Home Regents Examinations preparation
The Regents or Regents High School Examinations are examinations designed and conducted by New York State Education Board (NYSED) under the supervision of Board of Regents of University of the State of New York. These examinations award High School Regents credit to students. After declaration of test map, structure and skills for the curriculum (Regents) by a committee of teachers in New York, field testing and evaluation of test questions is carried out. Regents examinations were first carried out in 1865 and have undergone numerous changes since then. Regents, in recent times, offer high school examinations as a distinct mixture of comprehensive examinations and singular style examinations.
Regents High School Diploma is awarded to students in a subject when they score equal to or above 65 in that subject. There are five Regents Examinations available for students to take:
- Integrated Algebra (or Math A),
- Global History and Geography,
- U.S. History and Government,
- Comprehensive English, and
- One or more Regents science course (Earth Science, Biology/Living Environment, Chemistry or Physics).
Advanced Regents Diploma is awarded to those students who also pass an additional Regents science exam, an additional math exam (Regents Math B) and a foreign language exam. Students who are not willing to take a foreign language test can clear equivalent number of credits by doing courses in Music/ Arts, Business Applications and technology.
Regents exams are conducted thrice a year in the months of January, June and August. These examinations are usually three hours long. Most Regents exams are structured in the following format:
- A multiple-choice section (Part I), which usually has between 30-50 questions, and,
- a long-answer/essay section (Part II)
- Work has to be shown for evaluation after selecting a topic to work on (in Physical Sciences)
- Selection of essay topics is made and one or two of them are written out in details
- There is a third section on listening skills (with passages read aloud by a proctor) for foreign language test. Regents History exams also include a section of short responses on primary documents. For both social science exams, two essays are required and students are not served any choice in choosing topics of the essays.
Comprehensive English comprises two separate three-hour examinations distributed over two consecutive days. Evaluation of Earth Science consists of a 41 minute (approximate) laboratory component and is taken by students two weeks prior to the three hour written exam. Earth Science laboratory component is currently undergoing a change in format. Numerous foreign language Regents have oral evaluations before the written test. They are separate from the three hour examination for the language subject. Regents Math A and Math B examinations are now eliminated and are replaced by a revised and integrated Math curriculum. Regents Board has divided Math curriculum into 3 sections viz. Algebra І, Geometry and Algebra ІІ and Trigonometry, with examination conducted at the end of each year for particular topic.
Regents Competency Tests (RCTs) are also conducted for students. These can be taken by a student with disabilities or special needs before he fails a certain subject and thus can allow his result to not depend only on Regents examinations. All RCTs have to be cleared by students till they are 21 or else they are awarded an IEP (Individualized Education Program) diploma or Certificate of Attendance for having been a part of curriculum but not passing it.
List of Courses
The following New York State (NYS) Regents Exams are conducted:
Regents Mathematics
- Integrated Algebra I
- Geometry
- Algebra II and Trigonometry
Regents Science
- Earth Science/The Physical Setting
- Biology/The Living Environment
- Chemistry/The Physical Setting
- Physics/The Physical Setting (in January and June)
Languages other than English, only offered every June
- French
- German
- Hebrew
- Italian
- Latin
- Spanish (offered in January as well)
Social Studies
- Global History and Geography
- American History
- US Government and Economic
English Language Arts
Assessment
Freshman Class
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Local Diploma Requirements
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Regents Diploma Requirements
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Regents Diploma with Advanced Designation Requirements
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2009
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Students with Disabilities
Score between 55-64 on any or all required Regents examinations
or
Regents Competency Test (RCT) if failed a required Regents exam
Credits: 22 units
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Score of 65 or above on 5 required Regents exams.
Credits: 22 units
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Score 65 or above on 8 required Regents exams.
Credits: 22 units
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Future Course of Action
There are a number of choices available with students being awarded Regents High School qualification. A large chunk of students pursue further studies while many move into employment. For instance, one can observe the migration statistics of students from the batch of 2007.
Post-secondary Plans of 2006-07 Graduates
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All Students
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General-Education Students
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Students with Disabilities
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|
Number of Students
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Percentage of Students
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Number of Students
|
Percentage of Students
|
Number of Students
|
Percentage of Students
|
|
To 4-year College
|
45
|
30%
|
45
|
32%
|
0
|
|
|
To 2-year College
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50
|
33%
|
46
|
33%
|
4
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33%
|
|
To Other Post-secondary
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4
|
3%
|
1
|
1%
|
3
|
25%
|
|
To the Military
|
2
|
1%
|
2
|
1%
|
0
|
|
|
To Employment
|
38
|
25%
|
35
|
25%
|
3
|
25%
|
|
To Adult Services
|
0
|
|
0
|
|
0
|
|
|
To Other known Plans
|
1
|
1%
|
1
|
1%
|
0
|
|
|
Plan Unknown
|
12
|
8%
|
10
|
7%
|
2
|
17%
|
For further details about Regents Exam and preparation, go to NYSED official website.