High-stakes testing and the associated accountability measures have undermined our public education system for far too long. Massachusetts is only one of eight states in the country that ties its standardized test to graduation and there is no correlation between having a standardized graduation exam requirement and academic achievement. The punitive aspects of the MCAS regime are especially detrimental to students with Individualized Education Plans, students learning English as a second language, students of color and students from groups that have been historically marginalized from an equitable and supportive education. Recent studies have also demonstrated that state receiverships, which are inherently undemocratic, do not work.

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This bill would address these issues by:

• Replacing the MCAS graduation requirement with one that allows students’ districts to certify that they have satisfactorily completed coursework showing mastery of the skills, competencies and knowledge required by the state standards.
• Eliminating state receiverships and reinstating democratic control to communities and school committees.
• Establishing a commission to create a new, whole-child system of assessing our schools, building on important experiments in our state and nation, which can be implemented in coming years.

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