LOWERING THE STAKES OF MCAS
Thomas Kirkman, lawyer and a member of the Falmouth School Committee. 
Cape Cod Times,  Dec 23, 2001

The Falmouth School Committee is currently considering a position statement on the effectiveness
of the MCAS test as a graduation requirement for our high school students. We may also develop a policy or action plan for those who may not pass the MCAS after retesting. All nine of us on the
Falmouth School Committee share the same general goal for our students as set out in our Mission Statement: to "provide every student with the opportunity to learn, to succeed by reaching high academic standards, to express personal creativity, and to realize maximum individual potential" We may reasonably differ on how we achieve that goal. Therefore, I cannot predict if we will reach a consensus on the effectiveness of a single high stakes test as a graduation requirement. As a school committee member and parent of school children, I would like to see the stakes lowered.  

The administration and faculty in Falmouth have worked very hard to align our curriculum with the
state frameworks and ultimately the MCAS test. But, the frameworks, standards, and measures of
accountability required by the 1993 Educational Reform Act seem to have changed over time (and
may continue to change as the Department of Education wrestles with specific educational goals).
As a result, our students and teachers could use more time to insure that true alignment is
achieved. The point of the test should be, under ed reform, to measure student performance on
established criteria, rather than measuring outcomes on elusive standards.

Another unwelcome change since the adoption of the ed reform act is the move away from multiple
assessments of student performance to the single high stakes MCAS test. Under one section of theed reform act, the Board of Education is required to adopt an annual evaluation of public school
districts and individual schools using a variety of assessments as defined by certain academic
standards as embodied in the curriculum frameworks. In the case of students whose performance
is difficult to assess using conventional methods, the assessment instruments shall include
consideration of work samples, projects and portfolios, which shall facilitate authentic and direct
gauges of student performance. The law goes on to establish the MCAS in addition to the system of assessments first mentioned. 

The statute also requires that all "assessment instruments shall be designed to avoid gender,
cultural, ethnic or racial stereotypes and shall recognize sensitivity to different learning styles and
impediments to learning." The assessment system shall also take into account "on a
nondiscriminatory basis the cultural an language diversity of students Š and the particular
circumstances of students with special needs." 

The Board of Education seems to have undercut the requirements of the law by establishing the
MCAS as a requirement for high school graduation regardless of a student¹s other educational
accomplishments. The Board¹s single minded focus on the MCAS appears to be based on an
interpretation of another section of the law conditioning high school graduation on "[s]atisfaction of [a] competency determination." While the law does not specifically define "competency determination" the Board has interpreted that to mean the MCAS. The Board¹s position is illogical. If the legislature had intended the phrase "competency determination" to mean MCAS it would have said so, rather than establishing it in a different section of the law. When the law is read in its entirety it is clear that the terms are not interchangeable. Multiple assessments in addition to the MCAS are required in evaluating schools and school districts and it makes sense that the same apply in determining who should graduate from high school. 

The MCAS can be a valuable tool in assessing district and school performance in meeting uniform
standards designed to ensure equal opportunities for "student acquisition of skills, competencies, and knowledge" as set out in the law. The test¹s existence as a graduation veto creates a barrier to those opportunities, however.  In Falmouth, our regular education tenth grade students, much like students across the state, increased their test scores from previous years. A similar score increase did not occur for students with disabilities or language barriers (or vocational ­ technical education students), however. With the majority of disabled students, both locally and state ­ wide, failing the test and only one student in the state passing the assessment alternative for profoundly disabled students, our schools are not accommodating the special needs of challenged students as required by both state and federal law.

Stated simply, the MCAS test seems to be failing our students more than the students are failing
the test. We can do better. To insure that all of our students benefit from the rising tide of ed reform, the public should support any legislation that removes the exit requirement of the MCAS and includes multiple assessments as part of a graduation requirement. In the meantime, I have recommended that the Falmouth School District establish a Falmouth diploma available upon petition by any student who fails the MCAS. In establishing such a diploma, a committee representing parents, students, teachers, the administration and the school committee should be set up to develop graduation requirements consistent with the multiple assessment standards articulated by the law. 

My proposal varies from the appellate review Education Commissioner David Driscoll proposed to the Board of Education on September 25, 2001. In commenting on his proposal in a September 29 opinion article in the Boston Herald, the Commissioner stated that his proposal "will ensure students, who, for whatever reason, cannot demonstrate their true ability on MCAS but can show evidence they meet the standard in other ways, are not unjustly penalized." I could not agree more with the general assurance offered by the Commissioner. But, "the standard" he offers as a benchmark is the passing grade standard on the MCAS measured in a different way. I suggest that "standard" be one of a variety of standards using multiple assessments for students who confront physical, mental, emotional, cultural or language barriers. Also, under the Commissioner¹s proposal, a failing student would have to make multiple attempts at passing the test and be required to take remediation classes (among other requirements) before being eligible to appeal to the Board of Education for a diploma. Such multiple failures and efforts seem counterproductive for students, "who, for whatever reason, cannot demonstrate their true ability on MCAS." My recommendation is more tailored to individual student challenges. And of course, my proposal returns determination of student achievement to those who know the student best: the people in the student¹s community who have taught and worked with the student. 

For those students who simply cannot demonstrate their learning and knowledge by passing the
MCAS the alternative to a diploma is unacceptable. By satisfying other assessments, a student
failing the MCAS would not have to leave school labeled as a failure. The student¹s work during their high school career would be judged more fairly and the result would be more harmonious with the letter and the spirit of the Educational Reform Act than the current system.
A local diploma is not without its problems. Commissioner Driscoll condemned a similar proposal of the Hampshire School District by claiming that conferring a local diploma would be inconsistent with the legal requirement that a student cannot graduate from high school without passing the
competency determination mentioned above. While I disagree with the Commissioner¹s legal
opinion, it would be fiscally irresponsible, if nothing else, for a local school committee to invite a legal battle with the state. The challenge, then, is to craft a process that would not defy the law as
interpreted by the state but at the same time recognize the achievement of a special class of
students. 

In considering a response to the MCAS I keep coming back to the mission of the Falmouth Schools as set out earlier. Our mission is not much different from any other school district. It is time to carry out the mission by clarifying the law and recognizing the success of our students until the law is changed.  

Thomas Kirkman
Falmouth, MA 

This opinion does not represent the views of the Falmouth School Committee or the School
Administration.