In a July 17th Opinion piece for The Boston Globe, Ward 4 member Margaret McKenna writes that since the Education Reform Act of 1993, the state has fallen far short of the goal of “providing all students with the quality education they deserve.” The former chair of the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, Margaret points to the “injustice” of failing to provide adequate students supports — as well as the absence of meaningful accountability.
“The disheartening results for students of color, low-income students, and students with disabilities call for reform. The results show the state has not achieved anything resembling equity, the stated goal of the 1993 Act. The achievement gap has widened for those most significantly affected. Low-income students and students of color are falling even further behind their peers in the wake of pandemic-era school closures and hybrid learning,” Margaret emphasizes.
She also includes a number of proposals to address the “embarrassing achievement gap” and “bifurcation of haves and have nots” that characterize the woeful state of education reform in MA.
Read Margaret’s “Our State Hasn’t Achieved Anything Resembling Educational Equity” in full.
Image: Change.org
