VIDALIA, La. – Like most other 14-year-olds, Lacee Lemoine has spent most of her summer afternoons hanging out with friends and soaking up sun.

But Lemoine has been in school from 7:30 a.m. to noon since May 29, taking only Independence Day off. She also has been filling out worksheets until late at night to prepare to retake the math portion of the LEAP test.

&uot;I was upset when I&160;found out I&160;didn’t pass (in the spring), but I feel more confident now than I did then,&uot; said Lemoine, who along with brother Shane Piper, 10, failed the math portion in March.

And when Lemoine and Piper begin retaking the test today, they will be among 215 Concordia Parish students who failed at least one LEAP section as fourth- and eighth-graders. The math section will be administered today, with makeup tests given Friday. English tests will be administered Monday and Tuesday, with makeups given Wednesday.

And the stakes are high. Those students who passed their classes during the 1999-2000 school year but don’t pass the retests will attend transitional classes during the upcoming school year instead of moving to the next grade. Those who pass the LEAP tests will move up.

&uot;We feel confident,&uot; said Superintendent Lester &uot;Pete&uot; Peterman. &uot;Summer school has gone smoothly, and from what I’m hearing we are providing more (instruction) than most other districts to prepare our students.&uot;

&uot;We’ve been pleased with both the cooperation of the teachers and the attendance and work habits of the students,&uot; said Fred Butcher, director of curriculum and instruction for the Concordia Parish School District.

For Piper, retaking the LEAP test will mean the difference between going on to fifth grade in August or repeating fourth grade – but he is more psyched up for LEAP this time around. &uot;I’ve got a computer now that helps me do my work,&uot; Piper said, referring to a laptop computer that quizzes him on multiplication, addition and subtraction. &uot;I’m better prepared.&uot;

For Lemoine, the stakes are different. Because she failed her eighth-grade classes, she will already have to repeat that grade during the upcoming school year. But she was still required to retake the LEAP test.

&uot;But if she passes it this time, that means that she will not have to take the test again,&uot; said her mother, Bonnie Lemoine. &uot;And that’s a relief.&uot;