The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) announced changes to the MCAS test administration schedule and the testing window for the ACCESS for ELLs testing. More amendments to the schedules and participation requirements are expected to come. Test windows have been extended or postponed. For more information on the changes, see the update here
From the Commissioner’s Memo
- January-February High School MCAS ELA and Mathematics Tests
• Students in grade 11 (class of 2022) will no longer participate in testing during the January-February window. Testing for this class in ELA and mathematics is being postponed until later in the year.
• Students in grade 12 (class of 2021), as well as adult test-takers, will remain eligible to
participate in one or both tests beginning in January to earn their CD. Please note that
currently enrolled 12th grade students who were previously on track to graduate during the
2019-2020 school year do not need to take the tests, as they remain eligible for the
modified CD.
• The testing window for eligible students is extended through February 12, giving schools an
additional week to complete testing. The full testing window will be January 14 through
February 12, 2021. - ACCESS for ELLs
• The testing window for the ACCESS tests is being extended for several additional months.
Schools will be able to administer the ACCESS tests at any time between January 7 and May
20, 2021.
• Results will be returned in late summer.
• Schools may assess students at any time during the window, at their discretion, but results
for all students will be returned at the same time, regardless of when tests are administered
during the window.
