Hundreds Of Mass. Students Fail MCAS Science Exam

Hundreds of Massachusetts high school seniors were denied diplomas at the end of the last school year because they failed the MCAS science exam.

The Boston Globe reports that in all more than 2,500 students - or 3.7 percent of the state's 12th graders - did not receive a passing grade on the science test. Figures from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education showed 731 of those students did pass the English and math portions of the standardized test.

English and math have been graduation requirements for years, but last year was the first in which seniors were also required to pass the science portion of the standardized test.

State Education Commissioner Mitchell Chester defended the requirement, but also acknowledged that science instruction may be lacking in some high schools.