Jun 17, 2008 11:35 am US/Central
9th Grade Writing Test Gets Harder
ST. PAUL (AP) ―
The second year of a new writing test got a little harder for Minnesota's ninth graders, but almost 90 percent still passed the exam.
The GRAD exam is designed to measure basic writing skills.
This year's test asked students to write about a time when they helped another person. Answers were graded on composition, style, sentence formation, grammar, mechanics and spelling.
The 89.5 percent passing rate was down from last year's rate of 90.8 percent. Passing rates ranged from 94 percent among white students to 69 percent among black students.
Education Commissioner Alice Seagren said she hopes the test will help teachers work with students to improve their writing skills.
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