Panel Discusses Safety Net for Students Who Fail MCAS and Don't Graduate

By Ed Oliver
March 31, 2003

In a few months, the high school class of 2003 will lead the way as the first class required to meet the MCAS competency requirement in order to graduate.

Ten percent of them -about 6000 students- still haven't passed the test after four attempts. A panel of education leaders met at Northeastern University recently to discuss the safety net for those students.

There is an "appeals process," which is not a waiver, for kids who failed the MCAS test, according to Mark McQuillan from the state Department of Education. The kids have to meet eligibility requirements and provide sufficient evidence that they have the required knowledge and skills in the failed areas of the test.

There are more opportunities to retest the MCAS in May and in July. Although everyone wants a diploma, not everyone will get one in time for graduation ceremonies. There is a "Certificate of Attainment," which school districts can issue if they choose, said McQuillan, which shows that the student has completed the normal high school requirements (except for the MCAS). It will allow those kids to walk across the stage at graduation ceremonies with the others who do get their diplomas.

There are also special classes, career centers, tutoring, computer programs and summer school programs to help the kids. There are seed monies for initiatives to get parents involved. There is a pilot program, called "Pathways to Success," to direct students who are uncertain where to go to get additional help.

The DOE is working with community colleges to begin to develop a set of remedial courses for kids who don't pass MCAS. Some funding next year may also go to assist students in taking those courses.

Pat Plummer, Deputy Chancellor of the Board of Higher Education, said only half the students who fail MCAS will aspire to higher education; but without a diploma, those students cannot qualify for federal or state financial aid.

There is an assessment test that people without a diploma can take. Community college presidents came together and agreed that the test would be administered at all the colleges so the students could be eligible for financial aid. The assessment test is different from MCAS but not easier, said Plummer.

The president of Quinsigamond Community College, Sandra Kurtinitis, said it is not the mission of community colleges to be K-12, MCAS experts. Their mission is to have an open door so they are ready to step forward and develop MCAS programs like they did in the past with GED preparation courses.

Employers Impressed with MCAS

When asked how employers can help failing students, Andre Mayer, Senior Vice President for Research for the Associated Industries of Massachusetts, said employers are impressed by how much has been accomplished with MCAS, but they can't really target students because they don't have the data on who needs help. Typically employers seek to reward the higher achievers, he said, and it is a narrow slice of the population that needs help. Employers are aware of the ethical issues but uncertain how they can work with educational institutions to help those who need help.

Employers can do much collectively, however. Mayer is on the Board of The Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, which was established in 1988 by businessmen concerned that the Massachusetts public school system needed substantial, standards-based reform.

In 1991, the Alliance together with other business groups and educators crafted a comprehensive school reform proposal that served as the conceptual framework of the Education Reform Act of 1993. The Alliance continues to advocate for specific improvements and defends against policies that would undermine the basic principles of reform.

Students with a technical education, who will not graduate because of problems with MCAS, are not too bad off, according to Holyoke Schools Superintendent Eduardo Carballo, who pointed out that even though 47 students in his technical high school will not graduate, most of them already have jobs lined up in industry when they finish school. He observed that many students have different lifestyles and some have to work and pay rent, so he thinks high school will have to become a year-round facility to help them to graduate.

The panel discussion was sponsored by MassINC's Center for Education and Research Policy, Northeastern University and the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education.