New York’s Regents exams have been a major part of the state’s high school education system for decades. However, the New York State Board of Regents voted on Sept. 14 that students will no longer be required to pass Regents exams to receive a high school diploma, beginning with students graduating in 2028. The Regents exams were first introduced at the end of the Civil War and became a requirement for graduation in the mid-1990s in an effort to raise standards.
This change will give schools more flexibility to use projects and their own assessments. While these assessments can measure skills, requirements may differ from one school to another. According to the New York State Education Department, Regents exams will continue to measure achievement of state learning standards, but passing them is no longer a requirement to graduate.
“Every student in New York deserves access to rich, high‑quality learning experiences and meaningful opportunities to demonstrate what they know and can do,” Board of Regents Chancellor Lester Young Jr. said.
Regents exams should remain a graduation requirement as an important benchmark. Students should continue to have to demonstrate that they have met a consistent academic standard before graduation. Students attend different schools, have different teachers and different classroom settings. A statewide exam provides a consistent assessment rather than relying on individual schools and districts.
Removing the requirement could also affect student motivation for exam preparation. When passing a test is connected to graduation, students will have a reason to take the material seriously.
If passing the Regents exams has no effect on receiving a diploma, students may feel like the exams are unimportant or optional. Having the graduation requirement creates accountability for students to take the exams seriously. The rise of artificial intelligence makes the Regents exams even more relevant. Students can use AI to generate writing and answer questions. Students should still be able to demonstrate their own knowledge and thinking skills. A standardized test under supervision is a way to measure what students can do independently.
However, this does not mean that Regents exams should remain unchanged. The exams can put more emphasis on critical thinking, analysis and applying knowledge rather than memorization. A high school diploma should represent that students have reached a certain level of skills and knowledge. Regents exams provide a statewide benchmark and should remain a graduation requirement for New York students.
