District/School Administration Administration
Board in Brief

Thursday, Jan. 25, 1996

Report of the Chairman

Chairman Martin Kaplan reported that the Board held a brief special meeting on January 22, and discussed the need to continue moving forward to implement Education Reform despite the uncertainty of pending legislative proposals, and the change in Board leadership. Based on that discussion, on January 23 the Board unanimously approved a motion proposed by member Paul Reville:

"The Board of Education reaffirms its commitment to the full and deliberate implementation of the Education Reform Act of 1993."

"At this time of leadership transition and policy reconsideration, the Board commends the thousands of local school officials, teachers, parents, students and community members who have made such substantial progress in achieving the promise of education reform: dramatically improved schools for all of the Commonwealth's children. The Board pledges itself not only to continue the vigorous implementation of all aspects of the Education Reform Act, but also to work with local communities to ensure that education reform efforts across the state proceed at full speed."

"Furthermore, the Board urges the Governor and the Legislature to resolve all questions of the state's educational leadership and policy as quickly as possible so that the current and substantial momentum of educational change can be sustained. Speedy resolution of these outstanding questions and issues is the best guarantee that the state's major investment in education reform will continue to deliver increasing benefits to children and communities."

The Board also unanimously adopted a motion urging the Governor and the Legislature to reach early resolution of local aid figures for FY 1997 as soon as possible, so that communities and school districts can budget and plan for the new school year.

Report of Special Commission on Early Childhood

Senator David P. Magnani, Senate Chairman of the Joint Committee on Education, Arts and Humanities and Co-Chair of the Special Commission on Early Childhood, presented the Commission's report, "Children First: A Plan for an Early Care and Education System for Massachusetts." The Commission, which was established under the Education Reform Act of 1993, recommends a consolidated system that will increase the quality, affordability and accessibility of early care and education, support families, and improve the outlook for children's healthy development and success in school. Among its recommendations, the Commission advocates development of unified state standards for early childhood programs and practitioners, including a coordinated system of licensing, certification and accreditation; increased support for programs for 3- and 4-year-olds through use of subsidies and a sliding fee scale; establishment of early childhood councils in each community; expansion of full-day kindergarten; and creation of a new State Board of Early Care and Education.

Board members expressed support for early childhood education, and discussed various aspects of the report with Senator Magnani. Several members raised questions about the Commission's proposal to create a separate Board of Early Care and Education. The Senator responded that creating the board is one option. The objective is to bring together into a coherent structure what is now a fragmented arrangement, in which different agencies each deal with some aspect of early care and education.

Senator Magnani thanked the Board for its support and interest in early childhood education, and extended special thanks to Elisabeth Schaefer and other members of the Department's Early Learning Services cluster for their assistance to the Commission. He also commented on the Board's earlier discussion, stating that the Education Committee is very committed to Education Reform and to the goals and direction that have been set by the law and by the Board. The Senator said he anticipates the Education Committee will act promptly on any proposals filed by the Governor that would reorganize public education.

Discussion on Student Assessment

Rich Hill, president of Advanced Systems in Measurement and Evaluation, the Department's contractor for student assessment, presented an overview of issues related to large-scale assessment, including some lessons learned from other states that have implemented assessment programs in recent years. He started with the premise, "What you test is what you get," or, more specifically, "What teachers perceive you are testing is what you get -- provided they have the necessary training and experience." If we want students to be able to apply knowledge, identify and solve problems, and work effectively in groups, all of which are skills they will need in work and everyday life, then assessment (and teaching) should be geared accordingly. However, Dr. Hill noted, there are many choices to be made in designing an assessment system. Cost, time for testing, and reliability of tests are critical factors. One issue that will drive up cost is the level of reporting the state desires, ranging from school-by-school results to diagnostic results for each individual student.

Other choices to be made concern the evaluation criteria to be used: Will we attempt to measure a school's progress by testing students in the same grades every year, or attempt to assess the same students at different points in their schooling, through a longitudinal assessment? Dr. Hill noted that testing only at grades 4, 8 and 10 does not provide reliable data from which to determine school improvement from year to year. He also pointed out the tradeoffs in setting the stakes for assessment: If stakes are too high for students, teachers or schools, cheating (or at least accusations) may result; if the stakes are too low, the test is not viewed seriously.

Dr. Hill commented that in contrast to Kentucky, which plunged into student assessment with little planning time, Massachusetts is proceeding at an appropriate pace. It is critical, he said, to build consensus up front around the Common Core [ HTML | PDF ] and curriculum frameworks, since they will form the basis for the assessment. In response to a question from Board member Abigail Thernstrom, Dr. Hill stated that the curriculum frameworks the Board has approved provide a very solid foundation for developing the assessment in these subjects.

Board members asked Dr. Hill about reliability of various types of assessment, the practicalities of testing in languages other than English, and how assessment can measure school effectiveness when many students in a school may have moved in and out of several different schools in the course of a few years. Dr. Hill recommended a combination of state and local assessment, so that testing is done more frequently (which helps address the issue of transient students), and so that teachers themselves become more engaged in the process of student assessment. He also suggested an interim step before making the state test a prerequisite for high school graduation: test all tenth graders, and put a special certification on the diplomas of those who pass the test.

Commissioner Antonucci summed up, stating that this is one of a series of discussions the Board will have over the next several months on the issue of assessment. He said while assessment is a tool for accountability, the real goal is to design and use it so that it improves student achievement. The Commissioner and Department will continue to identify the major policy issues that need to be addressed, and bring them to the Board for further discussion. Commissioner Antonucci also announced that he has selected 180 people to serve on assessment advisory committees, and they will begin work this Friday and Saturday at a ESE meeting in Framingham.

Chairman's Concluding Remarks

Chairman Martin Kaplan, who resigned as Chairman and as a member of the Board as of the close of the meeting on January 23, presented a statement. He said he has enjoyed serving on the Board tremendously, and will always be grateful to Governor Weld for giving him the opportunity to provide "the most meaningful and fulfilling public service of my life." He thanked Bob Antonucci, "who has been an extraordinary Commissioner of Education and a wonderful partner in the education reform movement," and staff of the Department with whom he worked closely over the past 4-1/2 years. He also expressed great respect and appreciation to all the educators, parents and ordinary citizens who have worked for and supported education reform.

Chairman Kaplan expressed hope that "the coalition that has been carefully constructed over the last few years will hold together and continue to push meaningful reform." He listed some of the accomplishments of the Board and Department since 1993, including adoption of the Common Core of Learning [ HTML | PDF ], development of curriculum frameworks, adoption of standards on student learning time and principles of effective teaching and educational leadership, implementation of innovative school-to-work programs, and establishment of 1800 school councils. He concluded, "We must remain united in support of public education and education reform, for they go hand-in-hand if we are to provide meaningful education for both democracy and the workplace. That is our responsibility to 900,000 children in Massachusetts every year."

Other Business

The Board approved grants for adult basic education, teacher and administrator preparation, and professional development. The Board also heard from Peter Finn, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, who thanked Chairman Kaplan for his years of leadership for education reform. The Board honored Chairman Kaplan at a dinner at the Park Plaza on Monday evening, January 22.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Board will be held on Tuesday, February 27, 1996, at the Massachusetts Archives in Boston.