graduation tests

I wrote someplace on this blog (I think) about the graduation test and that at least 3 of my seniors will not be graduating because they didn't pass it. Joanne Jacobs writes about a senior in a nearby district who is an honor grad and cannot pass it.

The test isn't impossibly hard. Math covers algebra 1 and geometry and have kids in my repeater class who have passed the graduation test but not Algebra.

I think the difference is this, in a class you can hear for each assignment what is expected, you study small parts, you have things other than tests to earn grades on.

The graduation test is assessing recall of 2 years worth of material, at least 1 year after the last of it was taken.

Is that testing mastery? Memorization? What?