Rapid City Area Schools Course Equivalency Exam (Test-Out) Program
REGISTRATION FOR SUMMER 2023 WILL OPEN JUNE 6, 2023
Course Equivalency Exam (Test-out) sessions are now being set up for students who will be enrolled in grades 9-12 during the 2022-2023 school year. Any student enrolled in the district may challenge (test out of) courses approved by the South Dakota Department of Education subject to the conditions outlined in Rapid City Area Schools District Code: IHH. The tests are comprehensive and assess factual knowledge as well as process and performance skills appropriate to the subject. Students must pass the exam with a minimum score of 85% .
Special Notice to Middle School Students and Parents/Guardians:
Middle school students (grades 6th through 8th) who have completed the high school course Algebra I at their middle school will take the appropriate end-of-course exam and score an 80% or better for graduation credit. Students will have two opportunities to achieve an 80% on the exam. These tests will be administered in your student’s middle school classroom prior to the end of the current school-year. The grade from the course (not the exam) will then be recorded as a letter grade on their high school transcript and calculated into the student’s grade point average (GPA). Those students not achieving an 80% will be placed in Algebra I as a 9th grader.
The following exams are full-year course exams and one (1) full credit will be awarded if the student successfully challenges the course:
Algebra I
Geometry
Algebra II
English 9 (Additional requirements listed below)
Biology
The following exams are semester courses and a .5 credit will be awarded if the student successfully challenges the course:
Computer Applications
Physical Science 1
Physical Science 2
U.S. Government
World History
World Geography
U.S. History I
U.S. History II
U.S. History III
Students will be allowed to challenge a specific course only once. A score of 85 percent or better will successfully challenge a course and a credit will be awarded. Successfully challenged courses will be recorded as a pass on official student transcripts and will not affect the student’s official grade point average. Attached is District Code: IHH-P1 outlining the procedure to obtain a letter grade for scholarship purposes. The letter grade will not affect the student official grade point average and class ranking per South Dakota Department of Education.
There are also circumstances where a student will not be allowed to take a Course Equivalency Exam. According to the SD Department of Education (SDDOE) guidelines, students who have spent “seat time” for a class can no longer take the Course Equivalency Exam. This would include but is not limited to: attempting to raise a non-failing grade, or attempting to raise a failing grade in a course in which a student is currently enrolled, or testing out of a class that the student has already failed.
This year RCAS will offer two days for EOC testing, consisting of 4 testing sessions. Not all subjects will be offered at all sessions, so please pay close attention to the dates / times when the tests will be offered.
Test Session Dates:
It is the intention of RCAS to offer Course Equivalency/Test Out opportunities, however, due to the uncertain nature of the status of COVID-19 throughout the summer of 2022, cancellations may need to occur. A decision will be made in the future and notice will be provided. Course Equivalency/Test Out opportunities are given in a face to face/group environment and safety will be our first priority.
End of Course Test/ Test out tests will be offered on:
Tuesday, July 18, 2023 and Wednesday, July 19, 2023
These are the only dates.
All testing will be held at:
Rapid City High School
Room 419
601 Columbus Street
Rapid City, SD 57701
Two testing sessions will be offered each day:
8:30 AM – 10:30 AM
12:00 PM – 2:00 PM
Registration will be limited and will be accepted on a first come, first served basis. Preregistration for these test sessions will be held from:
June 6 – July 7, 2023- REGISTRATION IS CLOSED
YOU MUST BE REGISTERED BY FRIDAY, JULY 7, 2023 at 4:00 PM
Link will be activated on Tuesday- June 6, 2023
REGISTRATION opens June 6, 2023 and closes July 7, 2023
REGISTRATION – For Registration Questions, Please Contact Justin Conroy @ 605-394-4048
Test preregistration will be coordinated through the Office of Teaching, Learning, and Innovation. No registrations will be accepted after the closing date.
Walk-ins will not be allowed the day of the tests.
There is no cost to the student to challenge a course.
Please complete the online form, which will be available from June 6th through July 7th for all sessions. You can submit through the website; or download, fill-out, and hand-deliver, mail or fax to:
Rapid City Area School District
Office of Teaching, Learning, and Innovation
625 9th Street, 7th Floor
Phone: (605) 394-4053
Fax: (605) 394-2271
Test Dates and Times:
Tests offered on Tuesday, July 18, 2023 and Wednesday, July 19, 2023 at either 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM or 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM:
Algebra I
Geometry
Algebra II
World Geography
US History I, II, III
US Government
World History
Physical Science
Biology
Tests offered on Tuesday, July 18, 2023 and Wednesday, July 19, 2023 only at 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM:
Computer Applications (This test often takes longer than 2 hours. Students should be prepared to stay until finished.)
English 9 (Students must come prepared with additional items listed in the link below.)
There are no study guides for any of the tests. The tests are comprehensive, and blueprints and content/curriculum standards for the tests are available for both state-created and district-created tests.
English 9 Course Equivalency Exam (Test Out) Requirements
State Created Exam Information
Course Equivalency Exam Information – South Dakota Department of Education
Guidelines for Calculator Use
Formula Sheets and Periodic Table
South Dakota State Content Standards
https://doe.sd.gov/contentstandards/math.aspx
http://Standards for Mathematics
Rapid City Area Schools Created Exam Blueprints
English 9
Computer Applications