Interesting Reason Why History Regent Exams Canceled in New York

The New York State Education Department has announced that the Regents exams for US History and Government scheduled for June 1st have been canceled.

If you have kids in high school, you are well aware that this time of year can be extremely stressful for kids getting ready to take the state regents exams. Personally, my 16-year-old daughter has been doing review after review in various subjects for the last few weeks to try and get herself ready for the exams that are scheduled to start early next month.

One exam that students won't have to take this year is the US History and Government regent as the NYSED has officially announced its cancelation on Tuesday, saying that the recent violence in Buffalo was one of the reasons for the cancellation according to WGRZ.

According to the Education Department, the exam contained content that could possibly cause further trauma to students. Emily DeSantis, spokesperson for the Education Department explained,

"In the wake of the heinous mass shooting in Buffalo, content experts from the Department, in partnership with NYS educators, reviewed all June 2022 Regents Exams and determined there is content on the new Regents Examination in United States History and Government (Framework) that has the potential to compound student trauma caused by the recent violence in Buffalo."

 

“While developed by NYS-certified social studies teachers more than two years ago and field-tested to confirm that the exam's content is educationally sound, the tragedy in Buffalo has created an unexpected and unintended context for the planned assessment. In the wake of the Buffalo tragedy, it is not appropriate to administer the exam with a question that could compound the grief and hardship faced by our school communities."

No other information was given as to exactly what content in the exam could cause further trauma but because the exams were already printed and sent to schools, there was no way for the NYSED to adjust the tests.

Students Could Receive a Graduation Exemption

Now that the exams are canceled, any student that was required to take the exam to graduate will hopefully receive an exemption. The NYSED announced that they plan to ask the board to approve a graduation exemption in August 2022 and January 2023.

Does This Change Affect Any Other Regent Exams?

According to the NYSED, no other regent or local exams are affected by the change. All regent and local exams will go on as scheduled.