Very Special People

BY DEBBIE LAPLACA

Imagine the sensory overload for an autistic child traveling by ambulance to emergency care, especially when the shrill of sirens sound for safe passage through traffic.

Erik Davidson, a paramedic with Northfield EMS, and his wife Jo-Ann, a special education teacher, have learned that alarms, such as the sound for school fire drills, are unsettling to their 12-year-old autistic daughter, Janelle.

Hoping to minimize such trauma for children across Massachusetts, the couple worked with autism specialists to develop Sensory Sacks.

Each item in the sack was selected in consultation with educational and sensory awareness specialists.

They include noise-canceling headphones for those sensitive to loud noises, a Rubik’s Cube, a weighted stuffed animal, a stress ball, a feelings wheel, a fidget spinner, Play-Doh, bubbles, a mini paddle ball, a mini- flute and a

marble fidget tube.

The sacks, which had been going out to fire departments in Western Massachusetts, have arrived in Worcester County and may soon go nationwide.

The Davidsons established the Start Em Early Foundation, a nonprofit that teaches youth the basics of CPR, first aid and community service. Most instructors are volunteers who work in the fields of firefighting, EMS and law enforcement. Some are certified first responders.

Sensory Sack is the foundation’s signature project. The sacks are donated to fire, police, and medical agencies to aid in treating and interacting with patients who have sensory challenges.

“When I first started the project, my key thing was with her (Janelle) and sound,” Davidson said.

Many of the sack items are geared toward keeping children occupied.

“It’s all sensory acceptable stuff. Like the Play-Doh. Everybody loves PlayDoh. You’ve got the scent, the color and the squishiness,” Davidson said.

More than 50 sacks have been donated to 15 or so Western Massachusetts fire departments.

“My goal is to outfit the whole state,” Davidson said. “The next step is going into the Worcester area.”

Davidson and Central Massachusetts coordinator Misty Wisuri, a registered nurse and a paramedic with Worcester EMS, presented the first such area donation to the Dudley Fire Department on July 9.

Fire Chief Dean C. Kochanowski received a review of each item in the sacks donated to his department. “I think the items in these kits are very calming,” the chief said. “The ambulance can be an experience for anyone, but I imagine it’s one hundred times worse for someone who has autism.”

Since the donation in Dudley, Wisuri has supplied three kits to the Bellingham Fire Department, two to Auburn, two to Douglas, three to Spencer, and she is set to deliver 10 kits to Worcester EMS on Aug. 10.

Wisuri met Davidson when they worked together at Milford Regional Medical Center and she decided to help distribute the calming care kits.

“I’ve been with Worcester EMS for 18 years and we haven’t had anything like this on the truck,” Wisuri said.

Until this week, the one-time use sacks were supported by community donations. Davidson announced Wednesday that Primum Non Nocere Foundation Inc. is sponsoring the Start Em Early Foundation going forward.

“This organization will help us purchase supplies, custom logo bags and distribute the Sensory Sacks nationwide,” Davidson said. “This is an exciting development.”

BY JENNIFER JORDAN

With many people still working from home due to the coronavirus pandemic, parents have been forced to juggle caring for their children while working, which can get tricky when regular video calls are involved -- especially for new moms who are establishing and/or trying to maintain a nursing schedule.

Working remotely has made it easier for new moms to breastfeed, and as a result, recent studies have shown that approximately 40 percent of women indicate an increased commitment to providing breast milk to their babies and 25 percent are breastfeeding or pumping more now than before the pandemic.

While this can be great for both mom and baby, some moms may be experiencing insecurity about support from their employer and coworkers -- especially after reading stories of male employees complaining about coworkers breastfeeding on Zoom calls. There remains uncertainty about the “boundaries” when working from the comfort of your own home where you can nurse anytime, anywhere. Here are some tips to help navigate breastfeeding while working from home:

Long before the pandemic hit, nursing mothers were protected by the Break Time for Nursing Mothers law included under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This requires employers to provide reasonable break time for mothers to express breast milk for their newborn up to one year after birth. The second part of this law requires employers to provide a private space free from the intrusion of coworkers or the public, but the shift to remote work has made it much easier for moms to find a comfortable and safe place to nurse or pump.

