MetaMetrics is looking for first-grade teachers who are willing to administer a short online study to their students for an ongoing early reader research initiative. The goals of this research include improving understanding of what makes text complex for the earliest readers and how early reading ability can be assessed reliably and fairly across different populations of students.
Continue reading “First-grade classrooms needed for Lexile research study”
Maine Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen announced the King Middle School sixth-and seventh-grade teacher as Maine’s top educator in a surprise all-school assembly Tuesday
PORTLAND – A 24-year veteran teacher at the state’s most diverse middle school is the 2014 Maine Teacher of the Year.
In a surprise assembly at King Middle School (KMS) in Portland Tuesday morning, Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen announced Karen MacDonald, who has served students in Portland Public Schools since 1979, as Maine’s top teacher.
Continue reading “Portland’s Karen MacDonald named 2014 Maine Teacher of the Year”
As you may have seen in the press, some concerns and questions have been raised recently about the Common Core standards in math and ELA, which the State incorporated into its Learning Results standards in 2011. Many of those concerns seem to stem from suspicions that the Common Core is an attempt by the federal government to influence education policy in the states and, as a consequence, that the adoption of these standards will diminish Maine’s longstanding tradition of local control as it regards things like curricula and instructional approaches. Continue reading “Affirming Maine’s commitment to high standards, implemented locally”
Teachers and administrators are reminded that Smarter Balanced practice tests are available all grade levels from 3 to 8 and at grade 11. These practice tests are an excellent way for teachers to preview what to expect in spring 2015, for students to get practice in online testing and for parents to begin to understand how the new tests will better assess student achievement and understanding of both content and concepts. Continue reading “Reminder: Smarter Balanced practice test available”
AUGUSTA – Governor Paul R. LePage signed an executive order today affirming Maine’s commitment to protecting local education control and student privacy rights.
The Governor’s action prohibiting the influence of the federal government into Maine’s education policy comes after parents and educators have raised concerns about the Obama Administration’s attempts to hijack successful state-led education reforms, including more rigorous, relevant standards in mathematics and English language arts Maine voluntarily adopted in common with other states in 2011.
Continue reading “Governor LePage signs Executive Order protecting local control, student privacy”
New implementation resources focused on central elements of the new English language arts and literacy standards are now available to Maine educators.
They include a new set of online tools to guide teachers in analyzing texts for complexity and using them in instructional units. These resources, developed by a dozen states including Maine in collaboration with the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and Achieve the Core, include text complexity roadmaps, model text sets for instruction, tools for analyzing texts, recommended text-dependent questions and sample lesson videos.
Continue reading “New tools help teachers navigate ELA standards”
Trying to paint a picture for your parents, school board members or community leaders of what school looks like with the new standards in math and English language arts?
Continue reading “What does a Common Core classroom look like?”
By this fall, schools are expected to have fully implemented the new Common Core English language arts and math standards that are now part of the Maine Learning Results standards. Of course, there’s still much for teachers and all of us to learn about how to adjust our teaching to the new standards, but we know that new standards require teachers to think differently about what they do in the classroom. Below is a quick overview of the six shifts that have been identified as critical to effectively implementing the Common Core standards in ELA. Looking for a little summertime study? Read to the bottom for links to additional resources.
The funding from the Maine Department of Education will help transform the struggling school and increase student proficiency, teacher effectiveness and community engagement
LEWISTON – Montello Elementary School will use $1.8 million in new State support to improve student proficiency by double-digit percentages, enhance teacher effectiveness and better engage the community.
The Maine Department of Education announced its award Thursday to the struggling Lewiston school, which joins 10 others across the state – including the Governor James B. Longley School also in Lewiston – that have received significant funding since 2010 through the federal School Improvement Grant program (SIG) to initiate intensive reforms that advance student achievement.
Continue reading “State awards Lewiston’s Montello Elementary $1.8 million for school improvement”
AUGUSTA – For the first time since the Maine Learning Technology Initiative began in 2002, schools have made a choice in the solutions they will use for 21st century teaching and learning.
This fall, 39,457 students and educators will start using Apple’s iPad tablet ($266 per year, per seat with network), followed by 24,128 using Apple’s MacBook Air laptop ($319 per year, per seat with network) and 5,474 using the HP ProBook 4440 laptop which runs Microsoft Windows 7 ($286 per year, per seat with network).
Continue reading “Schools embrace first chance for choice of learning technology”
Maine DOE Newsroom 