Massachusetts
U.S.
Rank
Rank
#34
Overall PPI Score: 63.9%
If only the energy and ideas of the Boston Tea Party could be channeled to education, tens of thousands of students would not only prosper and grow but be unchained from district and union-dominated schools that were among the worst offenders of school closures during Covid. A once thriving charter sector has little influence in the state, but at least a little innovation is being fostered by local leaders saving the state's parent power grade from failure.
Opportunity
Innovation
Policy Environment
Charter Schools
Score
75%
Grade: C
Rank: #27
Massachusetts is in a rut, having once had a robust law that gave life to some of the best charter schools in the country, in Boston and beyond. With little or no growth at all now, the Bay state has the twenty-fourth strongest charter law in the nation.
Transformational Learning
Score
72%
Grade: C
Rank: #40
Massachusetts supports personalized learning through initiatives like Massachusetts Personalized Learning Edtech Consortium (MAPLE), while proficiency-based diplomas haven't been implemented, but CTE programs allow students to tailor their learning towards...
Leadership
Governor Healey is following the same path on which she started a year ago, which means little to no effort to look creatively at the problems Massachusetts families face with their traditional public schools. Perhaps a dose of parent power is needed to shake...
Choice Programs (Scholarships, Vouchers, Tax Credits, etc.)
Score
50%
Grade: F
Rank: #36
Massachusetts has no private school choice programs.
DID YOU KNOW?
Thanks to bold state efforts, one in five students now have access to expansive opportunities for a myriad of learning approaches across public and private sectors, with more than 20 million eligible — a 60% increase in just two years!
Transparency
Massachusetts provides crisp and transparent school data. School and district report cards are easily accessible from the Massachusetts Department of Education homepage using the dropdown menu, then by going under the “Data and Accountability → School and...
Teacher Quality
One of many data points to assess whether a state has the right policies in place to ensure teacher quality is the "use of student achievement data in teacher preparation accountability." How empty or full the fuel tank above is will give you the answer for your state.
Fast Facts:
4th Grade Math Proficiency: 43%
8th Grade Math Proficiency: 35%
4th Grade Reading Proficiency: 43%
8th Grade Reading Proficiency: 39%
Average SAT Score: 1112 / 1600
Average ACT Score: 26.4 / 36
Graduation Rate: 90.1%
Constitutional Issues
"The Massachusetts Constitution contains an extremely restrictive Blaine Amendment. The Massachusetts Supreme Court has interpreted that Blaine Amendment broadly and allowed public funds to flow to private school students only under the federal Individuals...