There is a chorus of critics that believes high stakes testing is punitive, especially with respect to poor minority students in urban school systems. High stakes are not punitive, if the standards and assessments are fair, as I believe ours to be. A high school diploma is not an entitlement. It is something that must be earned through effort and achievement. Moreover, acquiring a diploma is not what education is about.
Education is about acquiring knowledge and skill.
It is unfair and unethical to hand young people a piece of paper and tell them they are ready for success when they are not. In the absence of stakes for students and schools, MCAS would not be taken seriously and therefore would be an expensive and largely futile exercise. In effect, this is the system we had in place with the MEAP test. Unless it counts, no-one will feel compelled to give an honest effort, thereby making the data suspect. Moreover, without stakes, there is no accountability.