Thanks Mike

[Brad MacGowan <bmacgowan@ATT.NET>]

ARN folks,

Thanks Mike for the info on donating to Sen. Wellstone's campaign. I
sent my check off today with a note thanking him for his good work on
the testing issue.
Earlier I posted the letter I got from Comm. Driscoll here in Mass. re:
our horrific MCAS tests.
Below is my response.
Feedback is welcome.
And thank you for all the good work you people do.
Brad MacGowan

February 2, 2001
David P. Driscoll, Commissioner of Education
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Education
350 Main Street
Malden, Massachusetts 02148-5023

Dear Commissioner Driscoll:

Thank you for your letter of January 25, 2001 which was a response to my
letter to Governor Cellucci. I remain vehemently and steadfastly opposed
to the use of the MCAS test as a graduation requirement. I would like to
respond to some of the points that you mentioned in your letter.

You wrote, ?[f]or many years, thousands of Massachusetts high school
students received diplomas that in the view of many represented little
or no value.? I am always leery of blanket statements such as this one.
To me it begs many questions: For how many years? How many thousands of
students? What high schools did these students graduate from? In whose
view did these diplomas represent little or no value? What does ?little
or no value? mean? I am reminded of the concept that many people think
that the educational quality of high schools went downhill the day after
they graduated. Two books that present solid evidence that schools are
as good or better now than than they ever were are The Way We Were? The
Myths and Realities of America's Student Achievement (1998) by Richard
Rothstein, and The Manufactured Crisis (1995) by David Berliner and
Bruce Biddle.

You also stated that ?[a] recent report on adult basic education in
Massachusetts shows that 1.1 million people in the Commonwealth's
workforce do not demonstrate basic reading and math skills. This is
troubling, but even more disturbing to me is the fact that 667,000 of
these people received diplomas from Massachusetts high schools.? In the
absence of a specific reference, I can only wonder what this means. Did
this many people take the same test? What was the test? What is
considered ?basic?? What was their motivation to do well on the test?
What were the 667,000 people you mentioned doing? Were they poor,
unemployed, or homeless, or were many of these able to earn a living and
raise families?

The tone of the quotes that I discussed in the two preceding paragraphs
are typical of school and teacher bashing that is so often part of the
pro-MCAS rhetoric. Why is it necessary to decry the state of our schools
before saying that they need improving? Some schools do excellent jobs,
some are acceptable, and some are, in general, below an acceptable
standard. All schools like all other institutions can be improved. Why
can?t we say that schools can be improved then look for a less
intrusive, less reductionist, and less punitive way of improving them
than the MCAS?

I also have a question about the statement that ?[t]o raise standards,
Massachusetts educators, business leaders and public officials drafted
the Education Reform Act of 1993. . . . The law also requires that
students need to pass a tenth grade test to qualify for a diploma,
ensuring that students possess at least the basic skills in mathematics
and English.? According to a letter that I received from my State
Representative Carol Cleven, ?[t]he original intent of the Education
Reform Act of 1993 was not to use just one test to assess students, but
to use a variety of measures, including portfolios, to assess their
progress. Dr. Silber changed this when he was Chair of the Board of
Education.? This is a very different message.

I looked at tenth grade student work in the Failing category of the 2000
MCAS tests at www.doe.mass.edu. You said that ?[t]his is not the work of
students who shall receive diplomas from high schools in Massachusetts,
starting in 2003.? What evidence is there that these students would
receive a diploma without the MCAS requirement? Is one weak essay enough
to deny a student a diploma despite all of the other work that he or she
has done? I haven?t written anything except a quick note out by hand
since about 1984. What could have these students written if they got to
use a computer to write? I am not saying that every student
automatically deserves to graduate high school. I am saying that some
students who deserve to graduate will be prevented from doing so because
of the MCAS requirement.

I plan to continue to work against the MCAS graduation requirement. I am
also going to work and vote against any political candidate that
supports this requirement. I will work for, donate to, and vote for,
candidates who are against this flawed test and flawed testing program.
Thank you for considering my views on this matter.

Sincerely,


Bradford R. MacGowan
21 Locust Road
Chelmsford, MA 01824

cc: Governor Paul Cellucci
Lt. Governor Jane Swift
OTHERS????

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