Final exams

The Missouri State Board of Education didn't like the idea of replacing the Missouri Assessment Program tests with a college-entrance exam such as the ACT, a move recommended last year by a statewide task force. Instead the board favors end-of-course exams in algebra, biology and sophomore-level English, a decision met with little enthusiasm locally.

The state board hopes the statewide final exams will motivate students to try harder on standardized tests because the results will affect their grades. The board also wants to ensure that the same material is being taught in all the school districts in the state.

One criticism of the MAP tests is that students pay them little attention because the tests have no bearing on the students' grades. Only composite grades for the school are recorded. According to the newest plan, the tests would count for at least 10 percent of students' grades.

Cape Central High School principal Dr. Mike Cowan ridicules any testing plan for which no exams have yet been developed. Jackson High School principal Rick McClard still prefers the rigor of the ACT.

They have a point. The state board's newest plan also makes students accountable for how well they test but takes the schools' accountability away.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education says high schools may be able to substitute ACT score for some subjects that may be added to the testing regimen in the future.

We doubt the final word on statewide high-school testing has been heard.