When Schools Stop Telling the Truth
Parents in Brockton aren’t asking for miracles. They want the basics: safe classrooms, honest grades, and a guarantee that when their child earns a diploma, it means they are ready for college, career, or service. That’s not too much to ask. Yet today, our schools are falling short.
Brockton families tell me the same thing at every door I knock: their kids are “passing,” but still can’t read at grade level or do basic math. They see report cards with A’s and B’s but then discover through MCAS or college placement tests that their child is years behind. Teachers quietly admit they are pressured to inflate grades or pass students along. Administrators produce jargon-filled reports that hide the truth.
This is a crisis of honesty as much as it is a crisis of learning. When schools lower standards and water down results, they aren’t helping kids. They are robbing them of their futures.
That’s why my first pillar is simple but powerful: Back to Basics, Back to Excellence.
We will:
- Hold everyone accountable — students, teachers, administrators, and the school committee.
- Focus relentlessly on core academics: reading, writing, math, science, and civics.
- Deliver honest reporting — no more grade inflation, no more smoke and mirrors.
Because when we go back to basics, our kids go forward in life.
The Decline: Evidence Parents Already Feel
Massachusetts Scores Slipping
For years, Massachusetts was considered the “gold standard” in K–12 education. But that edge is slipping. In 2023, statewide MCAS results showed nearly half of students not meeting expectations in math and more than one-third failing to meet expectations in English language arts【Massachusetts DESE, 2023】.
Brockton lags even further behind those averages. Parents don’t need state reports to know it — they see it every night when homework becomes a battle and progress never seems to come.
Grade Inflation: The Great Cover-Up
Across the country, grades are going up while learning goes down. ACT research shows that average high school GPAs rose from 3.27 to 3.36 between 2010 and 2021, while ACT test scores declined【ACT, 2022】.
In plain English: schools are giving out more A’s and B’s, but students are less prepared than before. That’s not equity — it’s deception. And Brockton is no exception.
Reading by Grade 3: The Early Warning
Decades of research prove that if students can’t read proficiently by third grade, they are far more likely to fall behind in every subject and eventually drop out. The Annie E. Casey Foundation found that struggling readers are four times more likely to leave school without a diploma【AECF, 2010】.
Brockton has too many kids leaving third grade unable to read well. That’s the moment where we must intervene, not years later.
Civics Collapse
The 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) revealed the first-ever decline in civics scores. Only 22% of eighth graders reached proficiency【NCES, 2022】. That means the majority of American students — including our own — don’t understand the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, or how our government works.
In a city like Brockton, with its immigrant heritage and working-class grit, civic knowledge isn’t optional. It’s essential for strong communities and democracy itself.
Back to Basics: What Brockton Must Do
Reading: Evidence Over Ideology
For too long, schools across Massachusetts embraced failed fads like “balanced literacy” and “three-cueing.” These methods encouraged guessing at words instead of sounding them out. They failed kids.
Now even DESE admits the science of reading is clear: systematic phonics, decoding, vocabulary, and comprehension strategies work. With the state’s new Literacy Launch initiative【Massachusetts DESE, 2024】, Brockton has the tools. The challenge is fidelity: training teachers properly, buying the right materials, and measuring progress transparently.
As your School Committee representative, I will:
- Require that every K–3 classroom uses evidence-based reading instruction.
- Insist on literacy benchmarks three times per year.
- Demand immediate intervention for any student falling behind.
- Publish school-level reading growth data so parents can see the truth.
No child should leave third grade without strong reading. Period.
Writing: Thinking on Paper
Employers consistently say communication is the #1 skill they need. The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) ranks it above technical skills, above GPA, above everything【NACE, 2023】.
Yet writing has been pushed aside. In too many classrooms, students don’t write full essays until high school. That’s backwards.
We will:
- Reinstate grammar and sentence instruction starting in elementary school.
- Require structured essays in English, history, and science.
- Train teachers to use rubrics that parents can also understand.
If a student can’t explain their thinking in writing, they don’t truly understand the material.
Math: Mastery Before Advancement
“Conceptual math” has its place, but not without fluency. Too many students are being advanced into algebra without mastering basic arithmetic. That’s like building a house without a foundation.
We will:
- Require unit mastery checks at every grade.
- Expand targeted tutoring — research shows high-dosage tutoring is the most effective intervention for math recovery【Tennessee SCORE, 2022】.
- Publish math mastery reports school by school.
Parents deserve to know whether their child can actually compute, not just whether they passed a class.
Science: Hands-On and Career-Aligned
Science is more than test prep. It’s labs, inquiry, and connection to real careers.
We will:
- Guarantee minimum lab hours at Brockton High.
- Integrate science writing: claim, evidence, reasoning.
