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Patrick fumbles a test
Standardistos don't want to allow any other views to be heard. Note all the marvels they ascribe to the high stakes state test.
Kudos to Governor Patrick for this appointment.
Editorial
GOVERNOR PATRICK'S first appointment to the state Board of Education is a worrisome sign of eroding support for the high-stakes Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test. Appointee Ruth Kaplan, an attorney and Brookline school board member, has few equals when it comes to criticizing the MCAS exam, used to measure students' ability to grasp the state's learning standards.
Kaplan, the cofounder of the Alliance for the Education of the Whole Child, wants schools to meet the individual needs of each child through academic, artistic, and vocational coursework. In an interview, she says she favors multiple measures, including portfolios, to evaluate students. MCAS has no place in her ideal system. But it still holds an exalted position in much of the state, and especially low-income urban school districts, where the test sparked teacher accountability, ended social promotions, and ensured employers that a diploma meant something. Since 2003, students have been required to pass English and math MCAS tests in order to graduate. And because they must, they do -- at a statewide rate of 95 percent.
Patrick's pick is confusing. He says he supports MCAS, including a new science exam, as a high school graduation requirement. Yet he appoints one of the state's most passionate MCAS opponents to the policy-making education board. He complains that MCAS is now the sole assessment of student progress. Yet he must know that every school district also requires students to pass certain courses to earn their diplomas. He says he wants balanced views on the board in the interest of healthy debate. But he elevates the likelihood of clashes by tossing Kaplan in with current board member Sandra Stotsky, a take-no-prisoners warrior for high standards and strict teacher accountability. And to confuse matters even more, he has appointed one of the state's strongest MCAS supporters, former Boston school superintendent Thomas Payzant, to a panel to carry out his "cradle-to-career" education plan.
If there is a cogent philosophy here, it's well disguised.
Kaplan, a strong voice for accessible government, will represent the Massachusetts PTA on the education board. Last year, former Governor Romney refused to choose any of the three candidates put forward by the PTA because they clashed with his educational philosophy. Patrick seemed to have more options; at least one of the other candidates, Lexington mother Mary Ann Stewart, offered a more moderate view on MCAS. "Right now," she says, "it's the best we've got."
Patrick needs to stiffen his spine on MCAS. It might not perfectly suit his views on educating the whole child. But the part addressed by MCAS is working quite well.
— Editorial
Boston Globe
2007-06-12
INDEX OF OUTRAGES
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