Exit exam preparation settlement approved

A Superior Court judge Monday approved a settlement in a lawsuit over California's mandatory high school exit exam. The settlement calls for school districts to offer two years of test-preparation instruction to students who did not graduate on time because they did not pass the exam.

The accord is part of a bill awaiting legislative approval that would allow school districts to spend state funds on instruction for such students.

Exam critics argued unsuccessfully that the test penalizes poor and minority students who lack an equal opportunity to learn.

From Times Staff and Wire Reports