Impact of Repeatedly Failing a High School Exit Exam: Voices of English Language Learners

Urban Rev (2016) 48:463483

DOI 10.1007/s11256-016-0363-z

Louis J. Kruger1 Chieh Li1 Edward Kimble1

Rachel Ruah1 Diana Stoianov1 Kalyani Krishnan1

Published online: 18 May 2016 Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016

Abstract This qualitative study explored the perceived psychological impact of repeated failures on a high school exit examination (HSEE). We interviewed eight self-identied English language learners (ELLs), whose ages ranged from 20 to 29. All participants were attending tutoring HSEE programs at urban community colleges in New England. Using a modied grounded theory approach (Goldkuhl and Cronholm in Int J Qual Methods 9:187205, 2010), interviews were transcribed, coded, and analyzed. The interviewees perceived many more negative effects than benets of failing a HSEE. They reported adverse effects on academic motivation, emotions, goals, and self-perceptions. Despite these perceived adverse effects, they identied both individual (efforts, goals, self-reection and positive mindset, positive self-perceptions) and environmental protective factors (encouragement, instructional support and emotional support) that helped them persist in attempting to pass the HSEE. The ndings from study have implications for educational and psychological research, policy and practice.

Keywords High school exit exams English language learners Resilience

Psychological impact Protective factors

Thanks are extended to Kristin Holborn, Timothy McIvor, Ashley Cameron, Charles Kim, Kristin Concannon, and Gina Aki for their help with the study.

& Louis J. [email protected]

1 Department of Applied Psychology, Northeastern University, 404 International Village, Boston,

MA 02115, USA

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464 Urban Rev (2016) 48:463483

Introduction

Twenty-four states in the United States have a set of high school exit exams (HSEEs) (Hyslop 2014). HSEEs are state-mandated tests that public school students must pass in order to receive a high school diploma. HSEEs are part of an accountability system that accompanied standard-based education reform, which was intended to raise the academic prociency of all public school students (Fuhrman 2004; Heubert 2004). Many states with HSEEs have large urban school systems and a high proportion of English language learners (ELLs). In fact, 71 % of the students who are eligible for reduced or free lunch and 83 % of English Language Learners in the United States attend schools in states with HSEEs (McIntosh 2012).

Two...