Trying to determine whether a lesson plan, textbook or other item aligns with Maine’s updated math and English language arts (ELA) standards? A free comprehensive toolkit for evaluating alignment to the Expectation of those standards is now available.
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The Maine DOE is recruiting schools to serve as field testing sites to administer the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) Science Inquiry Tasks in grades 5, 8 and 11. These field tests give students the opportunity to engage with science content in a different way than traditional assessments and provide feedback about their experience.
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The University of Maine Project Reach program invites K-12 teachers across subject areas to apply to its scholarship program, which aims to improve classroom instruction for English learners (ELs) in Maine. The project focuses efforts on current teachers of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects and provides a variety of professional and financial assistance to help teachers complete the English as a Second Language (ESL) endorsement coursework.
Continue reading “Spring training for educators of English learners”
The National History Day (NHD) Teacher Institutes for grade 6-12 educators who are preparing to participate in the NHD competition with their students will be held Thursday, Oct. 24 at the University of Maine and Wednesday, Nov. 20 at the Maine Historical Society in Portland.
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Social studies teachers are invited to attend the 2013 Maine Council for the Social Studies Conference, “Content, Instruction and Technology: Standards-Based Approaches for 21st Century Learners.”
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New and experienced gifted and talented educators will have a chance to learn new skills and practices at upcoming mentoring workshops in Bangor and Augusta sponsored by the Maine DOE.
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The Federal Emergency Management Agency offers a three-hour, web-based training that provides leading practices and resources to assist elementary and secondary schools, institutions of higher education and houses of worship in developing emergency plans. The training, titled “Preparing for Mass-Casualty Incidents: A Guide for Schools, Higher Education and Houses of Worship,” will help audiences prepare for, respond to and recover from mass-casualty incidents.
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Beginning this testing year, the listening test of Assessing Comprehension and Communications in English State to State for English Language Learners (ACCESS for ELLs®) will be media-based, meaning that all listening items for all tiers and grades 1-12 are prerecorded. Rather than listening to the test administrator read the scripted items as in the past, the students will listen to a recording. This allows for students to listen to more authentic language use, such as conversations involving more than one speaker.
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Maine teachers, administrators and school technology experts are invited to attend the Association of Computer Technology Educators in Maine (ACTEM) conference to improve technology use in the classroom. This year’s theme, “‘X’ Marks the Spot – Destination Learning,” aims to investigate the evolving landscape of technology in schools.
As part of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act, all Maine schools annually assess the English language proficiency (ELP) of their English learners in kindergarten through grade 12 using Assessing Comprehension and Communications in English State to State for English Language Learners (ACCESS for ELLs®), a standards-based ELP assessment common throughout the state. The testing cycle for 2013-14 is as follows: Continue reading “Maine’s 2013-14 ACCESS for ELLs® testing cycle available”
