Young adults in Mass. favor statewide high school graduation requirement, poll shows

Less than a year after voters scrapped MCAS as a requirement to get a high school diploma, a new poll finds that two-thirds of young adults support the development of a new statewide graduation standard. Several of the options presented in the poll received strong support.

The poll, sponsored by the policy nonprofit MassPotential and conducted by MassINC Polling Group, asked high school graduates aged 18 to 29 their opinions on requirements. Respondents overwhelmingly supported several options, including passing required courses with at least a D grade, passing financial literacy courses, and courses that teach "interpersonal and social-emotional skills."

In that question, 60% said they would support a requirement that students pass courses needed for entrance into college. But in a separate question, three-quarters said they would support aligning the high school graduation requirements with the minimum standards needed to attend a Massachusetts public college or university.

Entrance requirements for universities in Massachusetts typically include four years English class, three years of math and two years of science.

Just 37% of respondents said they would support a standardized test like MCAS as a graduation requirement.

Voters last November decisively approved Question 2, which eliminated passing the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test as a graduation requirement.

Without a statewide standardized test, graduation criteria are now left up to local districts. State lawmakers and members of the Massachusetts K–12 Statewide Graduation Council, which Gov. Maura Healey established in January, are developing a new framework to set up high school graduates for their futures.

The poll was paid for by MassPotential, a lobbying nonprofit that works with policy makers on K-12 education. The poll of 600 people has about a 4% margin of error.

Mary Tamer, founder and executive director of MassPotential, said the organization has been “laser focused” on graduation standards this year. She said the group commissioned the poll to hear from more young people.

“I thought they have a really important voice here when it comes to what we should be considering for a new iteration of graduation standards,” said Tamer.

The inconsistency of the districts’ decisions is confusing people, Tamer said. Some schools have replaced MCAS with grading criteria as a graduation requirement. Others require “successful completion” of certain courses.

“They want to make sure that school has truly equipped them with the practical skills to thrive in whatever choice path they take, whether it's college or career."

Andrea Wolfe

The poll also showed people wished their high schools had offered more services in financial literacy (82%), career pathways training (69%), and vocational classes (66%).

“People who have just came out and have had a few years to experience the job market or go to college and so forth have seen what the impact of the standards are that we have in Massachusetts,” said Steve Koczela, president of MassINC.

Andrea Wolfe, president of Mass Insight Education & Research, a local lobbying nonprofit that nationally supports K-12 schools, said the poll shows how strongly young people are calling for real-world preparation.

“They want to make sure that school has truly equipped them with the practical skills to thrive in whatever choice path they take, whether it's college or career,” Wolfe said.

For some Massachusetts high school graduates, the transition to college was hard. Kathy Zhang, a 22-year-old from Northborough who just graduated from Washington University in St. Louis, said she went from being a straight A student in high school to failing tests her first semester in college.

Once she understood the difference from high school to college classes and learned how to study, Zhang said she received better grades.

Even though she graduated when MCAS was still a requirement, Zhang said she wasn’t a fan of the testing.

“I just thought it was unfair for a lot of people, because everyone learns differently, and everyone shows their intelligence differently,” Zhang said. “I thought it wasn't a fair way to assess all the students.”

Mei Cable, a senior at Boston University from Framingham, said she didn’t mind MCAS testing and even found it fun.

“I don't think that people should be penalized if they don't do well on it,” Cable said. “It helps with placement into classes, just so the teachers know what level you're at.”

This story is part of a partnership between WBUR and the Boston University Department of Journalism.