Review: MHS Competency Determination Policy

Transcript (~25 min @ 48:26)

Speakers identified by voice; unnamed voices are numbered within this recording. Auto-caption text — verify against the video.

▶ 48:19 Speaker 8: Motion by Ms. McAng- McAn- the, Ms. McAndrew to postpone until the 16th, seconded by Ms. Rosse Thomas. All those in favor? And that motion passes unanimously. On to our next item, um, this is an updated competency determination. Uh, this is in response to DESE's ongoing updates, uh, implementing a ballot question from a couple y- years ago now. Uh, this is the second time we've seen this information, but the first time in this form. Last year, we passed a one-year competency determination, uh, knowing that we would come back to it this year, knowing that we had to put a more permanent item into place. During that time, uh, DESE has come out with regulations, which I see Ms. Acevedo and Principal Merrill coming to the, the table here to tell us more about, uh, and they'll tell us all about how this was developed, how it, um, will be implemented, and what DESE expects of us. So, I'll, with that, I will leave it to our experts here to tell us more about

▶ 49:18 Speaker 5: what's in front of us. Thank you. Um, so we have a couple of slides. We don't usually do slides for Policy and Planning, but there is some grounding, I think, that would help, um, everybody, and this has changed multiple times just since I took on this role, so kind of getting everybody on the same page. Um, so we have four kind of objectives. We want to provide context and a timeline for the development of this policy, differentiate between high school graduation and requirements and the proposed competency determination, provide a brief overview of the new policy, and then answer any questions that you may have.

▶ 49:51 Speaker 5: Um, so timeline. On November

▶ 49:55 Speaker 5: 2024, um, the... ... state voted to remove MCAS as a graduation requirement, um, for, as part of passage of question two. And what that did is it moved the determination of competency, which is still part of the law, into the hands of districts. Um, winter and spring, you saw myself and Dr. Turner here, um, we presented a competency determination that could be used for the class of 2025 only. So, what you saw last year is really of no, um, validity anymore because it could only be used for the class of 2025. One of the big differences you'll notice in the policy that we have and the policy that, um, we had passed last year, is last year, MCAS was allowed to be counted as part of the competency determination for the class of 2025. For the class of 2026 moving forward, we're not, um, using MCAS as a determination anymore. Students will still have to sit for MCAS as part of graduation requirements and turn- in our accountability, um, but they won't have to pass. So, that policy was written and approved last year. So May of 2025, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted to amend the regulations, um, on competency determination, and the legal reference is there for you. Um, the new regulation said that we had to write a policy that was approved by school committee, posted publicly, and then submitted to DESE. Um, and that competency determinations had to meet the standards of what was assessed on the 2023 MCAS exams. Um, in July, as DESE loves to do, um, they put out brand new guidance for all of the curriculum directors and, and high school principals, um, with the new commissioner. And so, this policy is based on that guidance from July of 2025. Um, so the way this was developed, um, I got feedback and, um, support from Mr. Merrill, Mr. Corrigan, Ms. Toutsas, um, Mr. Beaver. We kind of talked about what did we want Melrose to look like in an ideal. And then I went back and worked with the curriculum directors that are part of SEAM, um, and we decided that we were going to write very similar policies across all of our districts, um, for a couple of reasons. One, we wanted to, we found somebody that, um, that got their policy approved by their school committee. We all agreed that it was a good plan, um, and they have yet to receive feedback from DESE. We don't know if that just means that they're passed or if that just means that DESE's a little behind. So we're, we're kind of hoping, um, that we're in a good spot. The other reason is we have several students who attend SEAM schools, um, and will be bound by this competency determination. And if all of our SEAM districts are working together, it ensures that our out-of-district students, um, have a, a better chance at being able to reach that competency because everybody's working, um, towards the same goal.

▶ 53:01 Speaker 5: So here's just a visual of where does graduation requirements and where does competency determination fall. Um, so this red that we're looking at is what we're talking about tonight, the competency determination, and then the graduation requirements, the bigger picture, is kind of that gray box on the outside.

▶ 53:23 Speaker 3: Um...

