Maine DOE Seeking Applicants for Assessment RFP Evaluation Committee

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is seeking proposals for a statewide reading and mathematics assessment, per State of Maine procurement regulations. A critical step in the Request for Proposals (RFP) process is the scoring of proposals. Maine DOE is seeking the involvement of Maine educators in this process through participation in the RFP Evaluation Committee.

The RFP Evaluation Committee will be responsible for reviewing submitted proposals, completing both individual notes, and in-person consensus scoring. Maine DOE is looking for representation from across geographical regions and areas of educational expertise. If selected, RFP Evaluation Committee members must be available for independent review of proposals between November 15-20, 2024. Additionally, in-person consensus scoring with the Committee will take place on November 21, 22, and 25 in Augusta at the Maine DOE offices.

Please do not complete this application if you do not have the authorization and capacity to participate on these dates.

To apply to be a member of the RFP Evaluation Committee, please complete the application here.

To read the full Request for Proposals, click here.

Maine Department of Education Releases RFP for Statewide Reading and Mathematics Assessment in Grades 3-8 and High School

The Maine Department of Education is seeking proposals for a statewide reading and mathematics assessment, per State of Maine procurement regulations as outlined in 5 M.R.S.A. § 1825 A-E and Ch. 110 & 120 in 18-554 of the Code of Maine Rules (CMR).

Date	Task
September 24, 2024	RFP Released to the Public
October 3, 2024 – 11:59 pm ET	Deadline for Submission of Questions in Response to RFP
November 14, 2024	Proposal Deadline
November-December 2024	Formal Peer Review of Proposals
February 2025	Grant Award Notifications
July 1, 2025	Grant Award Start Date

The Reading and Mathematics Assessment request for proposals (RFP) can be found on the State of Maine Procurement Services webpage by searching for RFP # 202406122.

The Maine Department of Education’s mission of providing the best learning opportunities for all Maine students will be the driving force of this work. It is the intention of the RFP Committee to engage Maine educational leaders with backgrounds and interest in state assessment as thought partners on the committee to review proposals.

Information about how educators and educational leaders in Maine can apply for the RFP Committee will be forthcoming and shared statewide.

Growing Within: A Rural District’s Response to the Need for a Multilingual Learner Educator

(Pictured: Educator Amy Trombley, with students Sustada Ma, El-Shammah Nsadha, and Ammala Ma)

At the beginning of the 23/24 school year, Limestone Community School was facing a need for an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) educator to meet the federal requirements of newly enrolled students. As the language use survey indicated a need for assessments, Principal Ben Lothrop recognized that while a 660-certified teacher wasn’t necessary on-site in the past, now it was. He first posted a position for a 660-certified educator with no success. In rural communities in Maine, finding a certified multilingual learner educator is often difficult, as it does fall in the US Department of Education’s teacher shortage.

“In rural areas across the state of Maine like Limestone and Aroostook County, we struggle to find qualified regular education teachers, much less anything more specialized like an ESOL teacher. In the past, I’ve had to ‘grow my own,’ and this is no different. It’s a great opportunity for the teacher, our students, and the local area as more and more people with various cultural and language backgrounds are moving into our area.”

The next step was for Lothrop to identify an educator who may want to pursue the emergency certification for 660. Title I teacher, Amy Trombley, jumped at the opportunity. “ESOL is a very rare certification, especially in this rural area of Maine, but it is still very much needed. I have a history of working with multilingual learners before my teaching career and loved the experiences that it brought with it. It is a very rewarding job! My main goal in teaching is to make sure the needs of every single student is met. With this certification, I can ensure needs are met for all demographics and make the education experience for multilingual students is that much more equitable.” Trombley applied for and received emergency 660 certification and then enrolled in the University of Southern Maine in the Teaching English to Students of Other Languages (TESOL) program with the District’s support. She has also taken advantage of free professional learning offered by the Maine Department of Education (DOE): WIDA webinar series, “Scaffolding Learning through Language.”

The Maine DOE has assisted with technical support throughout the WIDA Screener assessment and implementation of a newly formed ESOL support. Administrative Letter #27: Legal Requirements to Provide English Language Acquisition Services to Students who are Multilingual Learners (Revised 6.21.23) Multilingual Learner guidance can be found here.