- Partner with local hospitals, manufacturers, and trades to expose students to real applications.
Whether a student pursues healthcare, STEM, or trades, science matters.
Civics: Citizens, Not Bystanders
Civics education is not optional. Students must understand the Constitution, the duties of citizenship, and how to engage in respectful debate.
We will:
- Require a civics course for graduation.
- Establish a civics capstone project — from analyzing court cases to presenting testimony at City Hall.
- Partner with veterans’ groups, legal organizations, and civic leaders to bring real-world context.
Strong communities require engaged citizens. Brockton will graduate them.
Discipline and Order: The Prerequisite for Learning
Students can’t learn in chaos, and teachers can’t teach without backup. Research from the Brookings Institution confirms that orderly schools correlate strongly with achievement【Brookings, 2018】.
Brockton classrooms are too often disrupted. The solution isn’t swinging wildly between zero-tolerance crackdowns and permissiveness. It’s clarity and consistency.
As your representative, I’ll push for:
- A clear conduct code with consistent enforcement.
- Support for teachers enforcing discipline.
- Student support centers for short-term resets — paired with re-entry plans so kids catch up, not fall further behind.
Order is not punishment. Order is respect — for students who want to learn, for teachers who want to teach, and for parents who expect results.
Honest Reporting: Parents Deserve the Truth
The biggest betrayal in education today is grade inflation. National data proves it: more A’s and B’s are being given while proficiency declines【ACT, 2022】. The result? Parents believe their children are on track, only to discover later they are far behind.
In Brockton, we will end the lies.
- Grades must align with mastery. If a child can’t read at grade level, they shouldn’t have an A in English.
- No more “no zero” policies. Missing work counts, because in life it counts.
- Public alignment reports. Each year, we’ll publish how grades line up with MCAS and benchmark data.
Transparency builds trust. Brockton parents will get it.
Accountability: Everyone Answers
Here’s where Hess’s influence is clear: accountability without consequences is meaningless.
- Students: Advancement tied to mastery, not social promotion. Support those behind, but stop pretending failure is success.
- Teachers: Training, clear standards, and fair evaluation. Evaluate based on growth, mastery, and classroom climate.
- Administrators: Public performance targets tied to student outcomes. Miss them consistently? Leadership changes. Six-figure jobs must be earned.
- School Committee: No more rubber-stamping budgets or programs. Every vote must answer: How does this improve reading, writing, math, science, or civics?
A Roadmap: What We Expect to See
Year 1:
- Literacy benchmark gains in K–3.
- Discipline policies stabilized and enforced.
- Transparent parent dashboards rolled out.
Year 2:
- MCAS proficiency rates rising in ELA and math.
- Civics course implemented with capstone projects.
- Grade alignment reports published publicly.
Year 3:
- Gap-closing with state averages in literacy and math.
- Employer and college reports of Brockton graduates improving.
- Restored trust between parents and schools.
Closing: Excellence is Non-Negotiable
Brockton families sacrifice every day to give their kids a shot at success. They deserve schools that meet that commitment.
Back to Basics, Back to Excellence isn’t just a slogan. It’s a standard. It means honest grades, strong academics, and accountability for everyone. It means a diploma that carries weight again.
On Election Day, let’s make it clear: no more watered-down standards, no more excuses. Excellence is non-negotiable.
Citations
Tennessee SCORE. (2022). Accelerating Student Achievement Through Tutoring.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. (2023). MCAS Achievement Results.
ACT. (2022). Grade Inflation and College Readiness Reports.
Annie E. Casey Foundation. (2010). Early Warning! Why Reading by the End of Third Grade Matters.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). NAEP Civics Report Card.
Massachusetts DESE. (2024). Literacy Launch Initiative.
Brookings Institution. (2018). School Climate and Student Achievement.
National Association of Colleges and Employers. (2023). Job Outlook Survey.
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Read my full Back to Basics plan
Citations
Tennessee SCORE. (2022). Accelerating Student Achievement through Tutoring. https://tnscore.org
Massachusetts DESE. (2023). MCAS Achievement Results. https://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/
ACT. (2022). Grade Inflation and Academic Readiness. https://www.act.org/content/act/en/research/reports/act-research.html
Annie E. Casey Foundation. (2010). Early Warning! Why Reading by the End of Third Grade Matters. https://www.aecf.org/resources/early-warning-why-reading-by-the-end-of-third-grade-matters/
NCES. (2022). NAEP Civics Assessment Results. https://nces.ed.gov/
National Association of Colleges and Employers. (2023). Employer Priorities Survey. https://www.naceweb.org/research/
Brookings Institution. (2018). School Discipline and Student Outcomes. https://www.brookings.edu/research/
National Reading Panel. (2000). Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment. https://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/nrp
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