▶ 53:25 Speaker 5: So, policy highlights for the class of 2026 and beyond, um, we have successful course completion and demonstrated mastery. So one of the, um, elements that came out of the July 2025 guidance was that we needed both course completion, um, concepts and developed, uh, demonstrated content mastery in order for our competency to pass, um, through DESE. So luckily for us, we've been on a five-year journey now of rethinking grading, something like that. Um, so we've been working on rethinking grading for quite a while. Our grading system is very al- very much already aligned to the standards. Teachers are already writing, um, assessments, summative assessments especially, which is the majority of a student's grade, that already align to the standards. So we know that we are already creating some high-quality, um, coursework, and that when a student passes a class, they're showing some of that demonstrated competency. Um, we provided three ways that a student can demonstrate mastery. Um, so the first is by earning a passing grade on the midterm and final because many of our courses right now have a midterm that kind of goes up through content up to January and then a different final. So we said that in order to show mastery, that they had to pass both. Um, or completing a capstone or portfolio project, or an equivalent measure that's in here, um, to try to give some flexibility that Mr. Merrill or his designee could then, um, be able to, to work with students on an individual level. The other considerations that were part of the, um, July guidance is that we had to have very clearly stated considerations for students with disabilities, English language learners, students who enrolled after ninth grade or late-enrolling students, as well as a process of appeals for current students, and an appeal process for students, um, who were enrolled in Melrose Public Schools, um, in graduating classes of 2003 to 2024 who did not earn a diploma. So all of those things are hopefully represented within our policy. Um, they are aligned to pretty much all of the other SEAM districts. We worked collaboratively to ensure that we had a policy that was meeting all of the DESE criteria, um, and that also is in line, will dovetail with our graduation requirements, um, so that everything kind of moves along as a student is starting at Melrose High and then hoping, hopefully finishing, um, at twelfth grade. And we're happy to take any questions that you may have.

▶ 56:06 Speaker 8: Thank you. Um, are there questions from members at this point about the policy and the presentation? Ms. Rozzi-Thomas?

▶ 56:12 Speaker 2: Yes. Thank you very much, um, and thank you, Ms. Acevedo, for being here. I'm also- I'm so- it's confusing to me. Like, what's the difference between a CD, a competency determination, versus credit?

▶ 56:26 Speaker 6: So, competency determination is something that's dictated by the state and by the Department of Education. And what the measure was previously, as we know, was MCAS. Um, and now, since that's been voted out, um, although our kids still sit and take MCAS and that administration, they've asked districts to submit, which is what we, we've been working on for the past six months or so, um, what we feel like competency determination is. So this, that's just one level to earn a high school diploma, the Department of Education, the State of Massachusetts wants us, students to meet that. But we, as a school, as a district and a school committee, this was voted on by the school committee, um, is our graduation requirements, which is far greater. Yeah. So, although that is a local thing, so, uh, graduation requirements are local, so we have the ability to waive certain aspects of that, um, due to extenuating circumstances. A principal can waive certain things. Um, for instance, if a student transfers in and there's just not enough time for them to take two credits of a world language because it wasn't a requirement at their past school, or we've determined that's a- there's some kind of circumstance that would keep them from being able to do a certain aspect of this. Um, where we don't have that ability with competency determination. So...

▶ 58:02 Speaker 2: So if, just for simple ling- simple language that isn't necessarily, you know, within the world of education, thank you for being here too, Mr. Merrells. Um, so you have the, we have our graduation requirements, which are between 24 and 26 credits, right, that you earn over four years? Yeah, And then the CD requirements is like the lowest bar? Yeah. Is that kind of simple?

▶ 58:27 Speaker 5: So competency determination is what's gonna, these classes are what are the standards that were assessed on the 2023 MCAS. So when you look at what- Okay. ... the content of these particular classes, English 1 and 2, Algebra 1 and Geometry, a year of Biology, Physics, or Chemistry, and then one year of US History starting in 2027, which is a little bit of an outlier because we didn't test MCAS on those. But the three, English, Math, and Science, the reason these particular courses were chosen is because those are the ones that align- Right. ... with the standards that are assessed in the 2023 MCAS.

▶ 59:02 Speaker 2: So, DESE wants us to make sure that we're teaching to the test in spite of no longer being a graduation requirement to pass it?

▶ 59:09 Speaker 5: Yes and no. I think that DESE wants us to make sure that we have high expectations for all students and that we're making sure that we're, um, meeting those standards. Okay. Um, but we get to determine, within our competency determination, we get deter- determine how students are exhibiting that. So, one of the changes is that allowing students to do a capstone or portfolio was not something that they could do with- Right. ... with DESE, right? Or with MCAS? Right. Um, so it gives some flexibility- Right. ... but still ensuring we have that high standard.

