DMACC staff preps students for HiSET

The HiSET has been Iowa’s replacement for the GED exam since the spring of 2014. It allows students to take a state test to earn a regular Iowa high school diploma. Staff at Newton DMACC academic advisement center are set up to prepare students specifically to pass that exam.

The description of typical students who take the HiSET, or High School Equivalency Test, are those who came close to graduation, but didn’t quite finish all their high school courses on time. A free eight-week course allows students to prepare for the test, produced by a nonprofit named Educational Testing Services and used by more than 20 states.

Jen Kerns is an academic advisor at Newton DMACC guidance center and a former Newton High School teacher. She said the eight-week preparation for the HiSET is intense, requires strong attendance and is usually approached by a wide variety of students who have a next goal in life already planned for when they have a diploma in hand.

“We’ve had everyone from teenagers to adults in their 50s who all need diplomas at that time,” Kerns said. “Some people discover they need to have a diploma to remain in their current jobs or careers. Others want to start a post-secondary program or a career.”

People who are already 19 or older simply need to show a photo ID. Students age 18 or younger need to show a drop slip or drop letter from their last school or government out-of-school-youth program, and anyone age 17 needs parent permission and a copy of a transcript. Students age 16 need a court order to start a HiSET program.

Kerns said Adult and Teen Challenge of the Midlands sends people to the center seeking diplomas. There are also provisions for incarcerated young people to take the HiSET exam.

Teachers Marilyn Planer and Rochelle Goff are among the staff members who help prepare the students for the five-part test. Planer works with students on writing, reading and Social Studies topics, while Goff assists with many levels of math.

The only cost to the students is a $50 fee to take the five-part final test. This fee includes two re-tests, if needed, to be taken within one year.

Assessments might reveal students are more qualified for a $100 independent-study course. Grants sometimes cover the $50 costs, Kerns said, although that’s partly dependent on funds available in an annual budget year, which ends each June.

Staff will ask about the amount of progress made or credits earned toward a diploma in regular, alternative or homeschool education to determine how well-rounded a student has become relative to passing the HiSET, but transcripts and credit totals are not evaluated.

“Nearly all of them, for example, have never had a government class, because they were not in the same classes as their grade was,” Kerns said. “On the other hand, many assess higher on either math or reading, so we know, from a pre-test, where they need the most help to pass the HiSET.”

The process begins with an assessment pre-test. That’s followed by eight weeks of instruction, Mondays, through Thursday, with a strict attendance policy.

“Students who miss four classes will be dropped,” Kerns said. “Being here to get ready for the upcoming test is essential. Many students don’t realize all that goes into the test, or how tough and comprehensive it is.”

The HiSET class helps organize studies. That’s accompanied by test orientation and practice tests.

Tuesdays are test days in the advisement center. Students receive their diplomas when their class graduates, and there is an unofficial ceremony held each January for all graduates who successfully completed the HiSET process through Newton DMACC within the preceding year.

Planer, one of the teachers, said even though DMACC staff is involved in the HiSET prep class, going on to college is not a stated goal.

“We do not encourage students to attend college, or go in any direction once they get their diplomas,” Planer said. “Our roles are to help them pass the test. Most of them have a reason for coming in to get a diploma, anyway.”

Goff, the math teacher for the Newton program, said while motivation isn’t generally an issue, there is a huge range of remediation needed to get students to test-passing levels.

“We have to get very creative,” she said.

Contact Jason W. Brooks
at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532
or jbrooks@newtondailynews.com