Beginning with the graduating Class of 2006, all students enrolled in California public schools will have to pass both the Mathematics and English-Language Arts sections of the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) to receive a California high school diploma.

The CAHSEE was designed and developed to significantly improve student achievement in California public high schools and to ensure that students who graduate from California public high schools can demonstrate grade level competency in Mathematics, Reading, and Writing. The examination is given only in English and all students must pass the exam in English to receive a high school diploma.

The CAHSEE is administered over two days and has two different sections: English-Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics. Students may retake the examination until they pass both the ELA and Mathematics parts; however, students will only have to retake the part that they have not previously passed. School districts are required to offer the CAHSEE once to tenth grade students in the spring and are encouraged to provide up to five additional opportunities to students who have not passed the test.

The CAHSEE helps identify 10th grade students who are not developing fundamental skills that are essential for life after high school and encourages California school districts to give these students the attention and resources needed to help them achieve these skills during their high school years. By state law, school districts must provide supplemental instruction aligned to the state content standards to assist students who do not pass the exam. It is up to each school and district to decide how to provide this instruction.

The Mathematics section of the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) assesses California content standards from Grades 6 and 7 Mathematics and Algebra 1. There are 80 multiple-choice test questions distributed across six Mathematics strands and 53 individual California content standards.

Mathematical Strands

• Statistics, Data Analysis, and Probability 12 questions from 7 standards
• Number Sense 14 questions from 10 standards
• Algebra and Functions 17 questions from 10 standards
• Measurement and Geometry 17 questions from 10 standards
• Mathematical Reasoning 8 questions from 6 standards
• Algebra 1 12 questions from 10 standards

The English-Language Arts section of the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) assesses California content standards thru Grade 10 from Reading and Writing. There are 72 multiple-choice test questions (45 reading questions and 27 writing questions) and 1 writing task distributed across five English-Language Arts strands and 26 individual California content standards.

Reading Strands

• Word Analysis 7 questions from 2 standards
• Reading Comprehension 18 questions from 6 standards
• Literary Response and Analysis 20 questions from 10 standards

Writing Strands

• Writing Strategies 12 questions from 5 standards
• Writing Conventions 15 questions from 3 standards

Writing Applications: 1 essay question

The use of a calculator is NOT permitted on the CAHSEE unless a student has an Individual Educational Program (IEP) or Section 504 Plan that specifies the use of a calculator.

CAHSEE Passing Scores and Laws The Scale Score for the CAHSEE ranges from approximately 250 (low score) to 450 (high score) with a Scale Score of 350 representing a passing score on each section of the examination. The CAHSEE has two different sections: Mathematics and English-Language Arts (ELA). The passing score for the Mathematics section of the CAHSEE is a Scale Score of 350 which represents an approximately Raw Score (percent correct) of 55%. The passing score for English-Language Arts section of the CAHSEE is a Scale Score of 350 which represents an approximate Raw Score (percent correct) of 60%.

Test Tools, Inc. recommends a “Five-Step Approach” to preparing for the CAHSEE:

1. Orientation - Understand the format and style of the CAHSEE

2. PreTest - Identify individual strengths and weaknesses for Mathematics and ELA

3. Review - Learn about the California Strands and Standards

4. Assessment - Practice questions from individual benchmarks

5. PostTest - Compare the results to the PreTest

Test Tools, Inc. advises that students first review the 10 topics in the "Orientation Guide to the CAHSEE" to learn about the CAHSEE, the types of questions thatare on the CAHSEE, the different Standards that are on the CAHSEE, passing scores, and the state laws regarding the CAHSEE.

After gaining a full understanding of the design of the CAHSEE, students should take a complete "CAHSEE Tutor - PreTest" for both Mathematics and ELA to get an idea of their individual strengths and weaknesses and print the breakdown of the individual grades for each individual standard. The "Student Grade Summary" keeps track of all the grades from all the testing sections in the software.

The "Standards Reviews - Lesson Plans" section contains detailed, subject-specific information and test taking tips. These reviews, based upon the blueprints for the CAHSEE, are designed to teach students techniques to master all the standards. It takes an average student approximately 20 hours to review all of the material for both the Mathematics and ELA exams.

Students can then review and practice specific questions for the individual standards that need improvement in the "Individual Standards Assessments." These sections pull specific questions from all the CAHSEE exams, based upon individual standards. This allows a student to review and practice a single standard with detailed explanations for each question. There is a grading summary at the end of each standard assessment that can be printed.

After a student finishes reviewing and assessing the individual standards, they should then complete the "CAHSEE Tutor PostTest." Then they should compare their results from the results from the CAHSEE PreTest, review the differences, and repeat the "Standards Reviews - Lesson Plans" and/or "Individual Standards Assessments" for the specific standards that need improvement.

CAHSEE Tutor is the most accurate representation of what it is like to take the actual California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) because it was designed to have the same look, feel and intensity as the actual CAHSEE exam. The software was designed by educators and professionals to help students master the California Content Standards that are necessary to pass the CAHSEE. The teachers who created the original content and questions are experts in their field and have first-hand knowledge of the rules and regulations of the examination.

The CAHSEE Tutor was designed with an interactive and intuitive interface to provide individualized study techniques for all students. Unlike a textbook, the computer allows a non-linear approach to learning and students can prepare for the test at their own pace. There is a built-in feature for students to receive immediate feedback for each of their question responses with detailed explanations of the answers. This feature further reinforces the learning process. Additionally, the "CAHSEE Grading Summary" provides a detailed analysis of individual student's strengths and weaknesses based upon the individual CAHSEE Mathematics and ELA standards.