Regardless of whether you’re in the office or not, you’re allowed adequate break time to nurse and should make sure these rights are acknowledged and enforced by your employer. Working moms should not tolerate workplace discrimination for feeding your child in a way that works best for you and you should absolutely advocate for these rights should conflict arise. Employers, managers, and co-workers are all responsible for creating a supportive environment for the breastfeeding women in their organization.

If you’ve been feeling judged or unsupported by your employer or coworkers for balancing work and breastfeeding during this time, it’s time to have a conversation with your employer. This can often be uncomfortable and nervewracking, but properly preparing is key to success.

The first step is understanding your rights, which we outlined above. Next, you’ll want to determine your breastfeeding goals, including the number of times you’d like to breastfeed or pump per day and when, and lay out how your employer can support you in meeting those goals. It’s important to keep an open mind and be willing to hear and honestly address your employer’s concerns, if there are any.

This also presents the opportunity to highlight the employer benefits of supporting breastfeeding. There is plenty of research available about the health benefits of breastfeeding for both mom and baby, which translates to an improved bottom line for employers who provide proper accommodations through lower healthcare costs, decrease in lost work and increased productivity and retention. This becomes increasingly important when you consider working mothers with children under the age of three comprise just under half of the workforce and are the fastest growing segment.

Keep in mind that this could be a first-time conversation for both parties, so be patient and don’t give up if it doesn’t go as planned.

We’ve all been thrown into new routines since the start of this pandemic, including breastfeeding and pumping routines, and it’s important that employers, managers and coworkers are understanding and supportive of this--not only to help you reach your breastfeeding goals, but to also help normalize breastfeeding in general.

You should not feel guilty

about maintaining your daily feeding or pumping schedule when working remotely, and you should do so in a way that makes you feel most comfortable. You have every right to block time on a shared calendar to prevent disruptions or coinciding meetings during feeding time, or if you prefer to multitask while pumping or breastfeeding, you should feel supported in doing so on your Zoom calls with or without the camera on.

Breastfeeding when your baby is hungry, in public or at home, is a right that is legally protected in all states, and we

need to continue advocating for businesses to foster environments that welcome and encourage breastfeeding and overall aim to make new mothers feel supported.

Jennifer Jordan is the Director of Mom & Baby at Aeroflow Healthcare, a durable medical equipment provider that has provided breast pumps through insurance to hundreds of thousands of women. A working and oncebreastfeeding mom, Jennifer is committed to supporting all moms on their breastfeeding journey through support, education, and customer service.

Auburn’s Brittany Morgan, who had twin girls in August, spent most of her second pregnancy in quarantine. BY AMANDA COLLINS BERNIER

The day before Kerry Cole went into the hospital to give birth to her first baby, the governor declared a State of Emergency. It was March 10, 2020, and a global health crisis was just at the brink, but still, to Cole, coronavirus felt like a vague threat.

But just days later, everything was different. By the time Cole’s son, William, was a week old, the world had completely shut down.

“Looking back, it’s funny how naïve we were,” said Cole, who lives in Sturbridge and works as Vice President of Admissions at American International College. “At that time most people were naïve about COVID, even in hospitals. Few wore masks with normal interactions (that changed about 7-10 days post Will being born). At the time, we allowed family to come visit, once. Our parents came up after we got home for one visit each.”

The magnitude of a global pandemic began to unfold just as the Coles brought home their newborn baby. Suddenly, visits with grandparents felt unsafe, planned excursions as a family of three were out of the question, and the world outside their home felt threatening.

Cole spent her maternity leave in strict quarantine, staging her own newborn photos on her front porch and replacing impromptu visits with family with weekly Zoom meetings. The isolation put more strain on what’s already a stressful time for postpartum women.

“I think the hardest part about being a first-time mom during the pandemic was the fact that you couldn’t ask for help. Even with little things,” she said.