At the Maine DOE, we recognize an increased demand for 660 certification specialists in Maine. We are offering a collaborative webinar with Maine DOE ESOL Specialist Jane Armstrong, Certification Coordinator Erin Reinhard, Family Engagement Specialist Melanie Junkins, and the University of Southern Maine TESOL program instructors Dr. Andrea Stairs-Davenport, Dr. Alec Lapidus, and Dr. Melinda Butler. This one hour webinar is designed for administrators and educators in the state who want to learn more about obtaining a 660 certification, the differences in emergency, conditional, and full certification, and a pathway to earn this certification at the University of Southern Maine.

To find out more, register here for the webinar “ESOL 660 Certification Pathway,” on October 27, 2023, from 1-2 pm.

Questions regarding the webinar can be directed to Melanie Junkins (melanie.junkins@maine.gov), Maine DOE Family Engagement and Culturally Responsive Specialist.

Maine DOE Seeks Public Comment on the Amendment to Maine’s Model of School Support

The Maine Department of Education is requesting an approval by the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) to revise its approved consolidated ESSA State Plan under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). In this first phase, Maine is requesting the amendment to account for the transition to Maine’s new state general assessment, the Maine Through Year Assessment.

As part of the statutory requirements for seeking an amendment, the Maine DOE must solicit and respond to public comment as well as provide evidence of the available comment period. The Maine DOE is accepting public comment on the amendment to Maine’s Model of School Support beginning on October 12, 2023 and will conclude on October 20, 2023. Public comments regarding the amendment may be sent to ESSA.DOE@maine.gov. Any additional questions should be directed to Janette Kirk, Chief of the Office of Federal Programs at janette.kirk@maine.gov.

The key updates to the amendment to Maine’s Model of School Support includes:

The academic achievement will be measured by the annual statewide assessments in ELA/reading and mathematics using MTYA for grades 3-8 and 2^nd year of high school. There is no change to Maine’s Alternate Assessment.
The academic progress will be measured by the annual statewide assessments in ELA/reading and mathematics using MTYA for grades 3-8. The fall to spring growth targets, which are grade-level and content specific, align with the 2020 NWEA MAP Growth Normative Data.
- Further information regarding academic growth is located here.

There are no updates or changes to:

English Language Proficiency (ELP) indicator
School Quality and Student Success (SQSS) indicator: Chronic Absenteeism

Maine plans to submit a second phase of amendment to its ESSA State Plan in February 2023. This submission phase will include additional revisions and changes to the SQSS indicator utilizing feedback from ESSA Stakeholder workgroup convenings.

The Maine DOE convened ESSA stakeholder workgroups after “all calls” for participants, most recently in the spring of 2021, with the specific goal of providing feedback regarding the development of updates to Maine’s ESSA Plan. Those opportunities were communicated and solicited through the DOE newsroom and priority notices (2020, 2021, 2023). Over the past 3 years, the ESSA stakeholder workgroups have continued to review and provide feedback as accountability and school support models evolve and as Maine has implemented the ESSA.

The group is geographically diverse with representation from key stakeholder groups including but not limited to Superintendents, Parents, School Teaching staff, Central Office staff, Principals, and Board Members. Each member of the workgroup advised, recommended, and provided input on elements included in Maine’s Consolidated ESSA Plan including Accountability, School Improvement, and the ESEA Consolidated Application. This group met monthly May – August 2021, and again in June and July 2023. Further opportunities for engagement will be forthcoming.

Maine Educators Provide Valuable Input Through Maine Educational Assessments Panels

The Maine Department of Education wishes to extend a special thank you to the Maine educators who recently participated in educator panels across the Maine Educational Assessments: Maine Through Year, Maine Science, Multi-State Alternate Assessment, and WIDA ACCESS for ELLs.

Below is a list of panels and the dates they were held:

Multi-State Alternate Assessment, Item Review Committee, June 2023
MSAA Science, Standard Setting, July 2023
Maine Science Assessment, Rangefinding, July 2023
Maine Through Year Assessment, Alignment Study and Embedded Standard Setting, July 2023
WIDA ACCESS for ELLs, Online Forms Review August 2023
Maine Through Year Assessment, Content & Bias Review, August 2023

The expertise of Maine educators is critical to the development of the state’s assessments. Their engagement ensures that Maine continues to strive towards high standards and achievement for all Maine students. Many thanks to the following panelists for sharing their time and expertise during this review!

