Massachusetts has consistently ranked first in the nation when it comes to education. Whether or not we stay there is on the ballot this November. The way we determine whether or not our students are prepared for college and career is also on the ballot. Whether we continue to strive toward equality in our schools or go back to the days when vulnerable students fell through the cracks – all of it is up for a vote. I am a teacher at Brooke Charter School in Dorchester and have been in the classroom for more than 15 years. I will be voting no on Question 2, which seeks to end the MCAS test as a graduation requirement, maintaining that a test cannot fully capture a student’s abilities or that testing disproportionately harms students of color, English Language Learners and those with disabilities.

This is simply not the case. This is not to say the MCAS doesn’t have issues; there are certainly some modifications the state could make. But if we entirely eradicate the requirement, we will lose the only objective measure for what it means to graduate in the Commonwealth.

Further, having a patchwork of standards would only exacerbate existing inequality in a system where the quality of education can already depend on your zip code. 

If we eliminate this objective measure, districts will self-assign their own goal posts to a point where in some cases a curriculum would set a higher bar for proficiency than the MCAS while in other cases it would lower it. This is a recipe for deepening inequities. Some school districts will simply adopt lower standards so that students can “graduate” even if they haven’t learned the skills they need to succeed. 

Fair and unbiased assessments are the only way parents and educators can get a real pulse of their kids’ readiness to graduate. The passage of Question 2 would eliminate this opportunity and Massachusetts would end up with less rigorous high school graduation requirements than Mississippi or Alabama. 

While the Yes on 2 campaign tells some heartfelt stories about students who aren’t able to graduate under the current system, they neglect to mention that the number of those students is vanishingly small. Further, around three-quarters of the students that currently do not meet MCAS requirements are also not meeting district requirements to graduate. This means that for the majority of students not becoming proficient on MCAS, it’s not the exam that’s the barrier to their receiving a diploma. 

When I hear people say that teachers shouldn’t have to “teach to the test,” I completely agree. If you are teaching to the depth of the state standards, you shouldn’t have to teach to the test. The level of proficiency required to pass the test isn’t exceptionally high, so if a curriculum is up to the standard, then it is, in many cases, beyond the requirements of the test itself. This means that passing MCAS should just be a matter of course – as it is for the overwhelming majority of students in Massachusetts. 

Another assertion from the Yes on 2 crowd is that the test won’t go away entirely; it just won’t be a requirement. This is shortsighted. When something ceases to be a requirement, it tends to become much more laissez faire. Teachers would be less invested, students would be less engaged, and data would be less reliable. Additionally, many students would likely opt out of testing. Allowing students to choose out would lend itself to the same excuses that papered over the inequities and failures of our school system before we adopted standard-based reforms. 

A common, objective assessment equalizes expectations and ensures every student reaches for the same bar. Eliminating a common standard will further marginalize the very students who need the most help. The required statewide assessment makes our students better, and pushes them toward success, which is why a No Vote on Question 2 is the only option to ensure that all of our students have the best possible chance to succeed.

Cedric Jacobson has been an educator for more than 15 years. He teaches AP Biology and Advanced Chemistry at Brooke Charter High School in Dorchester.