Bringing home a newborn is always an adjustment, but the pandemic has made it unusually complex for new parents like Cole. The joy of a baby has been tinged with the sadness of not being able to share the experience with extended family and friends in person, and happiness has been tainted by fear of a virus looming beyond their own four walls.

For Cole, it brought on a sense of panic.

“Things we took advantage of, like seemingly endless supplies of toilet paper, formula and diapers became hard to find,” she said. “I had expected ups and downs during maternity leave, but I never anticipated that I would be worried about providing the basic necessities for my baby. As a planner, I took it hard. I felt guilty that I couldn’t predict this. But honestly, who would have predicted a pandemic? No one taught us that in our baby 101 classes.”

It’s not just those first weeks at home with a baby that have changed for moms in the coronavirus era. Labor and delivery protocols have been upturned, as well.

Early on in the pandemic, representatives from hospitals in Central and Western Massachusetts and Easter Connecticut gathered to outline policies, said Dr. Michele Sinopoli, an OBGYN and Medical Director at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester.

“We quickly realized in the region we needed to be aligned with other hospitals; that it would be helpful early on to have consistent messages on what to expect,” she said.

In the tightened labor and delivery policies at regional hospitals, women are tested for COVID just prior to or on admission, and are allowed only one support person with them.

If a woman tests positive for the coronavirus, her support person can stay with her unless she has a cesarean delivery.

In most cases, babies can room-in with mothers with COVID-19, according to the most guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics. But, the AAP recommends the mother maintain a reasonable distance from her infant when possible and wear a mask when providing hands-on care. The guidance also recommends that mothers with COVID-19 breastfeed after appropriate hand hygiene or express milk for the newborn, depending on the circumstances.

Post-birth visitors are extremely limited at local hospitals, and patients and visitors are asked to wear a mask at all times, unless eating.

Worried that the guidelines could impact the birth she wanted, Myjorie Phillipe, of Harvard, almost didn’t have her third baby, Grace, in a hospital back in June.

“There was a lot of unknown. Especially being Black I always fear the worst when I’m pregnant because Black die at a higher rate during their pregnancy,” she said.

Because of COVID, Phillipe’s choice of pain management, nitrous oxide, was unavailable when she delivered at Emerson Hospital in Concord. She ended up having an unmedicated birth, which was not her plan. (Editor’s note: nitrous oxide is again available to women in

Myjorie Phillipe, of Harvard, said giving birth to her daughter, Grace, in June, was a completely different experience than having her first two children.

Kerry Cole, of Sturbridge, gave birth to her first child, son William, just as pandemic put the world on lockdown.

labor and delivery at Emerson.)

“With my previous pregnancies I was able to have the birth plan I wanted and not have to worry about last minute changes,” Phillipe said. “Having a baby during a pandemic is definitely different than my other two children.”

Dr. Sinopoli said hospital staff is acutely aware of the challenges women giving birth in the COVID world face. They’ve provided FaceTime in the delivery room, or positioned patients near windows to show off the baby to visitors outside, she said. They’ve also implemented a new postpartum depression screening before discharge, knowing that many new moms could feel isolated once they go home.

“We don’t want women to be scared -- they’re not alone. I think in the current situation, we’re even more in tune to the fact that patients really need us,” she said.

Nearly six months since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, scores of women have spent all or most of their pregnancies in this new normal. That’s meant canceled baby showers, and masked, solo doctors’ appointments. Even birthing classes and hospital tours are being held virtually.

“Best word to describe it is depressing,” said Brittany Morgan, of Auburn, who was expecting twin girls when she spoke to baystateparent in early August. “My boyfriend hasn’t been allowed to an appointment since I was 12 weeks pregnant and I feel very alone at times during this pregnancy.”

A self-proclaimed “gym rat,” Morgan, a 911 dispatcher, was also forced to quit her workout routine when COVID closed down businesses in March. She felt “sad and robbed,” she said of being pregnant during a pandemic.

“I felt like my experience, especially one with twins, has been stolen by the isolation of COVID,” she said.

