GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION TEST
Students seeking a Georgia high school diploma, who entered high school prior to July 2011, must pass the Georgia High School Graduation Tests (GHSGT) in four content areas as well as the Georgia High School Writing Test.
As a result of amendments to State Board of Education rule in April 2011, the cohort of students who enrolled in high school from Fall 2008 through June 2011 must demonstrate their proficiency in the four GHSGT content areas by either passing each of the GHSGTs or by passing one of the two equivalent End of Course Tests in each corresponding content area. These students are also required to take and pass the Georgia High School Writing Test (GHSWT) to be eligible for a diploma.
Students who enter grade nine in 2011 – 2012 and beyond will not take, and are not required to pass, the GHSGT. They are required to take and pass the Georgia High School Writing Test.
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL WRITING TESTS
The high school Writing Assessment (or Georgia High School Writing Test) measures student mastery of essential writing skills. Students must write a persuasive essay on an assigned topic. Trained professionals independently judge each essay on four qualities or “domains” of effective writing: content/organization, style, conventions of written language, and sentence formation. In the overall score for an essay, content/organization counts for twice as much as the other three domains.
WHEN DO STUDENTS TAKE THE GRADUATION TESTS?
Students take the graduation tests for the first time in the eleventh grade. The Writing Assessment takes place in the fall, and the GHSGT in English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies occur in the spring of the eleventh grade. Students who do not pass on the first attempt of the tests have multiple opportunities to receive additional instruction, retest, and qualify for graduation before the spring of the twelfth grade.
2011-12 TEST DATES
- September 27, 2011 Georgia High School Writing Test (GHSWT)
- March 19-22, 2012 Georgia High School Graduation Test (GHSGT)
PREPARATION RESOURCES
- Online ExPreSS Tutorial is a free online program offered by the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) that provides tutorial support for the Science and/or Social Studies Georgia High School Graduation Tests (GHSGT). Students can create their own registration account using their GTID (Georgia Testing Identifier) number. Sign up on the Online ExPreSS website – https://www.georgiastandards.org/Resources/Pages/Tools/ExPreSS.aspx
- USA Test Prep (www.usatestprep.com) Please check with media center for username and password
- Georgia Test Review (www.georgiatestreview.net)
Username: Roswellhs AND Student Password: Spring 28
GACollege411 (www.GaCollege411.org)
Click on the “High School Planning” tab - GA DOE GHSGT Study Guides (http://www.gadoe.org/ci_testing.aspx?PageReq=CI_TESTING_GHSGT)
