Schools sought to participate in paper-pencil research study

Approximately 150 schools from across the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium including Maine are being recruited to participate in the Paper-Pencil Research Study. Each participating school will be asked to administer one or two test forms to two classes in grades 3 and 6. A classroom will be assigned a single content area and form. The total testing time for any given student as part of the study is expected to be approximately 90 minutes. Testing can be scheduled at the school to occur anytime during the testing window, currently scheduled to begin May 12.

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Maine DOE to host regional workshops for principals as instructional leaders

The Maine DOE is offering a series of free regional workshops this month to support principals in mentoring and coaching teachers to implement instructional practices that allow all students to demonstrate growth and proficiency in State standards.
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Committed to rigorous standards, aligned assessments

Last week, the Maine Education Association (MEA) announced its reservations about the updated math and ELA standards that were incorporated into the Maine Learning Results back in 2011 and have been being implemented in Maine schools since. They also called for a moratorium on the next generation of assessments aligned to those standards, developed in collaboration with Maine teachers and the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, of which Maine is currently a governing member.

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RFP issued for assessment system administrator

The Maine DOE has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking bids for the development of a web-based computer-adaptive testing system utilizing the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium’s common assessments for mathematics and English language arts. The resulting system must be available for operational testing by January 2015.

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Learning from the latest NECAP results: Part II

In last week’s Commissioner’s Update, I shared with you an analysis of the statewide math and reading results for the 2013-14 New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP), administered this past October.

With the exception of Grade 5 math and writing, we saw flat or declining scores in all other grades and content areas. Digging into the data shows us where strengths and struggles are, and focuses improvement initiatives.

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Maine DOE prepares to release school report cards, outlines changes

In an effort to expand the snapshot of a school the report card provides, the Department will add information about student poverty, teacher tenure and education levels, and funding

AUGUSTA – The Maine Department of Education has begun creating the 2014 school report cards that will be published in May.

For the second straight year, the Department will use existing school performance and progress data to provide the public a snapshot of how the state’s 600 schools are doing.

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Notice to superintendents, principals on school grades

Dear Superintendents and Principals,

Next month, our Department will release the second round of school report cards, using existing data to provide the public a snapshot of how all Maine schools are doing.

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Notice to superintendents on 2014 Commissioner’s Conference

Dear Superintendents,

I wanted to personally invite you to save the date for our 103^rd Annual Commissioner’s Conference for Superintendents, scheduled to run from noon on Monday, June 23 through noon on Wednesday, June 25 at Point Lookout in Northport (please note the Monday start).

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Learning from the latest NECAP results: Part I

Earlier this week, the Department released the state-level results for the 2013-14 New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP). The test was administered back in October and districts have had (and hopefully been closely analyzing) their individual results since January.

From the state-level data, we can see that while the majority of Maine’s elementary school students are still proficient in math (60.2 percent) and reading (69.1 percent), there are concerning performance declines across the board. While proficiency went up in Grade 5 math and writing and was flat in Grade 3, 5 and 7 reading as well as Grade 7 math, it was down in both math and reading for Grades 3, 4, 6 and 8.

Just as we as a Department encourage you to dig into your data to inform your understanding of challenges and opportunities, we’ve been doing the same here.

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Maine DOE releases elementary student assessment results

AUGUSTA – The majority of Maine’s elementary school students are still proficient in reading and math, but State Education Department officials say performance declines in all grade levels tested are a reminder of the importance of school-led improvement work continuing.

The performance of students in grades three through eight, as measured by the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) administered in October, comes just months after the Department announced proficiency in math and reading was on the rise again in Maine high schools, according to scores from the 2013 SAT.

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