Massachusetts postpones MCAS testing for students boston.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from boston.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Citizens for Public Schools, other organizations ask Massachusetts education officials to obtain waiver to suspend MCAS
Updated Feb 17, 2021;
More than a dozen organizations on Wednesday have sent a letter to Massachusetts education officials and to legislators, urging the state to obtain a federal waiver from the U.S. Department of Education and suspend spring Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System tests.
“We agree with business groups and others who oppose using MCAS results for high-stakes and accountability purposes, but we are absolutely convinced that MCAS testing itself should be suspended,” reads the letter. “Standardized tests have never been an equitable measure of student learning, but in a time of pandemic cannot possibly measure student learning with any validity. Testing will only mean that all students will lose precious learning time, while, disproportionally, Black, Latinx, low-income, English learners and special education students will fall even fu
Carol Feingold/Correspondent
Last June, when Sofia Juste graduated Newburyport High School, her diploma featured a little something extra the Massachusetts State Seal of Biliteracy (SoBL) a new distinction awarded to students who have studied and attained proficiency in two or more languages by high school graduation.
“The program was piloted in the state for two or three years before it was opened to public schools,” Assistant Superintendent Angela Bik said. “We had to meet requirements and make a commitment to administer the assessments and communicate with the community. We applied in the fall of 2019, and 2020 was our first spring.”
Greenfield School Committee signs resolution against holding MCAS testing this year
Published: 2/11/2021 4:46:34 PM
GREENFIELD At the recommendation of the Greenfield Education Association and those who spoke during its meeting Wednesday, the School Committee voted unanimously to sign a resolution asking the state to forgo MCAS testing this year.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, some speakers asked how anyone could expect students to concentrate and study during a pandemic, while also participating in high-stakes testing. Furthermore, many said they believe this is not the year to expect the results to be reliable, “valid or useful.”
Greenfield resident Doug Selwyn, author of “All Children Are All Our Children,” argued the MCAS (Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System) tests are “worthless and annoying.” He said they make students feel like failures, especially those whose first language is not English.
Union has concerns about leadership with Greenfield superintendent out
GOODWIN
Published: 2/8/2021 6:33:45 PM
GREENFIELD The Greenfield Education Association has sent a letter to the School Committee asking why it hasn’t been informed about Superintendent Jordana Harper’s recent “extended leave of absence” and who is in charge while she’s out.
“In this time of so much change and uncertainty in public education, it is more important than ever to have strong leadership and a clear chain of command within our schools,” the letter to the School Committee reads. “It has recently come to our attention that Superintendent Harper is on an extended leave of absence, yet there has been no information provided to staff, parents or community members about this and, more importantly, who is acting as superintendent in her absence.”