Parents like King are not the only ones who favor so-called alternative assessments to the MCAS--which is one of the chief areas of common ground between the test's supporters and detractors.

Superintendent of Schools Bobbie J. D'Alessandro, who favors the MCAS but oversees a district where about 40 percent of high school students will fail the test, says she is lobbying Commissioner of Education David P. Driscoll to allow districts to consider portfolios and other standardized tests.

One reason schools officials want the state to allow other forms of assessment is because Cambridge students do better on other exams.

Last year, for instance, third graders across the city took the Iowa test, a nationally-recognized reading exam. On that test, 58 percent of students were classified as proficient or advanced readers. But just 17 percent of fourth graders last year scored proficient or above on the MCAS language arts exam.

Bringing it to the Streets

Cambridge is more tolerant of MCAS protests than nearly any other local community--the school committee even voted in December not to punish boycotters.

On April 12, more than 100 students at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School (CRLS) boycotted the written composition test, a part of the MCAS that was given last month.

Students held a teach-in to talk about their opposition to the test and held a rally in front of City Hall. Students and their parents chanted "be a hero, take a zero" as motorists honked to show support for the boycott.