Below are the names of educators pictured above, listed from left to right:

Row 1: Mark Dennett, Kelley Wallace, Morgan Brewer, Melanie Bowlus, Abbey Trask, Rachel Ahearn, Nicole Lemay
Row 2: Travis Michaud, Amanda West, Lisa Russell, Lacey Todd, Brian Rounds, Christina O’Grady, Erin McGuan
Row 3: Amy Tucker, Melanie Duran, Sarah Collins, Tricia Alley, Misty Favreau, Jennifer England, Karen Galella
Row 4: Karen Laliberte, Amy Mousseau, Michelle DeBlois, Jenny Chichocki-Perry, Stacy Del Gallo, Michelle Hayward, Emily Darby
Row 5: Wendy Dunbar, Tammy Craig, Teresa Sinclair, Anne Tibbets

Below are the names of educators who participated but are not pictured:

Andrea Bozzino, Kailie Bascom, Ann Kenny, Barbara Marshall, Katherine Miller, Victoria Kasper, Autumn Pepin, Machaela Howatt, James Skrabak, Daniel Magas, Michelle Reynolds, Elizabeth Ross, Tamara Flewelling, Kerry Lathrop, Paula Cole, Misty Houlsen, Melanie Ruark, JoDell Torrey, Melissa Adams, Lori Smith, Molly Perry, Melissa Arbour, Karen Mayo, Sharon Pelkey, MaryAnn Wheeler, Kristina Swensen, Nicole Ellis, Diana Iwaszkiewicz Carson, Danielle Pouzol, Francine Young, April Flagg, Sara Crabtree, Scott Bickerstaff, Shannon Scribner, Juliet Tinckham, Ian Campbell, Amanda Boynton, Megan Moyniham, Kaitlyn Silva, Patricia Adams, Kate Greeley, Fallyn Adams, Linda Ross, Melanie Slocum, Rachel Larrabee, Melanie Doran, Rebecca Eugley

ESEA Annual Comprehensive Needs Assessments (CNA) Updates

Another annual process for SAUs is meeting with a variety of stakeholders to update their district and school Comprehensive Needs Assessments (CNA) based on new data. As part of the ESEA application, districts are asked to document the high-needs areas of their districts and schools, as well as the data sources they used to make those determinations, the names of the stakeholders involved, and the dates the updates were conducted.

Members of the ESEA team recently held a joint session with the assessment team to discuss with school administrative units (SAUs) how the change to the Maine Through-Year Assessment will affect the CNA process.

Watch a recording of ESEA & Assessment Teams Joint Information Session:

SAUs must update as much of their CNA as possible before the initial submission of the FY24 ESEA Application (due August 1st) to determine high areas of need and to generate goals—particularly the required non-academic goal(s).

SAUs without alternative assessment data will need to further update their CNA and generate academic goals when state assessment results become available.

For Substantial Approval, math and literacy goal requirements at both the school and district levels will be temporarily waived; non-academic goals will still be required.

SAUs may put placeholder information into the required fields of the application when applicable.

For Final Approval, all district and school goal requirements must be met.

For more information reach out to Maine DOE ESEA Federal Programs Director Cheryl L. Lang at Cheryl.Lang@maine.gov.

Virtual Panelist Opportunity for Maine Educators

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is currently recruiting elementary and secondary educators in grades 3-8 and high school to participate in an upcoming educator committee opportunity for the State general assessment in Reading and Math, the Maine Through Year Assessment.  Maine educators and the Maine DOE play a crucial role in the development of this assessment. Assessment development is an iterative process in which educator committees meet annually to review and improve elements of the Maine Through Year Assessment.

While no prior experience is required, panelists should be experts currently teaching the students who participate in the Maine Through Year Assessment and, also have a thorough understanding of the Common Core State Standards in their subject area(s) of expertise: Reading and Math.

Panelists will support the Embedded Standard Setting (ESS) and Alignment Study for Maine’s Reading and/or Math Assessments. Panelists will review the Common Core State Standards and provide ratings regarding the alignment of the Maine Through Year Assessment forms, items, and achievement level descriptors (ALDs) for each grade, 3 through 8 and grade 10. The educator panels will be grade and content-area specific for a total of 14 panels. Given the adaptive structure of the assessments in grades 3 through 8, panelists will review three test forms for each content area in each of these grades. One form will represent the items that a student earning a lower score would have experienced, one form the items that a student scoring in the mid-range of the score scale could have experienced, and one form the items that a student earning a higher score would have experienced. For grade 10, which is not yet adaptive, panelists will review a fixed form.

