RETREAT!

After the math WASL passed away in November, it was only a matter of time. From the Olympian:

Some lawmakers are floating the idea of delaying the Washington Assessment of Student Learning reading and writing high-school graduation requirements, piggybacking off a proposal to delay the math requirement.

Current state law requires members of the high school Class of 2008 to pass all three sections of the WASL in order to graduate.

Only 58 percent of the state's juniors have passed the 10th grade WASL math exam. There are measures pending in the Legislature, supported by Gov. Chris Gregoire and state schools superintendent Terry Bergeson, that would postpone the math requirement until 2011.

Students did better in reading and writing than math, with 87 percent having passed the reading exam and 86 percent having passed the writing exam.

But Sen. Rosemary McAuliffe, D-Bothell, chairwoman of the Senate education committee, and her House counterpart, Rep. Dave Quall, D-Mount Vernon, said they're open to the possibility of delaying those requirements also.

"We can't just do math and not think about the kids who failed the other subjects," McAuliffe said, noting that there are still 16,472 of the state's juniors who haven't passed the reading portion and 17,444 who haven't passed the writing exam.

Many of those are minority, disabled and disadvantaged students, she said.

"What do we say to them?" she said. "We have to really answer to those kids who are struggling."

What do you tell them? In some cases you tell them to get to summer school, take advantage of the tutoring options that are available, that you're going to take the second math class instead of the second PE class. To others you say that they're going to take a different version of the WASL, because that's what their IEP calls for. To still others you offer the WAAS.

And to others, who don't try, don't show up, and expect a diploma just because, you say you're sorry but that's not how the system works any longer. You do it with empathy and you show them a way, but you do it because it's the right thing to do.

Rainy Prediction: The reading and writing sections will continue to be graduation requirements, but look for the Science WASL to go the way of math sometime soon. After four years of the math WASL 38.9% of the kids were meeting standard--it's only 35.0% on science so far, so the situation is worse.