A key piece of our Condition of Education in the Commonwealth project, the Action Guide provides research-informed recommendations for statewide actions—policies, investments, and the expansion of best practices—that have the potential to improve student outcomes.
2026 ACTION GUIDEFrom a Strong Foundation to a Stronger Future: Updating Massachusetts Learning Standards
This report is focused on strengthening Massachusetts’ education system to better prepare students to thrive amid profound economic, social, and technological shifts. It examines how we can use the state's education standards to adapt teaching and learning through three shifts: identifying and prioritizing the essential academic foundations required to access complex content; moving from grade-specific standards to mastery-based progressions; and refocusing standards to emphasize durable skills.
As we begin 2026, our education system stands at an inflection point. With the economy being reshaped by artificial intelligence, automation, and global interconnection, the skills that once defined success are no longer sufficient. Although a strong foundation of academic rigor remains critical for every Massachusetts student, it must now serve as the launchpad for a new generation of learning goals.
Students will need the skills to continually acquire new knowledge and competencies as they navigate shifting professional paths. Schools must equip students with the ability to learn, unlearn, and relearn throughout their lives.
This transformation demands more than incremental adjustment; it calls for reimagining the very backbone of the education system—our standards. Standards shape what students learn, how they are assessed, and which forms of thinking are prioritized in classrooms. Too often, Massachusetts’ current frameworks emphasize algorithmic thinking and procedural skills that AI can now replicate with ease, while the deeper human intelligences students will need to thrive remain secondary.
To prepare students for the world that awaits them, standards must remain academically rigorous, but evolve from rigid grade-level measures to mastery-based progressions anchored in durable, human-centered competencies such as adaptability, critical thinking, collaboration, and self-directed learning.