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Advocates Push to Make MCAS Adaptive and Expand Support for Gifted Learners
Summary
Witnesses including educators and parents urged the committee to favor H.660 (computer‑adaptive MCAS) and H.659 (expanded identification and supports for gifted students), arguing adaptive testing better measures growth and readiness than a single age‑grade cut score.
BOSTON — Supporters of two companion bills argued that Massachusetts should convert MCAS to a computer‑adaptive assessment and modernize how the state identifies and supports gifted learners.
Katarina Elbert urged the committee to support H.660 to make MCAS adaptive so tests can reveal instructional readiness across a broader range of student levels rather than a single age threshold (SEG 2856‑2872). Parents and advocates said adaptive tests would better document growth and allow schools to tailor instruction. Supporters of H.659 emphasized that giftedness is a form of neurodivergence and that equitable identification and programming are needed for students who are both gifted and have disabilities.
Witnesses asked the committee to pair assessment modernization with stronger supports for schools, including training to identify advanced learners and flexible pacing to meet varied readiness levels.
Next steps: testimony closed on both bills and the committee invited written materials comparing adaptive test pilots and implementation costs.
