# Massachusetts students still lag behind pre-pandemic MCAS scores Tom Kane, director of Harvard University's Center for Education Policy Research, pointed out other factors beyond the interruption in education. September 29, 2025 Diane Adame More than five years after the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered schools for months, Massachusetts students continue to lag far behind pre-pandemic levels on state tests, according to the latest MCAS results released Monday. Those lower scores are especially pronounced among high school students, whose scores declined from last year, and in lower-income communities. Experts say it’s more than just the interruption in education: Students are missing much more school than they used to, and standardized testing is less of a priority in Massachusetts since the MCAS is no longer a graduation requirement. In other words: the troubling declines in test scores are not going to go away so easily. “We need to resist the natural temptation to assume that schools have somehow dropped the ball,” said Jack Schneider, director of the Center for Education Policy at UMass Amherst. “The impact of the pandemic is there, and it is not simply going to go away because we have returned to education as normal.” Overall, 42% of students met testing expectations, compared to roughly half of all students in 2019, the last pre-pandemic testing year. Roughly 18% failed the test; before the pandemic, only 11% did. Tom Kane, director of Harvard University’s Center for Education Policy Research, pointed out other factors beyond the interruption in education. Continue reading at [*wgbh.org*](https://www.wgbh.org/news/education-news/2025-09-29/massachusetts-students-still-lag-behind-pre-pandemic-mcas-scores) See also:- [ COVID-19 Impact ](/focus-areas/covid-19-impact) - [ In the News ](/cepr-in-the-news) - [ Education Recovery Scorecard ](/projects/education-recovery-scorecard) - [ 2025 ](/year/2025) - [ K12 ](/sector/k12) Share on:- [ Facebook ](#) - [ Twitter ](#) - [ Linkedin ](#)