The depend on Query 2 to nix the MCAS standardized testing commencement requirement ran late into Tuesday night time, although the examination’s opponents stored a lead by means of preliminary outcomes.
As of 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, voters favored overturning the MCAS examination requirement 58.6% to 41.4%, with 50% of precincts reporting, in line with the Related Press.
Query 2, championed primarily by the Massachusetts Academics Affiliation, would eliminate the tenth grade MCAS standardized testing commencement requirement for college students within the state. Beneath the query’s language, college students would proceed to take the take a look at as a diagnostic software, however commencement requirement requirements can be left as much as native faculty districts.
MTA president Max Web page mentioned although they weren’t declaring the race, the union felt they had been “on the road to victory” as of 11:30 p.m.
“We may go to bed tonight without 100% certainty on the results, but I know this for certain,” mentioned MTA Vice President Deb McCarthy, “when we wake up tomorrow, we are committed to defend our win. We are not going to let anybody take it away from us, right? The people have spoken.”
The MCAS testing requirement was initially put in place following the Training Report Act of 1993, broadly overhauling state schooling requirements and funding.
The query was opposed by officers together with Gov. Maura Healey, Training Secretary Patrick Tutwiler, the MassGOP and advocates with the Defend Our Youngsters’ Future: Vote No On 2 marketing campaign, who’ve argued the initiative leaves the state with no unified commencement evaluation and lowers requirements.
The Vote No On 2 marketing campaign didn’t reply with a press release by 11:30 p.m. Tuesday night time.
Together with lecturers unions, the query has been championed by an array of politicians, public figures and organizations together with Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey; Reps. Ayanna Pressley, Lori Trahan, Invoice Keating and Jim McGovern; Matt Damon; the AFL-CIO; and state Auditor Diana DiZoglio.
On the MTA election night time watch celebration on the Fairmont Copley Plaza Resort, the room stuffed with educators and different advocates was upbeat all through the night time. Going ahead, lecturers mentioned they envision bending away from “testing culture” and to extra various curricula.
Web page mentioned this has “been a long time coming, noting the union pushed bills against the exam requirement in the state Legislature over the last decade that never came to a vote.
“So we finally said, ‘You know what, we’re pretty sure the general public is with us,’” Web page mentioned. “So let’s do this other pathway that’s available to us, which is a ballot initiative.”
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