▶ 59:40 Speaker 2: Okay. That's great. So this is another way to create more options for students that have different learning styles to get to graduation? Yeah. Yeah. So it's actually, in some ways, it's helpful.

▶ 59:49 Speaker 6: It, yeah. Yeah. A- a- and for us, it's typically Biology, as you, you all know, but some schools start with Physics first, or- Mm-hmm. ... or go in a different order. But for our students, uh, 100% of our students have taken Biology as ninth graders. So, those are the classes that all ninth, and by the time you completed tenth grade, you've taken those classes. So it's just, it's how we schedule kids. So if a student transfers in and, and they took a different class, or they failed that class at the previous school, they would just be scheduled in those classes normally because it's how we schedule kids, it's part of our program of studies, and it's part of our graduation requirements.

▶ 1:00:28 Speaker 2: Okay. Thank you. That's really helpful to clarify. The last question I have for you on page three, the question is, those enrolled in the Melrose Public Schools in the classes of 2003 through 2024 who did not earn a diploma, I would imagine because they didn't pass MCAS- Mm-hmm. ... may also appeal the decision through the following process. Have you had anyone come back yet?

▶ 1:00:51 Speaker 6: Everyone's earned a diploma. We, we have, we've contacted anyone that hasn't, so we don't have anyone that we need to contact.

▶ 1:00:59 Speaker 2: Okay. So I just want the public to know-

▶ 1:01:01 Speaker 6: But it, yeah. No, it's,

▶ 1:01:02 Speaker 2: it's- ... that this, what's happening in high schools, including mine- It,

▶ 1:01:06 Speaker 6: it- ... where I work, kids can come back and finish. It's made a big difference. It's made a huge difference- Yeah. ... for kids throughout the state.

▶ 1:01:11 Speaker 2: Yeah. 'Cause for kids who aren't good test takers, it, you know, they have another way to earn a high school diploma- Yeah. ... now. Even, and they're going retro back. Right? Okay. Thank you very much.

▶ 1:01:22 Speaker 8: Thank you, Ms. Rozzi-Thomas. Any further questions from members? Mr. Kelley?

▶ 1:01:27 Speaker 4: Sure. Um, have you gotten any indication, you've obviously spent a significant amount of time on this, um, over the last year, that you'll submit this, it'll be approved, and then a new commissioner takes over and it changes? Is that, have you got any sense as to like, is this gonna be a

▶ 1:01:41 Speaker 5: recurring thing? So, you're probably referring to the Graduation Council, um, information that was- (laughs) ... you know, put out last week? Um, I think that's still a ways off. I think that the implementation of that realistically, we're looking at three to five years from now. So, while we're, th- that's a, that's a conservative estimate. Um, there, the reality is we need something in place now.Um, this is actually fairly similarly aligned to some of the aspects of what the graduation council has recommended, um, in terms of portfolio and, and capstone and some of those pieces that we already have here in place. Um, so will it be a significant shift if that were to happen? Absolutely, but I think we're looking at a longer term game than tomorrow.

▶ 1:02:32 Speaker 4: Okay. Thank you.

▶ 1:02:34 Speaker 8: Thank you. Uh, Ms. Driscoll.

▶ 1:02:36 Margaret Raymond Driscoll: Thank you. Um, I appreciate, appreciate all the work on this. Um, and so I'll push back on my colleague a little bit and say that, um, I think our teachers do a great job by question the teaching to the test sort of aspect to it. I think that our educators really teach the content. Um, there could be, you know, different teachers do a little different things, but I'll just push back on you a little bit. Um, so a couple of questions. Um, um, to, um, both of you. So I believe that when we had the discussion around MCAS, um, at a recent meeting and the results of the MCAS, there, there was a question about, um, did our, um, high school students really put everything they could into the MCAS, um, like they would have if it had been required?