ESS analyses will be performed to identify achievement level cut scores that optimize the consistency between alignment study panelists’ item-ALD alignments and empirical data.

Current needs include:

Subject	Date/Time*	Location	# of Educators	Stipend
Reading	July 18-20, 2023, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.	Virtual	5 educators per grade-level panel	$300 ($100 per day)
Math	July 25-27, 2023, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.	Virtual	5 educators per grade-level panel	$300 ($100 per day)

*Participants must be able to attend all three days.

Please consider applying and sharing this upcoming opportunity with colleagues. The expertise and contributions of Maine educators are a critical element of the continued development cycle for the Maine Educational Assessments.  Interested? Complete the panelist registration survey by Tuesday, June 20, 2023.

Professional Learning Series: Learn about the WIDA English Language Development Standards for Multilingual Learners

Are you a classroom or content area teacher with multilingual learners (MLs) in your classroom? If you’re looking to enhance your practice, the WIDA English Language Development (ELD) Standards are a great place to start. The ELD Standards are the essential foundation for providing effective instruction for MLs.

Join April Perkins, ESOL & Bilingual Programs Specialist, for a statewide virtual professional learning community (PLC) to support you in integrating this standards framework into your practice. See dates and topics below. All PLC sessions will be from 3:30-4:30pm. To receive the Zoom link for each session, click on the links in the Module/Topic column.

The PLC will be centered around the WIDA self-paced eWorkshop WIDA ELD Standards Framework: A Collaborative Approach. Participants will complete each module in advance of the session. In order to access the eWorkshop, you will need a free WIDA Secure Portal account, which you can obtain by contacting WIDA Client Services at 1-866-276-7735.

If you have any questions, contact April Perkins at april.perkins@maine.gov.

Date	Module/Topic
9.20.22	Module 1: Connect Current Knowledge and Practices to the WIDA ELD Standards Framework
10.18.22	Module 2: Integrate Student Assets into Content Learning
11.8.22	Module 3: Focus on Key Language Uses
12.13.22	Module 4: Identify Language Expectations Within a Unit
1.17.23	Module 5: Put Language Expectations into Action
2.28.23	Module 6: Plan for Language Growth Over Time

Priority Notice: 2022-2023 Assessment Calendar and Assessment Program Updates

Thank you, Maine educators and administrators! Your hard work, diligence to scheduling, and investment in assessments supported and ensured a successful administration of state assessments during the 2021 – 2022 school year.

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) remains committed to our mission of promoting learning opportunities of the highest quality for all Maine students by providing information, guidance, and support to our schools, educators, and school administrative unit (SAU) leadership, and we’re excited to share some updates to the Maine assessment program. This includes ensuring that Maine’s assessment system provides educators and SAU leadership with the timely data they need, while limiting the amount of instructional time impacted by necessary assessment administration.

During the height of the COVID-19 global pandemic, the Maine DOE heard from and responded to the needs expressed by SAUs and schools to focus more on supporting students. The Maine DOE formed a partnership with NWEA to expand MAP Growth to all schools and SAUs for grades 3-8 and high school as an emergency effort to provide educators, school communities, and the state with real-time information about student achievement.

The Maine Department of Education has continued to hear from educators and administrators across the state that timely and useful data to inform instruction remain vitally important. We have also heard that growth measures comparing the performance of different cohorts each spring have been unhelpful. Therefore, in the spring of 2023, the Maine DOE will begin implementing a flexible, innovative assessment that is similar to the MAP Growth assessment model for math and reading in grades 3-8 and the second year of high school. This assessment will also serve as our federally required, statewide assessment. The assessments will be adaptive each year for grades 3-8, and fixed form (not adaptive) in the second year of high school. The first administration will occur during the spring 2023 assessment administration window, with a full transition to a through-year (a required fall assessment and optional winter implementation) model in the 2023-24 school year. Growth will then be measured based on fall to spring performance within the same cohort of students. Assessment items will include well-vetted, adaptive MAP Growth items along with specific grade-level items, producing a valid RIT score that is nationally comparable and will provide a measure of consistency over time in addition to Maine-specific grade level performance levels.

This transition will allow us to maintain existing interim assessments and the required summative assessment in fewer assessment administrations in a manner that will provide a system of equitable, student-centered, and personalized measures to provide evidence, data, and instructionally relevant information and tools.

