1 of 1
SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1313 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 307
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Jason M. Lewis
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act establishing a special commission to re-imagine school assessment and accountability.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Jason M. LewisFifth MiddlesexPatricia D. JehlenSecond Middlesex3/3/2023 1 of 3
SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1313 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 307
By Mr. Lewis, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 307) of Jason M. Lewis and Patricia
D. Jehlen for legislation to establish a Special Commission to Re-Imagine School Assessment
and Accountability. Education.
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE SENATE, NO. 361 OF 2021-2022.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
_______________
An Act establishing a special commission to re-imagine school assessment and accountability.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. (a) There shall be a special commission on the student, school and district
2evaluation system, assessment instruments, and requirements regarding state intervention in
3underperforming schools and school districts. The commission shall review the
4Commonwealth’s current assessment and accountability system, including provisions in sections
51D, 1I, 1J, and 1K of chapter 69 of the General Laws that affect the performance, efficacy, and
6impact of the student, school, and district evaluation system.
7 The commission shall examine the requirements of the Every Student Succeeds Act of
82015, Public Law 114-95, as well as potential waivers; the range of alternative assessment and
9accountability systems in place or being considered across the country; and research data on 2 of 3
10what parents, K-12 educators, higher education and business leaders want students to know and
11be able to do upon high school graduation.
12 Regarding the assessment of students, the special commission shall consider assessments
13other than conventional methods, including, but not limited to, work samples, projects and
14portfolios, and authentic and direct gauges of student performance.
15 Regarding the accountability formula, the special commission shall consider the inclusion
16of a broader range of measures that align with public values and are less tied to student
17demography.
18 Regarding accountability determinations, the commission shall consider a process of
19public input and deliberation, rather than an algorithm or the commissioner’s or Board’s
20judgment alone. The commission shall use these reviews and research data to develop
21recommendations, including proposed amendments to sections 1D, 1I, 1J and 1K of chapter 69
22of the General Laws, on the Commonwealth’s future education assessment and accountability
23system. The commission shall file its recommendations, together with drafts of legislation
24necessary to carry those recommendations into effect, with the clerks of the senate and house of
25representatives on or before December 31, 2022.
26 (b) There shall be two co-chairs, selected by commission members at their first meeting
27from among the commission’s membership. Commission members shall include the senate and
28house chairs of the Joint Committee on Education or designees; the commissioner of elementary
29and secondary education or designee; the secretary of education or designee; the speaker of the
30house of representatives or designee; the president of the senate or designee; the minority leader
31of the house of representatives or designee; the minority leader of the senate or designee; and one 3 of 3
32member to be appointed by each of the following organizations: Massachusetts Association of
33School Committees, Inc.; Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, Inc.;
34Massachusetts Teachers Association; American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts;
35Massachusetts Parent Teacher Association; Massachusetts State Student Advisory Council;
36Multicultural Education, Training, and Advocacy, Inc.; NAACP Boston; Citizens for Public
37Schools; Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Education Assessment; Black Educators
38Alliance of Massachusetts; Massachusetts Asian American Educators Association; Gaston
39Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy of the University of
40Massachusetts Boston; Massachusetts Advocates for Children; Center for Law and Education;
41and the Center for Antiracist Research at Boston University.
42 (c) Prior to issuing its recommendations, the commission shall conduct not fewer than 8
43public hearings across regions of the Commonwealth, and shall invite expert speakers on
44alternative forms of state assessment and accountability systems that replace standardized
45testing.