MTA statement on proposed graduation requirements

The Massachusetts Teachers Association led the fight to end the use of standardized tests as a graduation requirement in Massachusetts. The MTA participated in the work of the governor’s council developing new high school graduation requirements. MTA President Max Page and Vice President Deb McCarthy issued the following statement in response to the release of the state’s report on proposed graduation requirements.  

The overwhelming victory of Question 2 in 2024 to eliminate high-stakes testing ended 30 years of an unjust practice that harmed thousands of students and gave us a chance to reset our priorities for public education and corresponding graduation requirements. We had high hopes for the Governor’s Council on Graduation Requirements. But as we approach the second anniversary of voters passing the ballot measure to end the use of MCAS as a high school graduation requirement, we are troubled that the governor’s two education officials tasked with developing new statewide graduation requirements have missed the opportunity that voters provided when approving Question 2. 

The council’s report offers many good ideas, such as the emphasis on having a strong course of study for all students, an embrace of capstone projects, and support for an expansion of counseling. Yet the proposals that can modernize our public schools are marred by an outdated, top-down approach to policymaking driven by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that does not respect the professionalism of educators. This is most evident as the report calls for imposition of new standardized tests.

The proposals that can modernize our public schools are marred by an outdated, top-down approach to policymaking driven by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that does not respect the professionalism of educators. 

 Specifically, these recommendations:

• Include a new set of state standardized exams defying the will of voters and keeping our state tethered to an outdated and failed method of determining academic proficiency. These state-designed exams are not to be confused with traditional final exams given by educators.
• Potentially give excessive authority to DESE, rather than allowing educators and school districts more freedom to design and implement the more promising recommendations, including capstone projects and portfolios.
• Fail to acknowledge the fiscal crisis that communities and school districts are grappling with, especially as many of the good ideas in the council’s recommendations will require investments in staff, training and other resources. There needs to be a way to hold state officials accountable for providing the conditions needed for student success.
• Do not reflect the input of stakeholders who spoke at state-scheduled listening sessions and at a separate series of public forums organized by education activists. Comments made in both settings overwhelmingly opposed standardized tests as part of graduation requirements. Education is the foundation of democracy, and integrating more democratic processes into our system of public education will help ensure that our schools meet the needs of all students.Preparing students for a test and preparing them to be well educated, engaged, productive and fulfilled adults are two different tasks; public education must prioritize the latter. Voters agreed and chose to end the MCAS graduation requirement, understanding how a high-stakes standardized test narrowed and reduced the quality of the education available to students in public schools.

The state secretary of education and the commissioner of elementary and secondary education developed a “Vision of a Graduate” that aptly lays out what students need to master so they can thrive in whatever setting they choose upon graduating from high school. The vision calls for preparing graduates who are critical thinkers and problem solvers, intentional collaborators, academically prepared, effective communicators, and self-aware navigators who are responsible decision-makers.

Yet, in proposing how we achieve those well-founded goals, the secretary and commissioner want to bring back state-administered standardized tests as part of the graduation requirement. This reincarnated, high-stakes standardized test blocks progress toward fulfilling that "Vision of a Graduate" and blatantly disregards what voters demanded at the ballot box.

These new, state-designed standardized tests will become a barrier to reaching all the promising strategies in the proposed graduation system that could truly support the deeper learning and real-world skills that will prepare young people to succeed in the economy and society in which they will live. This is not a theory, but rather the lessons learned from 30 years of watching the high-stakes MCAS distort public education and fail to close racial and economic learning gaps. We staunchly oppose using any standardized, state-designed and state-graded MCAS-style testing for any portion of the proposed graduation requirements.

Educators need to be centered in the process of developing pathways students can take to fulfill the stated vision of a graduate.

As mentioned above, we should be considering a graduation process, not creating a rigid checklist. Educators need to be centered in the process of developing pathways students can take to fulfill the stated vision of a graduate. For example, the MTA supports a flexible MassCore-style course of study that gives all students the opportunity to be prepared for college, career and life; financial literacy education that helps students to manage their own finances and participate effectively in debates about building an economy that works for everyone; guidance and counseling that puts all students on a path to success; authentic assessments like capstones and portfolios that allow students to demonstrate to educators, and their families and communities, that they know both the substance from their courses and how to use their knowledge and skills in real world contexts.

Reshaping public education to provide students with these opportunities will require time and money. But that should not stop us from pursuing them through a strategic plan. Rushing to create something that can be rolled out conveniently does not serve our students or our communities. The state will need to provide resources to support new systems of assessment and to make sure that all schools can offer the courses and related opportunities in reasonable class sizes, without asking schools to sacrifice the quality of education or minimize support for educators.

A new graduation system that embraces rigorous standards, meaningful assessment and real-world applications will best prepare all of our students for a future that will be constantly changing as artificial intelligence and other technologies proliferate.

A new graduation system that embraces rigorous standards, meaningful assessment and real-world applications will best prepare all of our students for a future that will be constantly changing as artificial intelligence and other technologies proliferate.

Voters spoke at the ballot box. Parents, students, educators, public education advocates and community activists spoke at state-sponsored listening sessions and public forums that sought input on what should be required of high school students to earn a diploma. The report issued by the administration does not adequately or accurately reflect what was said in those settings.

We urge the state to keep listening and working with students, parents and educators to get this process right so we can be confident that every graduate from a Massachusetts public high school is ready to succeed in the modern world.

The educators of the Commonwealth look forward to the work of creating the schools that will prepare our young people for the future. We call on the governor to look forward and end once and for all the use of state-administered, high-stakes standardized tests for any portion of new high school graduation requirements. She owes that to students and voters.