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Students in class using a microscope

The Issue

    • Question 2 is a misguided, untested proposal that will appear on your ballot this November. Voters will be asked to decide whether Massachusetts should eliminate fair, uniform, statewide assessments in math, English, and science that ensure students are ready to graduate and have the skills they need to succeed. Instead of supporting these students, Question 2 would abandon them.

    • The question would prohibit the use of any statewide or school districtwide assessment as a high school graduation requirement in Massachusetts public schools.

    • Students would no longer be required to pass the 10th grade MCAS assessment in order to graduate, something that has been required since 2003. The ballot question would prevent the state and local school districts from either improving the MCAS assessment or implementing any other new statewide or districtwide assessments as graduation requirements.

    • As a result, each of Massachusetts’ 300+ school districts would be responsible for creating and implementing its own criteria for graduating students.

    • If the ballot question passes, the only remaining statewide graduation requirement would be four years of gym class.  Massachusetts would have lower graduation requirements than states like Mississippi and Alabama.

    • The MCAS is used to identify kids in need of extra help, and place them on a pathway to academic success so they have the skills they need to succeed in college or career. Eliminating the graduation requirement would massively harm these students.

    • Eliminating the state’s single, objective standard for a high school diploma means every school district in Massachusetts would devise its own requirements for graduation. That would result in more than 300+ different standards for graduation, leading to unequal assessments of student readiness for college and careers and wider inequities in student achievement and opportunities.

    • As a national leader in K-12 education, Massachusetts needs to maintain high education standards so our kids are the best prepared for college and career. Diluting those standards means that many students will not have the skills they need in math, English, or science to succeed. 

    • Having a single, statewide standard for graduation has raised expectations for all students. This has led to greater equity and achievement for all students no matter where they live or what their background is. Since the graduation requirement was implemented with the Class of 2003, Massachusetts has risen to first place in national rankings of student achievement, graduation rates have increased, and dropout rates have decreased.

    • Research conducted by Brown University’s Annenberg Institute shows a direct correlation between scores on the 10th grade MCAS exam and college and career outcomes. That research also shows that 10th grade exam scores predict success and reflect academic skills, not simply socio-economic status or school characteristics.

    • Students are given multiple opportunities to pass statewide assessments.

    • Of the approximately 72,000 students who take the test every year, about 700 of them who meet local graduation requirements are unable to pass. Instead of eliminating the single statewide standard for graduation, we should focus time, effort and resources on helping those 700 students achieve the basic level of knowledge they need to succeed. Instead, Question 2 would abandon them.

    • We are a broad coalition of educators, parents, and community organizations that have coalesced to defeat this misguided ballot question, with the goal of protecting our kids and ensuring equitable academic opportunities for all children in the Commonwealth.

    • MCAS is the cornerstone of the state’s accountability system. It is an objective measure of whether kids are learning the skills they need to succeed in math, English, and science. It is also how the state gauges whether school districts and individual schools are meeting their students' needs. It reveals weaknesses that opponents of the test don’t want exposed. The special interests propping up Question 2 have consistently opposed any accountability in our education system.  

    • The test is an objective measure of whether students have achieved basic competencies in English, math and science by 10th grade. The vast majority of the 72,000 students pass the test in their first try. Students who aren't able to pass on the first try are given extra help, and have multiple chances to pass it. By graduation, 96% of students pass the MCAS. There are numerous accommodations made for students who have different needs, including extra time to complete the test. For some students, passing the MCAS is difficult: those are the students most in need of help and support. Question 2 would abandon them.

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