[1] These are usually criterion-referenced tests which were implemented as part of a comprehensive standards-based education reform program which sets into place new standards intended to increase the learning of all students.
[3] Graduation examinations first appeared in the U.S. after the Civil War, when the Regents Board of the State of New York imposed its first exams, outlining a model that a new educational performance standard should be set for all students, to be met by 16.
This certificate would qualify the student to choose among going to work, entering a college preparatory program, or studying for a Technical and Professional e, which would be explicitly tied to advanced job requirements.
Opponents of the use of test-based accountability, as typified by the report of the National Research Council on the subject, argue that the exams lead to more high school dropouts without increasing student performance.
[6] Students who are unable to pass the exit examinations given by their local public school may be able to use an alternative assessment to demonstrate mastery of the material.