Ballot Question 2 targets final high school MCAS test

BOSTON — More than 30 years ago, Massachusetts legislators passed a landmark education bill that established for the first time standardized state testing in schools.

Those tests, collectively known as MCAS, measure student performance in math, science and English beginning at the elementary level and ending with a final exam in tenth grade. Passing that last exam is currently a requirement for graduation from high school.

But Ballot Question 2 would remove that requirement. The Massachusetts Teachers Association, a major backer of Question 2, said it can put students in the position of passing all other high school requirements, yet still not getting a diploma should they fail that final MCAS exam.

Monday, the Charles River Regional Chamber held a Zoom discussion about Question Two. Matt Hills, a member of the state’s Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, said the number of students denied a diploma because of failing MCAS — and passing everything else — amounts to about 1% of the 70,000 who take the test each year. He said another 3% don’t graduate because they fail both MCAS and other graduation requirements.

But by and large, Hills said, students don’t have a problem with the test — with 92% passing on the first try — and 97% passing on the second and third attempts.

“This test is something that matters a lot,” Hills said. “It’s a minimum standard for some consistency across districts.”

Hills said data shows that future earnings are even affected by MCAS performance.

MCAS proponents said the test is one of the reasons Massachusetts consistently ranks first in the nation in public education. While that may be true, teachers have long complained about the time required to prepare for MCAS testing — such that some feel they are constantly ‘teaching to the test.”

And while students have multiple opportunities to pass that last MCAS exam — even after high school is over — some educators say it’s not as simple as MCAS proponents think.

“When the other side talks about opportunities to retake the test what they don’t discuss is what it does to the self-esteem of students and their academic performance,” said Deb McCarthy, Vice-President of the Massachusetts Teachers Association.

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