▶ 1:03:28 Speaker 5: Did you see that? So I think looking at the data trend- Mm-hmm. ... there wasn't much change from 2003, 2000, sorry, went back in time, 2023, 2024, 2025 results. They stayed pretty stagnant. Um, so i- it's a little early to tell if that's gonna be a pattern. Um, I think that one of the things that I know myself and Mr. Merrill and Ms. Toutsis are really focused on is, is reestablishing that high quality, that high caliber of expectation no matter what it is that we're working on, right? So having students try their best no matter what it is that they're, that they're working on, um, and, and reinstating some of that philosophy with our, with our students, um, whether it's their IXL or whether it's their MCAS or whatever assessment it might be, that we're always showing our Melrose pride, that we're always showing our Melrose best. Um, MCAS doesn't count for anything when they're younger either, and they seem to take it pretty seriously still. Um, so I think that as long as we can continue to t- to show them that balance of this is a great way for you to show off what you know and, and really, um, share, but also it's not gonna... it takes away that pressure of, "I'm not gonna graduate if I don't do a good job." Um, I think we might actually see- Yeah. ... either very similar or hopefully some improvement within our, within our high school on

▶ 1:04:54 Speaker 6: Yeah. I think our teachers did an outstanding job last year, um, coming to class meetings to talk to, and particularly the, the 10th grade students, um, about taking it seriously, the impacts, there's still, still, um, scholarship opportunities. Mm-hmm. I- it's... I mean, people look for, um, opportunities to take the PSAT and to do SAT prep. I mean, this, this is four days of having the ability to take a, you know, what was a high stakes test, you, you could say it's not high stakes anymore, but, you know, uh, a kinda cumulative, like long, you know, sitting for that amount of time. Um, I think it, it really didn't look any different from last year to the year before. Kids took about the same amount of time at the high school level 'cause the age of students were able to kinda like really have a focus on students taking the test, um, and limit some of the other distractions of other students in the morning. And I think students did a, a really good job, um, taking it seriously and, um, trying to show off what they know.

▶ 1:06:01 Margaret Raymond Driscoll: Thank you for that. Um, can you, um... if so, I, I'll use ninth grade English as an example. So there are multiple teachers teaching ninth grade English, right? Mm-hmm. And so you have the competency requirements. Um, is there, um, like a uniform, um, you know, final assessment that i- is the same for all teachers in that course? Yes. And if you said that, I'm sorry, I'm just trying- No. No, Like with Ms. Rossi Thomas, this is very... it's very complex.

▶ 1:06:32 Speaker 6: I mean, it's something we've worked on o- over the course of the last decade is common assessments- Mm-hmm. ... in, in different ways. Um, we're able to schedule teachers that they have that common time off. We call them CPTs or Common Planning Teams, um, are able to meet and we, we schedule that in, give them the opportunity. I think teachers have been really good about meeting and, and collaborating with each other. Um, some of those teams have, have been set for a while and sometimes there's an addition and someone joins the team for the first time and teaches really good about sharing and collaborating. Um, but there's many things that, that are common. We're always pushing that. I mean, anytime you can have a group of kids take a common assessment and give their best effort, that data is priceless. Mm-hmm. So anytime we're able to do that, it, it's super important. Um, as Ms. Acevedo also mentioned with we have a common grading system, so what a B+ means in this classroom is a B+ in Ms. Acevedo's classroom and in Mr. Kelley's classroom, it's all the same because they, they're grading everything the same way and they even collab, uh, calibrate the grading of essays and English, et cetera. So, um, always a little room to grow in that regard, but- Mm-hmm. ... um, in all of these courses that we're talking about for CD, they're taking common assessments.

▶ 1:07:59 Margaret Raymond Driscoll: Okay. So that was my other question is, is it... are there any of those courses that are... that just have one educator in front of students?

▶ 1:08:09 Speaker 9: No.

▶ 1:08:10 Speaker 6: I don't think so. No. No, that's, that's very- That's wouldn't be possible, no. I mean...

▶ 1:08:14 Margaret Raymond Driscoll: Yeah, I wouldn't think so, but I just- (laughs) want to clarify. Um, a- and my last question is, is there anything that, that currently prohibits any district from requiring the MCAS for graduation?

▶ 1:08:28 Speaker 5: Prohibits it? I don't believe so. We-

▶ 1:08:31 Speaker 9: There wasn't before, the last time we had the discussion- Yeah. ... so I just wondered if any

▶ 1:08:34 Speaker 5: No. So we talked as a team of, of really feeling strongly that it went against the, the essence of the vote of people, um, and that, I feel like this is actually a much stronger way for students to be able to show their learning in multiple ways, while still ensuring that we're meeting that high standard of all students are meeting those 2023 standards.

▶ 1:08:57 Speaker 6: I mean, that, that is much more difficult than passing the MCAS.

▶ 1:09:04 Margaret Raymond Driscoll: (crunching sound) Much more difficult. I think that's great. I'll just, I'll s- just say what my opinion is. It's not common across the entire state. It's Melrose. And, and I appreciate that, and I get that. I do believe that from a state standpoint, uh, for whether- whatever we do and do not like, because there are many things I do not like, it is a way for, um, um, others to reflect on, uh, what happens in Massachusetts. Yeah. Thank you so much.

