MCAS Tests Hold Bay State Students Back
I would like to offer my sincere congratulations to the graduating Class of 2010 at all of the private and religious high schools across the state. These graduating seniors are off to the brightest of futures. They will have every opportunity available to them, as they should, after working hard and meeting all of the graduation requirements set by their schools and approved by the state.
Unfortunately, many of our public school students who successfully completed the same graduation requirements as their peers in Massachusetts private and religious schools will not have the same opportunities in life, because they have been unable to pass an additional hurdle — the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests, a graduation requirement imposed since 2003 on only the public school students in our state.
Test Failure
The MCAS graduation requirement, while well intentioned, simply cannot withstand the weight or scrutiny of its results. We learned this spring that 2,933 students who have not passed the science section of the exam will not graduate with their high school class this month. There are additional students who have not passed either the English or mathematics portion of the test. Since 2003, over 25,000 public school students have finished high school without receiving a diploma, only because they did not pass the MCAS test.
This is a staggering number that must give us tremendous pause as we consider the consequences for these young people and our communities.
We cannot stand idly by while the MCAS creates a permanent underclass of young people. It is important to note the public high school diploma that is earned by way of the MCAS system has no more weight in the college admissions system than a private or religious school diploma.
The current MCAS system is not working when, despite being ranked the best-performing state in the nation, each year more schools join the “needs improvement” list, and each year, more and more public school students across the state finish high school without receiving a diploma.
As a result of the MCAS system, the public schools are being strip-mined as resources are poured into a MCAS numbers game.
The socio-economic consequences of this system are devastating. Students finishing high school without a diploma will experience an average lifetime earnings loss of over $366,000, compared to a person with a high school diploma.
The Department of Education argues that passing an MCAS test is the only way to “validate” having earned a public high school diploma, disregarding the fact that a student has passed all state-required subjects for 12 years, taught by certified teachers, just as the private and religious school students do. These private and religious schools award diplomas to the students who earned them, no MCAS test required.
Let’s award our deserving public high school students the same diploma, and watch them excel in our society and communities. For those who believe the MCAS is the validation of high school achievement, let’s award those students who pass the MCAS a designated MCAS high school diploma.
This will distinguish their achievements from those students who don’t take the test, or who are not required to take the test, or students who have failed the test.
To prove my point, I challenge all pre-MCAS era high school graduates to take the exams. Let’s determine whether we can “validate” our previously-earned educational degrees, high school or otherwise. I would be happy to coordinate an adult MCAS examination for the first 500 adults who reply. Geniuses are not eligible.
We will all learn a good deal about validation from this exercise. I look forward to seeing you at the exam, and get ready to turn in your diplomas.
Scott W. Lang is mayor of New Bedford.
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