The Massachusetts AFL-CIO has endorsed the Query 2 poll measure to finish the state MCAS standardized testing highschool commencement requirement.
“Passing Question 2 lets our highly qualified teachers do the job they are trained and licensed to do,” mentioned Massachusetts AFL-CIO President Chrissy Lynch in a press release Monday. “The AFL-CIO urges working families and supporters of public education to vote Yes on 2 for the betterment of public schools in Massachusetts.”
The poll initiative, championed by the Massachusetts Academics Affiliation, would finish the observe of utilizing the MCAS standardized check as a highschool commencement requirement however permit districts to proceed to make use of the assessments as a evaluation instrument.
After securing the highest signature rely of any poll initiative this cycle, the check is ready to look of the November basic election poll this 12 months.
Opponents of the commencement requirement have argued that it disproportionately harms college students already going through limitations in schooling. Lynch said marginalized college students, together with these studying English or scuffling with poverty, “are especially deserving of more authentic learning and a comprehensive education that will help them succeed in higher education and in the workforce.
“Like tens of thousands of union members in Massachusetts, I am a parent with children in public schools who sees firsthand the effects of high-stakes testing on students’ learning environments,” Lynch mentioned. “All children deserve a comprehensive education. Making MCAS a high-stakes exam has narrowed the curriculum and made it more difficult for educators to tailor lessons to the needs of students.”
Opponents of the poll initiative, together with guardian, schooling and enterprise group members who just lately launched an ad marketing campaign in opposition to Query 2, have argued the query doesn’t provide an satisfactory uniform various to interchange the check and can decrease tutorial requirements throughout the state.
MTA management heralded the endorsement from the AFL-CIO, noting the union help was “key in defeating a dangerous expansion of privately operated, publicly funded charter schools and winning both the Student Opportunity Act and the Fair Share Amendment.”
“We could not be prouder of this endorsement for Question 2 by the powerful voice of working families in Massachusetts,” mentioned MTA President Max Web page and Vice President Deb McCarthy, who additionally function vice presidents on the AFL-CIO’s govt council. … “Passing Question 2 will be another crucial victory for our communities and our state’s economy.”
