Modified MCAS would shed light on students’ pandemic learning loss
Last year, as the coronavirus pandemic took hold and children were ushered from classrooms to remote learning, it made perfect sense to cancel the MCAS. There was more than a little element of chaos to the rollout of online education, especially as many students had trouble accessing the internet.
As the new school year began last fall, with stops and starts to school reopenings and teachers unions hesitant to return to classrooms, it made sense to cancel this year’s MCAS test as well. More chaos, more stress on kids.
But Department of Elementary and Secondary Education came up with a new plan, one that would both postpone and modify the MCAS. This version won’t count against a district or school, but it will shine a spotlight on just what the pandemic year has cost children in terms of education.
“The sudden shift to remote learning last spring, and the continuation of hybrid/remote learning this school year has likely led to significant learning loss for students around the country. The extent of the learning loss in the Commonwealth is not yet known,” Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Jeff Riley said in a memo to superintendents according to the State House News.
The pandemic brought education inequity into sharp relief. Affluent parents opted for learning pods, giving their children access to small-group learning with teachers or tutors, while others had to scramble to get laptops. We’ve heard stories of struggling students frustrated by the remote learning process and stressed from lack of socialization. Some children thrive with in-person teaching, and its absence has taken a toll.
How much? That’s where the modified MCAS would come in.
Riley considers the MCAS “a crucial diagnostic tool to promote student success and educational equity and we remain committed to administering the assessment this spring, while recognizing the need for adjustments and flexibility.”
An adjusted MCAS that would paint a picture of pandemic learning. Sounds like a win for accountability, and a good snapshot of what kind of education kids have, and have not, been getting this past year.
Of course there is pushback Some state legislators have wanted to hit the brakes on the MCAS before the pandemic hit. Back in 2019, Rep. Marjorie Decker and Sen. Michael Rush filed bills to impose a three-year moratorium on the MCAS exam, in a bid to evaluate other assessment models.
Teachers unions have also thrown their support behind canceling the exam altogether.
Massachusetts Teachers Association President Merrie Najimy said such “high-stake” standardized tests are problematic already, and would be especially damaging now, according to Spectrum News.
“Loss of relationships, family to COVID, family income and housing. We need to tend immediately and only to rebuilding the relationships and their mental wellness,” said Najimy.
As the Herald reported, Najimy also said in a statement, “we will continue to organize for a federal waiver to cancel testing altogether this year so that we can stay focused on our top priorities of tending to our students’ wellness and furthering our creative efforts to make pandemic education successful.”
How successful is pandemic education?
There’s one way to find out.