But taking every precaution to stay healthy while pregnant is important for moms-to-be. While current data suggest that pregnant women, newborns, and children are not at highest risk for COVID-19 deaths, pregnant women might be at an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 compared to non-pregnant women. And in July, physicians in France published a case study that strongly suggests a newborn caught the coronavirus before birth from his mother via the placenta.

“It’s worth it to take extra precautions,” Dr. Sinopoli said of women who are expecting. “You don’t want to have the virus at all, but especially when you’re pregnant.”

Five months after welcoming her son, Cole has been able to reflect on the experience of being a new mom in the midst of a global health crisis. It hasn’t been what she expected life with a newborn would be, but it hasn’t been all bad.

“We got to spend the first 4.5 months at home with our son. We got to see him roll over for the first time. We heard his first laugh. We spent every lunch with him, listening to him babble in his bouncy seat. We got to have coffee with him and take breaks from work to sing silly songs on toddler radio. We got extra snuggles,” she said. “The pandemic and the restrictions that come with it are hard to swallow. However, the bond that my husband and I have with our son, in part due to the pandemic, is one that I wouldn’t trade for the world. We are a stronger couple and family because of it.”

Kerry Cole shares the five tips she contributed to “Taking Cara Babies” for future pandemic moms.

1. Give yourself time to mourn/be upset about our current situation. You had a vision of your first few months with your baby. It's OK to feel upset for yourself, your parents and your family. You lost traditional experiences but you will create your own. The memories will be there!

2. Plan your own newborn photos. Many photographers aren't doing newborn sessions now. (And you might not want anyone close to your baby during a pandemic). If you can, do a little research and create your own newborn photos. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Our wedding and planned newborn photographer sent great tips.

3. Buy extra diapers and formula. Even if you plan to breastfeed.

4. Schedule conference calls with family and friends. With and without the baby.

5. Join a virtual new Mom's group. New motherhood is isolating. During a pandemic, that's compounded. Having regular meetings with moms who have kids my son's age was incredibly helpful. Plus you get to "meet" new people.

BY KRISTIN GUAY

When Amazon released the Kindle Kids Edition last fall, Ron Charles, book critic for the Washington Post offered his opinion on how this might impact the magical relationship children have with reading and books.

“Kids don’t feel burdened by carrying physical books; they feel girded with the tools of their own entertainment. They clutch them, they rearrange them, they show them off. And, most importantly, they use them to build castles in their own minds. Reduce the full spectrum of those objects to the soulless glow of a screen, and you’ve stolen something precious from a child,” he wrote. “The ery physical thing-ness of a printed book offers an enhancement the e-ink can’t touch.”

Still, some are firmly for kids and e-readers. According to recent research by the National Literacy Trust, e-books aren’t just a good alternative to paper books, but could actually have some surprising advantages.

A printed book or an e-reader -- it’s a debatable topic among parents, educators, pediatricians, and the children themselves. The question is: do e-readers help or hurt a child’s literacy development or even their love of reading. And, unfortunately, there is no one clear answer.

Let’s begin by clarifying exactly what an e-reader is. There are several different types of electronic devices on the market that provide a digital version of a book, magazine, newspaper, or some other type of reading material.

Some e-readers have features that pertain just to the reading and comprehension of the story. These include word hints on difficult words, personal word lists created from words the child has looked up, and dictionary features to help further clarify unknown words. There are also tracking devices to record how much time or how many pages a child has read and even features to set goals for reading time and pages.

Additional features include the ability to change the font, enlarge the font size, and modify the brightness of the background.

Other e-readers contain even more features, some that pertain to the story and others that do not. This might include comprehension questions or suggestions on how the story might relate to real life. Some e-reader devices might also include music, animation, and games that are not related to the story.

Tablets are a little different in that you can access electronic reading material, but you can also browse the Internet, play games, watch movies, take pictures, create videos, and so much more.