▶ 1:09:30 Speaker 8: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Scull. Uh, other members? Ms. Withey? Chair

▶ 1:09:34 Speaker 1: Just for a point of process, I know that tonight, this is more or less under as a review or a discussion. I'm also recognizing that DESE is expecting, uh, compasi- competency determinations relatively quickly, and with that, I think I would be interested in potentially taking a first vote this evening so that we could come back at the following meeting next week and do the second and final vote.

▶ 1:09:58 Speaker 8: Thank you. Um, I just- I did have a few questions before we took a vote, if that's all right? Yeah. If... (laughs) Um, if other members don't have any questions from the floor? Great. Um, just quickly, I think I remember from our discussion in last winter, that Mr. Merrill was here also and spoke to that there aren't many students or, or very few at all that have ever faced an MCAS barrier for graduation in, in Melrose, right? Like, as you just mentioned, the, the standards that we have are significantly higher than what the MCAS requires. Um, and, and I think what I'm seeing here and, and what, uh, Ms. Acevedo mentioned at one point was this, this competency determination is creating more options for students to present themselves more fully, to, to work in the pattern that, that works best for them and p- and, uh, you know, particularly this project-based work seems very interesting in terms of how, um, students could really present their best, their best work through that process, um, while still maintaining high standards. Is that a good summation of, of kind of what that means?

▶ 1:10:58 Speaker 5: Yeah. I think most students will probably go the route- the route of passing midterms and finals, but it gives us the opportunity that students who are struggling with that, for whatever reason, um, we have some additional resources that we were not able to use prior.

▶ 1:11:12 Speaker 8: Mm-hmm. Okay. And is it fair to say that, that, uh, the, the conclusion from the previous go around of, of doing the one-year policy is still true, that we are not looking at a lot of Melrose students that would, um, be facing an M- an m- uh, an MCAS barrier, but, um, this would still be, uh, the strongest way of, of making sure that we're putting strong standards in front of them? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. With those questions, I- uh, Ms. Rossi-Thomas?

▶ 1:11:41 Speaker 2: So, last year, we also made it a requirement for them to take the MCAS. That was- wasn't that in here? That

▶ 1:11:49 Speaker 5: last year? So, I think we made that part of the graduation requirements at this point. It might have not made my slide 'cause I was working off the program of studies. Um, but it was a- it- we did say that that's a graduation requirement, that students have to sit for MCAS. So, we did track down juniors and seniors last year who had not taken the MCAS 'cause they had come late, um, and told them, "You have to take the test." Okay.

▶ 1:12:15 Speaker 2: Um... I just think in terms of understanding our data over time- Mm-hmm. ... and I- Ms. Driscoll and I really see eye to eye on this, that the MCAS has been a great tool for Massachusetts public schools over time. Mm-hmm. It should never have come to a graduation requirement, in my mind, but nevertheless, it's been an incredible tool that caused our state to really skyrocket up.

▶ 1:12:38 Speaker 6: Yeah. All of our students took it.

▶ 1:12:40 Speaker 2: So, you guys are gonna continue to make it a graduation requirement? Mm-hmm. I just wanted to check that before we took the vote. Yeah, all of our students- Okay. Thank you.

▶ 1:12:48 Speaker 8: ... will continue to take it. Thank you. Um, so as Ms. Withey spelled out... Oh, Ms. McAndrew? I was gonna make a motion. Sorry, Okay. (laughs) As Ms., Ms. Withey spelled out, um, we ha- could have this certainly as our first reading tonight, but we have the option of moving forward with a- the vote as a first vote as well, if members feel that that's appropriate with the December 31st deadline and only one more meeting in front of us. That would be a motion that we can make if somebody is so moved? Ms. McAndrew moves. Ms. Withey, seconds?

▶ 1:13:16 Speaker 1: Motion to approve and first vote.

▶ 1:13:18 Speaker 8: First vote. Second. Second the first vote. Um, all those in favor?

▶ 1:13:25 Speaker 8: So that passes unanimously for a first vote. That will come up in our next meeting for a second vote. And with that, we conclude Policy and Planning.

▶ 1:13:34 Speaker 5: Thank you all very much. Thank you for being here.

▶ 1:13:35 Speaker 1: Thank you. Thank you.