MONROE COUNTY, Ga. — A Monroe County high school principal has come up with a high-tech incentive to increase graduation test scores – an Apple iTouch for any student who scores 516 or above.
"Re-tests are given over the summer, so we needed an incentive for students to come back," said Jim Finch, principal of Mary Persons High School located in the city of Forsyth.
Finch told wsbtv.com that he sat down with the superintendent to craft the idea, but it isn't getting high marks from everyone. Students who pass the graduation test with flying colors won't qualify.
"Some people feel like it's rewarding failure," said Finch.
Right now, juniors are required to score between 500 and 515 on the math portion of the Georgia High School Graduation Test. In addition, they must score at least 516 to meet national standards for Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP as it is commonly called, due to the No Child Left Behind act.
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Finch said this year, 94 percent of his students met the state's graduation requirement, but 42 of those students did not meet AYP – compared to 22 students who failed to meet AYP last year. Several school districts use incentives for a variety of reasons, according to Finch.
"It's not uncommon to use incentives … I think the technology we're giving away is shocking to some," said Finch.
With school layoffs statewide, some question if the money is there to be spent.
"We have a general fund account. This doesn't affect teacher salaries," said Finch. "We wouldn't be doing it if we didn't have the money."
Finch said next year, the incentives won't be necessary because a new state assessment will go into effect.
"We'll be using a different scale then," said Finch.
WSBTV
