Massachusetts Coalition for Authentic Reform in Education
342 Broadway
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-864-4810
Friday April 4, 2003
For immediate release
For more information, contact:
Lisa Guisbond 617-730-5445 or Larry Ward 617-864-4810 (MassCARE coordinators)
Leslie Linson (mother of Candido Molina): home 508-754-9860 or cell phone 508-572-1748
Judge Finds MCAS Case 'Troubling' but Denies Request for Delay
Many parents, teachers and students across the state expressed deep disappointment today at a judge's refusal to bar the state from imposing the MCAS graduation requirement this June. Lawyers for the plaintiffs in the case vowed to appeal Suffolk Superior Court Judge Margot Botsford's decision.
"Yes, we're disappointed, but we are prepared to go forward in pressing the students' case," said
Kathleen Boundy, a lawyer for the plaintiffs. "We will seek an expedited appeal of this decision and are optimistic about the outcome."
Judge Botsford, while denying the plaintiffs their request for a preliminary injunction, said the case as a whole paints "a picture that has troubling aspects." She noted that shifting approaches and delays in the implementation of the curriculum frameworks have made it difficult for teachers to teach and "students to learn what they need to learn in order to succeed as competent students."
In addition, the judge said in her opinion, alternative routes to a high school diploma via performance appeals or alternate assessments "as a practical matter are closed to almost all students, particularly those with significant learning disabilities." She noted that out of 632 special needs students in the class of 2003 who took an alternate assessment, only one has passed.
Finally, she concluded: "There is force in the plaintiffs' contention that under a statutory scheme for education reform that is designed to hold education officials, schools and teachers responsible for providing a meaningful education to students, it is the students who are paying the price at present for the system's failure to meet its educational obligations." However, the case before her in this instance did not turn on these concerns, she said.
With this defeat in the latest skirmish in the MCAS dispute, more than 6,000 students still face the prospect of leaving high school without diplomas this June. Candido Molina, who is a senior at Burncoat High School in Worcester, said he was heartsick for all the kids he knows who, like him,
have struggled and failed to pass the MCAS. Though Molina received a waiver from the state Department of Education and will get a diploma after taking and failing the MCAS math test four times, he still feels strongly that the graduation requirement is unjust. "It's hard for me to be happy," said Molina. "I know how many students like me deserve high school diplomas but won't get them because of this one test and because they might not have parents like mine who have fought so hard for me."
Several groups submitted friend of the court briefs supporting the plaintiffs, including the Massachusetts Coalition for Authentic Reform in Education (MassCARE), a parent-led group, and FairTest, a national group that promotes fair and open testing. Jonathan King, of MassCARE, worked on the amicus brief. "We were hopeful that, once Judge Botsford considered the evidence with an open mind, she would see that these students are facing irreparable and deep harm if they are denied diplomas after thirteen years of schooling," said King. "Despite our deep disappointment, we will continue our efforts on many fronts to show how destructive this policy is."
Now that a state court judge has failed to issue a preliminary injunction that would have prevented the state from denying diplomas to students who fulfill all other local graduation requirements, MCAS opponents will continue to press local school committees to stand up for their students and grant diplomas regardless of MCAS, as seven have already vowed to do and many more are considering. At MassCARE's second annual convention on Saturday, April 12, members will develop strategies for pushing ahead toward education reform that improves schools rather than punishing students.
