Rising Above MCAS, the Oppressor

We are writing as Upward Bound students attending New Bedford High School 
in Massachusetts. As a class we have read and discussed a couple of articles 
in the Rising Times about students disapproving and rebelling against the 
MCAS testing. We feel deeply concerned about a test that unfairly assesses a 
student's overall performance in a matter of hours compared to years of 
experience in the classroom. 

Many of us took the test a year ago and found that it was not only 
difficult, but failed to test us on material that we actually learned. The 
MCAS is discouraging to students, attacking our self-esteem, and is setting 
us up to fail. There is little chance of succeeding on this test without 
extensive training, and many teachers are redesigning their curriculum in 
order to train students for this test. This is only robbing us of an 
opportunity for a diverse and practical educational experience. 

Trained to be robots

How can the school department attempt to standardize education when in 
fact students learn at a different pace and there are numerous factors that 
contribute to a student's learning process? We as students would rather 
understand and relate to the information we are getting in the classroom. 
Instead, we are being trained to act like robots by taking in facts and 
spitting them back out. There are many different things that determine a 
student's qualifications, and for a test to carry so much weight is not fair 
to our academic experience.

We believe the test is a tool for blaming the students and the teachers 
for a flawed educational system. In essence, this test is focusing not on the 
cause, but the effect. The Department of Education is giving us a test which 
will make or break our future, instead of attempting to reform a system 
lacking many things, such as proper teacher training and development, and 
additional funds for learning resources and models. Yes, we agree we are not 
receiving the proper education. However, there are more practical ways in 
which we can improve public education. It's just that higher powers don't 
want to invest in these techniques.

A growing class divide

We are irate because we can see what's going to happen. There will be a 
large number of lower class people that will fail this test and in turn, will 
become another statistic. Any standardized test is biased to the middle and 
upper class communities who not only have more access to learning resources, 
but also have better environments for learning to take place.
We were also wondering why people who attend private schools don't have 
to take the MCAS. These students will continue to succeed in America, while 
the majority of the poor will stay at the tail end of society. 
Basically, we see it as either shut up and take the test and lose, or 
fight until the test is abolished and win. This affects not only people who 
have to take the test now, but many concerned upperclassmen who have younger 
relatives and friends, and plan to have kids that will have to take the test. 
Hypothetically, we could accept our reality and go along with the MCAS. 
However, in order to pass the test we will have to receive the proper 
teaching. But being taught just for a test will stunt our development as well 
rounded students and people. We feel that we should not be trained as robots, 
and since this test will be administered to third graders, students will have 
to become MCAS robots in order to make it through the public school system. 
We don't think the human race can move forward like this, but maybe that's 
what they want.

We are aware of the reasons why this test has been implemented, and we 
will do anything in our power in order to exterminate the MCAS. We know that 
there are many others who have already taken a stand, and we plan on working 
with those and other students, parents, teachers, and concerned citizens 
statewide to achieve our goal.