Some parents of high school students are unhappy to learn their children’s final grades fell due to the Georgia Milestones tests.

The end-of-course tests count for 20 percent of a high school student’s grade in a course. Parents — especially in districts where students experienced glitches with the online tests — are asking whether there’s a way to contest a score. Neither teachers nor parents see how a student answered the questions on the Milestones. They only get the score.

The Milestones test can cause a grade to fall from an A to a B or a B to a C — which can be a critical drop in the pursuit of a HOPE Scholarship or admission to a top college.

“With a single test that accounts for 20 percent of a grade it is inconceivable to me that there would not be a process for disputing it. If there is no process available, then it simply should not count for that great a percentage of a student’s grade,” said one parent.

To see what the state Department of Education says about challenging a Milestones score, go to the AJC Get Schooled blog.

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8/26/17 - Atlanta, GA - Georgia leaders, including Gov. Nathan Deal, Sandra Deal, members of the King family, and Rep. Calvin Smyre,  were on hand for unveiling of the first statue of Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday at the statehouse grounds, more than three years after Gov. Nathan Deal first announced the project.  During the hour-long ceremony leading to the unveiling of the statue of Martin Luther King Jr. at the state Capitol on Monday, many speakers, including Gov. Nathan Deal, spoke of King's biography. The statue was unveiled on the anniversary of King's famed "I Have Dream" speech. BOB ANDRES  /BANDRES@AJC.COM

Credit: Bob Andres