D.C.-area students in dark about passing scores

Charonda Godette, 17, left, has struggled to pass several Virginia Standards of Learning exams. The Potomac Senior High School senior finds it frustrating to not know how many correct answers are needed to pass the tests. With her is her mother, Carole Godette. (By Richard A. Lipski -- The Washington Post)

Washington, D.C.-area students struggling to pass exit exams say they'd be more hopeful if they knew the required passing scores: 52% for D.C.'s math test or 64% for Virginia's. But such "cut" scores are often buried and some states, such as Maryland, keep them confidential out of fears that they might affect teaching. The Washington Post