You would be hard pressed to find research or an early childhood professional that supports e-readers for children at this age. Because many consider e-readers screen time, there is a considerable amount of evidence that supports the position it can actually be more harmful than helpful to a child at this age.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no screen time for children under the age of two. At this age, it is important to develop motor skills and interpersonal relationships and any screen time will compromise that development. Ideally, parents should use print books to create a positive reading experience for their child. The stories should be read with animated voices and children should be encouraged to engage in the stories -- maybe turning the pages or pointing to objects.

Some might question if an e-reader at this age would be better than no reading at all, and the answer is no. If a parent/ caregiver does not spend time reading to a child, then simple conversation and verbal stimulation with the child is better than an e-reader for language and early literacy development. Talking to an infant/toddler as you go through the activities of the day such as getting dressed, preparing a meal, eating food, playing, cleaning up, bathing, etc. is very important for their language development and will do more

than plopping them down with an electronic book.

Very young children need the tactile experience of handling a print book and this includes holding it in their hands, manipulating the book to be able to open the pages properly, and then turning the pages as the story progresses. Reading books to young children is a comforting and nurturing experience as seen when gathering around a teacher in a classroom or curling up on a bed during the evening. Print books do not have sound effects or pop-ups, and for young children, these features can be more distracting than helpful.

For this age group, the World Health Organization recommends that children have no more than one hour a screen time per day and less is preferable. Their reasoning behind this is that what children need most for mental and physical development is physical activity and sleep, and screen time interferes with this. Any sort of e-reader should be used as a supplement to language development activities already employed by the parent, not as a substitute. Any electronic programs should have few enhancements and these features should only pertain to the story--not be additional games or unnecessary animations. If these features do not relate to the comprehension of the story, children will be distracted from the story. The problem with e-readers is that parents and children lack what is called “dialogic reading” -- the dialogue that parents and children have while reading a story. This can be looking at the cover and trying to guess what the book will be about, asking the child what they think might happen next before they turn the page, asking them what they think of a particular character in the story, or even observing how something in the story relates to something

in the child’s life. If parents chose to introduce e-readers to children of this age, it is very important to treat the e-reader just as they would a print book. The dialogic reading can and should happen with an e-reader as well.

Children at this age are developing their independent reading skills and some e-readers can help with this process. Even though the extra features on digital readers can be distracting to some children, they can actually provide some benefits for children that might be struggling or are considered reluctant readers.

There are features that can help children with unfamiliar words by providing hints. Some devices are able to identify words that present a struggle to children and can create a personal dictionary of words the child has looked up that can be reviewed to improve vocabulary. Some devices have activity trackers that record how many pages or how much time was spent reading. These features can also be used to set reading goals such as reading a certain amount of minutes or pages per day.

Electronic devices are appealing to reluctant readers who are sensitive about their reading level compared to their peers, but who also become intimidated at the amount of text on a page. The user has control over the type of font, print size, and even the brightness of the background. This feature is especially useful for children with visual processing disorders or learning disabilities such as dyslexia. They can basically arrange the text on a page that is user-friendly and more manageable to them.

Jamie Ziblsky, Ph.D., weighed the pros and cons of e-readers for children that might need the additional support in an article in Psychology Today. She mentioned research that showed how technologyenhanced storybooks impact literacy development in young children. “Children from low SES (socioeconomic status) background and/ or from immigrant bilingual families benefited most from the multimedia features of technology-enhanced storybooks, likely because the additional information presented nonverbally helped enhance their background knowledge, and thus, comprehension of the story. But interactive features distracted them somewhat more than their more advantaged peers.”

Other studies have been conducted around the world regarding the potential benefits of e-readers and improved literacy skills of children in this age group. The National Literacy Trust reported on the impact of ebooks on elementary student’s performance during an academic year, noting that “being given the opportunity to read ebooks had a positive impact on children’s reading attitudes, particularly for boys and those who began the project as less engaged readers. The study found that over the course of the project, which lasted for an average of 4.2 months, boys’ reading levels increased by an average of 8.4 months, compared to 7.2 months’ progress made by girls. Furthermore, the percentage of boys that felt reading was difficult almost halved from 28.0% to 15.9%, suggesting that confidence in their own reading ability increased as a result of the project. In addition, the percentage that felt reading was cool rose from 34.4% to 66.5%.”

