Massachusetts State Testing Program

Massachusetts State Tests

"...The state testing program is not and should not become the primary focus of our work. Rather, it is an assessment tool that can be useful to help us accomplish our mission. We hope that the new state test provides valuable feedback that helps us improve teaching and learning, which should be the main purpose of any test. While we will always be subject to state and national policies regarding district, school, and educator accountability systems, our goal in Shrewsbury is not to achieve high test scores, per se. Test results can be a good measure of progress and performance, if the test is a good one, but the pursuit of test scores as an end unto itself creates the risk of missing the bigger picture of what education should be. In Shrewsbury, we  will keep our focus on providing an education that will benefit our students for the long run, so that they gain strong academic knowledge, skills and habits, in an environment that emphasizes physical, social, and emotional health, so that Shrewsbury’s young people become citizens who make positive contributions to their community and the world."

Dr. Joseph M. Sawyer, Superintendent

Excerpt from "Superintedent's Corner" article in the Shrewsbury School Journal 2015 Fall Edition