Greene school shows its stuff to Ed Commissioner

Teachers say they are eager to use new academic standards and talk about their success in raising student achievement.

GREENE — The students at Greene Central School have made steady progress in reading ever since their school fell short of federal testing benchmarks four years ago.

Using federal school improvement money, staff members developed a plan that emphasized intensive training for teachers and using regular classroom tests to determine how to help students make progress, according to Principal Pamela Doyen.

Continue reading “Greene school shows its stuff to Ed Commissioner”

Ed commissioner embarks on “listening tour”

Bowen seeking input from all nine superintendent regions in first 100 days

AUGUSTA – Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen announced he will visit schools, superintendents and parents in each of the state’s nine superintendent regions in the first 100 days he is on the job. He also announced the first three dates on this “Listening Tour.”

“I want to hear from educators in the field about the work they are doing, and about how the Department can best support them in that work, and from parents their thoughts about how we can make our schools better,” Bowen said. “People in the field know what they need. Most important, I want to hear about their ideas for making the Department better and making education in Maine better.

Continue reading “Ed commissioner embarks on “listening tour””

Maine DOE releases school construction list

Ranks needs in 71 school projects

AUGUSTA – The Maine Department of Education presented its ranking of the pre-K-12 school projects with the most significant needs to the State Board of Education on Wednesday. The proposed “priority list” is the first rating of school construction projects since the 2004-05 rating cycle, through which 22 schools were approved for renovation or construction.

Continue reading “Maine DOE releases school construction list”

Bowen: Vote on rigorous standards creates certainty for Maine schools

Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen said Monday’s unanimous passage by the Education Committee of the Common Core State Standards means schools throughout the state can start focusing on adjusting their curriculum to the new, rigorous standards.

Continue reading “Bowen: Vote on rigorous standards creates certainty for Maine schools”

Challenging Courses Net Results for Maine

College Board report shows Maine excels in Advanced Placement courses and exams

AUGUSTA – A new report from the College Board shows that efforts by school districts and more than 800 Maine teachers to challenge their students with rigorous courses are paying off.

Maine now ranks 12th in the nation for the percentage of students in the Class of 2010 having at least one successful AP experience: almost one in five Maine high school seniors has taken a college-level course and scored at least a 3 out of 5 on the AP exam, considered suitable college-level performance and eligible for credit at many colleges and universities. Maine has a higher percentage of students participating in AP courses than the national average, and a higher percentage of students scoring well on the AP exams.

Continue reading “Challenging Courses Net Results for Maine”