For many years, the Maine DOE has provided various College Board assessments to high school students. Maine’s required assessment system changed at the end of 2013-14 to no longer require the College Board assessments (former ReadiStep, PSAT/NMSQT, and SAT). To support schools through that transition, the Maine DOE provided the College Board assessments (the actual test and the cost of that test) on an optional basis during 2014-15. However, now for the 2015-16 school year, Maine DOE is not providing assessments beyond what is state-required, which is still being determined through the RFP process.
The ACCUPLACER® for high school diagnostic and placement assessment support is slightly different. From the past initiative, a limited surplus of units remains available, on a first-come-first-serve basis, until the surplus units are exhausted. At the end of the 2015-16 year, these units will no longer be available. The process for transfer of DOE ACCUPLACER® units into individual school accounts remains the same, with a change to the order form as units are now available to grades other than solely third year of high school. Required information on the order form includes: student name, DOB, SSID #, grade, and number of units requested.
Advanced Placement (AP): We do want to note that U.S. Department of Education has traditionally provided subsidies for Advanced Placement (AP) exams. We will continue to provide updates to the field as information on AP support becomes available.
Any questions regarding high school assessments may be addressed to Maine DOE’s Assessment Coordinator Nancy Godfrey at 624-6775 or nancy.godfrey@maine.gov.