The Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) is the high school graduation examination given to sophomores in the U.S. state of Ohio. It fulfills the state achievement test requirement under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which requires annual testing in reading and mathematics. The OGT replaced the Ohio Ninth Grade Proficiency Test (NGPT) as the statewide exit exam. It tests student knowledge of course material set out in Ohio's Academic Content Standards, which are the state benchmarks.
Students take the OGT for the first time in March of their sophomore (second) year in high school, but have six additional opportunities (including an optional summer administration) to pass all parts of the OGT, which is required in order to graduate. The test consists of sections on reading, math, writing, science and social studies sections. While the Ohio Department of Education began administering practice tests to students in 2002, the first official OGT was given in March 2005.
Like other state high-stakes tests, the OGT has received criticism because of the lower passing rate for ethnic minority and poor students[citation needed], who are not able to obtain a high school diploma if they fail the OGT.
The OGT has an extremely high level of security regarding access to the testing material. There are no set passing score levels announced, although so-called "cut" scores are between 40 and 50 percent.
The tests include multiple-choice (one point), short-answer (two points), and extended response (four points) questions. The non-writing sections consist of 44 items (some of which are "field test" questions which are used for research and do not count toward a student's score). Calculators designed especially for the test are allowed for the math and science sections. The writing test consists of two essays, 10 multiple-choice questions, and one short-answer (as of 2006 - present). Students have two and half hours to take each section, with the exception of those students granted additional time because of an IEP, 504 Plan, or LEP status.
In March 2008, the activist, perennial candidate, and former 98 Degrees singer Justin Jeffre filed a formal letter of complaint asserting the OGT is "unfair" according to guidelines set forth in the Ohio Administrative Code.