I Have High Standards

In many states and countries, a major source of pride is the intellectual caliber they posses. Focus is placed on how smart the children are, how they rank in comparison to the rest of the country and the world, and how comprehensive the education provided by their schools is. The commonwealth of Massachusetts is no exception. Following the Education Reform Act of 1993, Massachusetts moved to provide credible and comprehensive assessment of how well students performed in main subjects as English and Math, as well as Science. This response to the ERA was actualized by the creation of MCAS ( Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System) ,which refers to the state-wide administered tests that evaluate student performance of such subject areas.

The purpose of the MCAS is to foster the improvement of schools and their curricula, by identifying problem areas in different subjects. The philosophy behind the system is that by linking funding with high levels of performance, schools will be increasingly motivated to provide adequate and improving education for their students. The MCAS is also a determinative factor for high school diplomas, which is set up to impel students to place constant effort into their education. However, as political events has shown in the past, unintended results can occur from enacted policies. The latest news on the Boston Globe reports that a disproportional amount of Massachusetts's public schools have failed to meet the Federal Standard of 'nicklebee'. Many have scapegoated the schools for not improving their curricula, or the students who place no effort, however, others find blame with the state and the testing system itself.

MCAS has led to narrow curricula, bland schooling and an overbearing impact of socioeconomic status on education. The critics point out how much of the 'good' that MCAS was to implement has actually led to the denial of diplomas to many students, and increased drop out rates. MCAS places no regard for children with disabilities and other impediments to certain subject areas, and apathetically deters their futures. Representative Sciortino proposed back in January a reform bill to the MCAS, labeled as House no. 3660 which will enable expansion in the education of schools, understand the difficulties many students may face and be more flexible in the formerly rigid system that prevented many students from graduating. Hearings conducted in June of this year not only demonstrates such unintended results, but the advantage of the avenue of participatory democracy in this Commonwealth. Representatives were not the only ones who were arguing for the reform due to documented evidence of the failure of MCAS, but the citizens who were affected by MCAS, who took advantage of their rights, also demonstrated the first hand detriment it caused.

The standards set by the No Child Left Behind Act require the documented progress, on a bi-annual basis, of state assessments of public schools. The Boston Globe article regards the absence of such progress, the factor for such failure, yet it also mentions the role reserved for the states. Massachusetts, as well as the other 49 states of the country, have been allocated the right to choose what the standard of proficiency should be. Which Massachusetts defines as the second highest score- a high, and an inevitably unrealistic benchmark that has worked to displace many high school students. There is a clear sovereignty held by the states, holding the Commonwealth responsible for such a high percentage of failure.

Once the incentives of a policy have been undermined by the ensuing results, a flashing red light should come on to halt construction, destroy the frame and rebuild.