In the study, students said they prefered ebooks over print books, mostly to do with ease of reading. Some children stated that they found the page less intimidating because they could make the font size bigger which seemed to make the text on each page more palatable. They also liked that they could control the color and the brightness of the background, making it easier on the eyes. It really came down to simply being easier and less of a strain to read the material.

This might come as a surprise, but many studies have shown that middle/high school students actually prefer print books over e-readers. There are many thoughts on this but the most common explanation seems to do with the everyday habits of this age group. They are constantly on electronic devices and, when it comes to reading for pleasure, they want a break from the electronic format.

But one reason that some teens do gravitate to electronic reading devices is that the e-readers provide anonymity for the reader and the material they are reading is known only to them. This is especially important in the middle and high school years when children use literature to better understand themselves and their world. At this age, there are many fiction and nonfiction books with topics of bullying, LGBTQ, substance abuse, sexual abuse, self-harm, and a host of other topics that this age group would prefer to explore in private. Another benefit of e-readers at this age is that it can help with the required reading from their academic curriculum, especially reading assignments given during the summer months.

Some e-readers are better suited to work with Overdrive, the system that public libraries across the US use to lend e-books. This feature is particularly helpful when a student is looking for a summer reading book (one week before school starts!) and all the required reading books are checked out. Retrieving a book from Overdrive could save the day.

As children get older, there is a tendency by parents to not monitor screen time as carefully, and this can be a serious mistake. Kids between the ages

of 8-19 have an average of seven hours of screen time per day. Research has linked screen time with an increased amount of sedentary behavior in children and teens, and while there is no long term evidence yet to link screen time to an increased risk of health conditions like cardiovascular disease and high cholesterol, there is mounting evidence that it is associated with obesity, according to the American Heart Association.

When teens use electronic devices to read, either for school assignments or for pleasure, it is important to make sure these devices focus on reading material, not the other games, animations and other features that come with some e-readers or even tablets. Another word of caution: it is important to limit any screen use with children late into the evening. E-readers do not have the same screen flicker as other electronic devices, but there is still some concern that any electronic use too close to bedtime might interfere with children winding down at the end of the day.

The benefits of strong literacy skills have been analyzed and

discussed for many years. Strong literacy skills are important in every academic topic, higher education applications, job employment, and general adultlife situations such as lease agreements, contracts, mortgage applications and a host of other personal and professional situations where it is imperative to have strong reading skills. Everything from creating a protective and nurturing feeling for a child, decreasing high school drop-out rates, success in finding a productive job, to prison time have all been tied in with literacy skills.

Many parents might be wondering if e-readers are the golden ticket to securing literacy success in their child -- and the simple answer is yes and no. For some children an e-reader could prove very helpful, but for others, not so much. Factors such as the age of the child, personality of the child, reading style, learning difficulties, and type of e-reader all need to be taken into consideration.

Ask questions of your child’s teacher or physician and observe your child when reading print or e-books to help make the right decision for your child and your family.

BY DOUG PAGE

Abill in the Massachusetts legislature suspending the MCAS exams the Bay State’s public high school students must pass to earn a diploma – due to the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic – is being vetted by the Joint Committee on Education.

The Committee is seeking written testimony about the proposed legislation, but it’s unknown whether it will be passed by the committee. If it is passed, it will likely undergo further review by the state Senate’s Ways and Means Committee, says a Beacon Hill staff member.

Introduced by State Sen. Joanne Comerford, a Democrat whose district includes Hampshire and Franklin counties in western Massachusetts, in late June, it would defer the high school MCAS requirement for four years, between 2020 and 2024.

Her bill proposes creating a commission consisting of members of the legislature, the state secretary of education, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) Commissioner Jeff Riley, the Bay State’s teachers’ unions, and some interest groups, including the National Association for Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Muslim Justice League, to review the impact of the high school MCAS tests.

