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Dallas / Fort Worth Local News

Thousands Of Texas Teens Won't Receive Diploma

Reporting
Steve Pickett

DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―

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Many teenagers are crossing the stage this week and graduating from high school, but a state education report found thousands of students aren't going to receive a diploma.

CBS 11 News looked at the numbers and found out who fell short of the goal.

According to the Texas Education Agency, those students not graduating are ones who failed to pass required state tests.

The celebration of graduation can be found among teenagers all across North Texas this week.

But not everyone is celebrating. "It's just some people don't have good test taking skills. Some people don't have the strategy to understand the question," explained Cedar Hill High Senior Trinika Jones.

Jones fell three points short and joins 36,000 other Texas teens that weren't issued a diploma. "I just feel it's a downfall to everything, because I've been going to school with most of my friends since kindergarten and I had to sit, and stand, and watch, and not be able to walk with them," said Jones.

Jones was part of another group as well; almost one in four African American high school students in Texas failed to pass one section or more of the exit exam. Twenty-percent of Hispanic seniors also failed to meet state requirements.

"There is one predictor of success in school and that's your socioeconomic level," explained the head of the Dallas Can Academy, Richard Marquez.

The head of the charter school program says adequate reading levels often determine proficiency on any test. "That's the only difference between minority children or poor children, and others," explained Marquez. "Because if you don't know how to read I guarantee you that you're going to fail in the system."

Trinika Jones has ironically already been accepted to college, but while many of her peers are graduating high school, she's set to take a summer math class.

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