Question 2: Eliminating the MCAS graduation requirement

To graduate from a public high school in Massachusetts, students need to meet the requirements of their local school district and also receive a "competency determination" from the state. By far the most common way to get this state sign-off is to pass the 10th grade MCAS exams.

Ballot Question 2 would greatly diminish the state's role as a gatekeeper to high school graduation.

If Question 2 passes, students would still need to take the 10th grade MCAS exams, but they would no longer need to earn a passing score or other state approval. Instead, districts would set their own criteria for graduation, informed by state educational standards but not beholden to any particular state assessment.

This shift would empower local school districts, classroom teachers, town officials, and individual communities, allowing for more tailored measures of student achievement.

But Question 2 would also make Massachusetts one of the few states without a common graduation standard, allowing separate educational expectations in over 300 school districts across our state.

As part of our commitment to help voters understand state ballot questions, we have analyzed relevant research and spoken with experts and advocates on both sides of the issue. We found that:

• The MCAS requirement rarely prevents students from getting a diploma; virtually all students who meet district standards also pass the MCAS or otherwise earn a state competency determination. In any given year, there are several hundred exceptions, amounting to less than 1 percent of high school seniors.
• Question 2 would dramatically lower the stakes of the 10th grade MCAS, potentially freeing teachers to focus less on test prep and more on knowledge and skills that fall outside of test parameters.
• Letting districts set graduation requirements could make it hard to maintain educational standards across the state. Districts with poor or falling graduation rates would be tempted to compensate by lowering expectations.
• Students with cognitive disabilities and English language learners sometimes struggle with the MCAS and could benefit most from more flexible measures of graduation readiness.