What is a flexible, through-year assessment program?

The assessments are intended to provide information for educators throughout the year. This means assessments can be administered 2-3 times a year: fall, winter (optional), and spring. Although many of the elements below are a familiar part of the current program, items highlighted** reflect new features/functionality now available.

The assessments are computer adaptive, providing a personalized experience for each student.
The assessments provide educators information about student performance relative to end of year achievement level expectations. **
The assessments are efficient, leveraging information about how students performed in previous administrations to personalize later assessment experiences. **
The spring assessment generates a summative score that meets federal requirements. **
The assessments support within year growth and national comparisons via a norm-referenced score (i.e., RIT scores) provided after each administration.

Key benefits of this flexible, through-year state assessment model for educators and students in Maine include:

A two- to three-times-per-year assessment program that allows for performance monitoring while eliminating the need for a standalone and disconnected state summative assessment each spring, supporting the continuity of the overall assessment experience. **
In addition to a state scale score, the assessment will provide RIT scores that yield national normative information.
A reduction of overall assessment administrations compared to prior assessment administration cycles. There will only be two required administrations of math and reading each year. There will no longer be a separate language usage assessment.
A reduction in lost instructional time (each assessment is estimated to take less than 1 hour).
New, interactive reports and tools designed to provide timely and actionable information to support our Maine educators and students.
Continued cost saving for district leaders as this program will provide districts and schools with information previously provided by interim assessments, reducing the need for districts to purchase an interim assessment.

Next steps:

To support a smooth transition, the Maine DOE will continue to provide MAP Growth administrations for Math and Reading in the fall (required) and winter (optional) of the 2022/2023 school as we prepare for the spring 2023 administration. Maine DOE will be sponsoring professional learning opportunities designed to support educators in the administration of the assessment and their use of through-year data for instructional purposes. Further information regarding professional learning will be forthcoming.
It should be noted, there are no changes to the alternate assessment provided to students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. The Multi-State Alternate Assessment (MSAA) will continue to be utilized in mathematics, ELA, and science.

Assessment Calendar Now Available

The assessment calendar for the 2022-2023 school year is now available. The schedule is located below and available on the assessment calendar webpage.

Assessment	Content Area	Grades	Assessment Window Dates
NWEA (fall-required)	Math & Reading	3 -8, 2nd year of HS	October 3 – 28, 2022
ACCESS for ELLs Alt. ACCESS for ELLs	English Language Proficiency	K-12	January 9, 2023 – March 3, 2023
NWEA (Winter -optional)	Math & Reading	3 -8, 2nd year of HS	January 9, 2023 – February 3, 2023
MSAA	Math, ELA, Science	Grades 3 – 8, 3rd year of HS Grades 5, 8 and 3rd year of HS	March 13, 2023- April 28, 2023
NWEA (spring- required)	Math & Reading	3 – 8, 2nd year of HS	May 1 -26, 2023
Maine Science	Science	Grades 5, 8 and 3rd year of HS	May 15 – 26, 2023

Questions can be directed to Janette Kirk, Chief, Office of Federal Programs.

Maine DOE Thanks Maine Educators Serving on Multi-State Alternate Assessment Item Review Committee

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) wishes to thank the ten Maine educators who recently participated in the Multi-State Alternate Assessment (MSAA) Item Review Committee in Minneapolis, Minnesota!

MSAA is Maine’s alternate assessment is based on alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS) in ELA/literacy and mathematics, for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who have been found eligible by the IEP Team. As a partner in the MSAA Consortium, Maine engages actively in the ongoing development cycle of this assessment throughout the year. As a result of this collaboration, Maine’s students with the most significant cognitive disabilities participate in state assessment that has been designed with input from the same dedicated and expert Maine educators who serve this population every day.

During the Item Review Committee, Maine educators served on panels to review proposed items for the Spring 2023 MSAA. Items were reviewed for both alignment to content and potential bias and sensitivity issues. Panelists also provided critical feedback on the accessibility of items across diverse student populations. During this experience, Maine participants collaborated with educators from across the MSAA Partner Entities: TN, AZ, MT, DC, the Bureau of Indian Education, the Department of Defense Schools, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

The expertise of Maine educators is critical to the development of the state’s alternate assessments. Their engagement ensures that Maine continues to strive towards high standards and achievement for all Maine students with the most significant cognitive disabilities.

Many thanks to the following panelists for sharing their time and expertise during this review!