Approximately 3,000 more 10th-grade students failed the MCAS exam in 2024 than in the year prior — a notable uptick sure to come under scrutiny as the fate of the standardized test as a high school graduation requirement rests in voters’ hands this November.
The results, released Tuesday, follow a decision by the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to raise the bar for what’s considered a passing score on the English language arts, math, and science exams.
How will these results affect these students and will they sway voters at the polls? Here’s what to know:
How many 10th-graders failed the MCAS exam?
Approximately 16,000 10th-graders failed at least one portion of the 2024 MCAS exam. Some failed more than one portion.
Here’s the breakdown: 9,040 students failed the math exam; 8,397 students failed ELA; and 7,361 failed science.
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How does this compare with last year?
In 2023, approximately 13,000 10th-graders failed at least one portion of the MCAS exam on their first attempt — meaning 3,000 more students failed in 2024 than the previous year.
Percentage-wise, 78 percent of students passed all three portions of the MCAS on their first attempt in 2024, compared with 82 percent in 2023.
The uptick in failures, which was expected, coincides with a change to state testing rules that raised the bar for a passing MCAS score. That change, passed by the state board of education in 2022, first goes into effect for the class of 2026.
To pass the MCAS, the class of 2025 only had to earn 24 percent of possible points on the ELA exam, and 15 percent of possible points in math, whereas the class of 2026 — last year’s sophomores — had to earn 39 percent of possible points in ELA and 25 percent in math.
“We are lifting the bar for our students in ways that we know that they can meet,” Education Secretary Patrick Tutwiler told the Globe Tuesday. “There’s going to be a period of adjustment, but they will get there ultimately.”
Which districts were most affected by the changes?
Districts with the largest shares of students failing the MCAS exam tended to be large and urban. Compared with their suburban peers, these districts typically serve greater proportions of higher-needs students, including students with disabilities and those still learning English.
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The following districts had the greatest shares of students not meeting expectations:
- ELA: Southbridge (42 percent), Lawrence (41 percent), Chelsea (36 percent)
- Math: Southbridge (47 percent), Lawrence (41 percent), Holyoke (39 percent)
- Science: Southbridge (49 percent), New Bedford (42 percent), Holyoke (40 percent)
How did BPS students perform?
In Boston, nearly 1 in 4 10th graders didn’t meet expectations on the ELA portion of the MCAS exam; 22 percent failed the math portion; and 20 percent failed the science portion.
From Boston’s class of 2022, 0.6 percent of students — about 215 — were “non-grad completers” after five years of high school, the state’s term for students who met local requirements but failed the MCAS.
Who are the students?
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education did not immediately release demographic information for the students. According to past years’ results, most students who fail the MCAS exam are in special education or are still learning English.
Understanding who’s succeeding versus failing is critical for measuring equity.
Strong MCAS scores bode well for students’ futures: There is a correlation between MCAS scores and a student’s future earnings in the labor market, researchers have found.
What’s next for students who failed?
Tenth graders who failed any portion of the 2024 MCAS will have four more opportunities to pass the exam: twice their junior year and twice more as seniors.
Half of the 13,000 students who failed in 2023 and retook the exam last year passed on their second or third attempt. The remaining students, now seniors, have two more tries to pass.
All students must meet local graduation requirements, in addition to passing the MCAS exam, in order to receive a high school diploma. According to state data, most students who never pass the MCAS also fail to meet local graduation requirements.
“I believe in our students,” Tutwiler said. “I believe in their capability. I also believe in the educators and the families here supporting students with reaching that high bar.”
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Christopher Huffaker of the Globe staff contributed to this report.
Mandy McLaren can be reached at mandy.mclaren@globe.com. Follow her @mandy_mclaren.