latest proof that 21st Century Skills can be taught in a project-based learning setting, 31 TVHS students took and passed the two-part Comprehensive English Regents Exam during Regents testing week on January 26-27.
"This is just fabulous news," said Principal Dan Liebert. "It supports what we have known all along, that students who are taught the relevance and application of what they are learning understand it better."
"When you teach a rigorous project with real world relevance, the students will do well," he added.
And the students understood the subject matter on the Regents very well according to the results. Not only did they pass the exam, but all students scored at least 10 points better than the 55 percent minimum passing grade and 42 percent of the TVHS students passed "with distinction." The latter term, which is a state classification, means the students passed the exam with an 85 or better.
TVHS students learn through project-based learning, which integrates various learning disciplines, for example math and science, history and English, Mandarin Chinese and art. Through project-based learning, students not only learn what is required to pass state Regents exams, but also what is required to do well in the workforces and classrooms of tomorrow.
For an example of courses taught at TVHS, click here or go to: http://www.techvalleyhigh.org/Learning/Course_descriptions.html
The Comprehensive Regents Exam is the latest state exam in which TVHS students have excelled, further proving that the school's unique way of teaching - TVHS is the only public school of it's kind in New York State and one of only about 44 in the country - works well.
In four of the six Regents exams offered to TVHS students during the school's less than three years of existence, 95 percent or greater of TVHS students have passed each exam. Specifically, TVHS students had a 97 percent passing rate for the Global History and Geography Regents in June, compared to a 67 percent state average, as well as a 97 percent passing rate for Living Environment Regents compared to a state average of 75 percent. Likewise, 95 percent of students taking the Algebra Regents Exam passed it in June 2008 compared to a state average of 75 percent and 75 percent of TVHS students passed it in June 2009.
One area TVHS has identified for growth is Geometry following the Geometry Regents in June 2009 in which 59 percent of TVHS students passed it on the first try. The school subsequently convened a panel of math experts from the region which examined the situation and made changes to the way TVHS teaches the subject.
TVHS is a two-year-old state-of-the-art public school in East Greenbush that serves students from 39 public schools in seven Capital Region counties – Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady, Columbia, Greene, Schoharie and Saratoga counties. The school combines the latest technology with project-based learning – a partnership that is designed to develop students with the skills employers are requiring in today's ever-changing workforce. It is funded through a partnership between Capital Region BOCES and Questar III.