“With COVID-19, this is an exceedingly stressful time for students, teachers and school committees across the Commonwealth. MCAS is one more significant stressor for students,” Comerford said. “The logical thing is not to take away time for learning when so much time is needed for learning recovery.”

State Rep. James Hawkins (D-Attleboro) also filed legislation in June to shelve the MCAS high school exams for three academic years, starting with the coming school year, due to COVID-19. He expects his bill to be vetted by the Joint Committee on Education, too.

“School districts don’t know if they’re going back to school full time, will have to implement some sort of hybrid model (teaching kids both at school and at home) or be fulltime remote,” he said.

“Plus school districts are dealing with smaller staff because many teachers and staff have been pink slipped or retired. I don’t know how they’re going to deal with lunches. How are school buses going to implement social distancing? Why do we have to do MCAS testing on top of that?” Hawkins added.

It’s unknown when either bill could come up for a vote by both houses of the legislature. It’s also unknown whether the U. S. Department of Education (DOE) would allow Massachusetts not to test its high school students.

Massachusetts is one of 11 states, and the only one in New England, requiring its public high school students to pass an exam before they earn a diploma, down from 27 states that previously required them, says FairTest, an organization tracking which states require the exams.

“The lack of a high school diploma feeds the wealth gap and racial inequities,” said Bob Schaeffer, FairTest’s interim executive director. “Graduation tests potentially put kids out on the street without a diploma, which is a necessary credential for a decent job and many other societal benefits.

“They’re doing this to kids who otherwise completed their high school coursework with adequate grades. They’re going to be way behind the eight-ball for sustaining themselves and their families. Many states have recognized that and dropped them,” he added.

The high school MCAS tests – one each for English, math, and science – like those given in grades 3-8, rests on two laws, a federal and a state one. The exams came about because of the 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform law, which put more Commonwealth money into the state’s K-12 public schools and have been taken since 1998.

In addition, Massachusetts, because it receives federal money from the DOE – nearly $700 million during the current fiscal year, which started in September – under Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2015, to fund its public schools, is required to administer a standardized test to its high school student as well as those in grades 3-8.

There is no requirement under ESSA, says a DOE official, that the results of any high school standardized test, in whatever state it’s given, determine whether a student earns a diploma. That’s up to individual state legislators and governors. State and federal education laws requiring standardized tests don’t apply to students in private or parochial schools.

Earlier this year, before the public schools closed due to Covid-19, DESE received a waiver from the DOE, under the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act) allowing it not to administer the MCAS tests for those grades that are tested. Gov. Charlie Baker’s proposed legislation, approved by the Massachusetts legislature, gave DESE state permission to waive or modify the MCAS exams.

As a result, Commissioner Riley granted high school seniors in the class of 2020 – who had yet to pass the MCAS exams – an exemption, allowing them to receive their diploma as long as they met all other graduation requirements or could show, through their transcripts, they passed courses covering material that would have appeared on the high school MCAS test.

“The MCAS test provides some very important information for parents and educators,” said Edward Lambert, executive director of the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, an advocacy group supporting the MCAS exams. “It says whether students are meeting the standards that have been determined with teacher input.

“MCAS has propelled Massachusetts public schools to first in the nation. The idea that we should stop assessing students and return to a system that is not based on data is a wrong one,” he added.

DESE reports that 88 percent of students across the Commonwealth’s high school class of 2019 graduated after four years while 5.3 percent of the class dropped out. Nearly 91 percent of all female students graduated on time while nearly 86 percent of all male students did.

In its detailed demographic review of the high school class, DESE reports that more than 90 percent of Asian and white students graduated after four years in 2019 while nearly 80 percent of African American students did. More than 74 percent of Hispanic students graduated in 2019 after four years of high school. Seventynine percent of students considered economically disadvantaged graduated after four years of high school in 2019.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, part of the U.S. Department of Labor, reports that adults without a high school diploma make around $32,000 annually compared to the nearly $40,000 people with a high school diploma earn. People with a bachelor’s degree or advanced collegiate degrees earn even more, just over $72,000, on average, reports the Bureau.