Mass. Senate’s top lawmaker on schools says he’s a ‘yes’ on scrapping MCAS grad requirement

By John L. Micek 16 September 2024

The Massachusetts state Senate’s top lawmaker on education issues has said he plans to vote in favor of scrapping the MCAS exam as a high school graduation requirement.

While the exam is important, and should still be administered, "standardized tests are imperfect and cannot measure the full scope of skills, knowledge, and competencies that we want to develop in our young people and are critical for their future success,” Sen. Jason M. Lewis, D-5th Middlesex, said in a Monday email.

Lewis, the Senate chairperson of the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Education, said he plans to introduce a bill at the start of next year’s session that would “implement an alternative, non-test-based, consistent and rigorous statewide graduation standard.”

On Nov. 5, voters will decide, via Question 2, whether passing the 10th-grade version of the assessment will remain a requirement for public high school graduation in the state.

The MCAS ballot question is one of five that voters will be asked to consider on Election Day. Other questions include whether to raise the minimum wage for tipped workers, and whether to legalize psychedelics.

The ballot questions have prompted passionate − and costly debate − with forces on both sides mounting pricey advertising campaigns advocating for their victory and defeat.

That’s also true of the MCAS question, with a coalition working to maintain the graduation standard launching a six-figure advertising campaign earlier this year calling for its defeat.

The Massachusetts Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers’ union, meanwhile, is leading the movement to eliminate the requirement.

The union has said that the series of standardized tests perpetuates inequities, particularly for special education students and English language learners.

In his email, Lewis offered a similar sentiment, arguing that standardized tests “pose particular challenges for students with disabilities and students who are not native English speakers.”

“Research has shown that test scores are highly correlated with student demographics, like family income,” he continued.