Daily education rates set for special purpose private schools

The daily education rates for special purpose private schools have been set for the 2013-14 school year.

Special purpose private schools may charge less than the established daily rate but cannot charge school administrative units (SAUs) or the Maine DOE more than the rate established below. Daily education rate does not include charges for related services determined per each student’s individualized education program.

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Survey on educator evaluation implementation

Dear Superintendents,

I am pleased to introduce myself as the Educator Effectiveness Coordinator for the Maine Department of Education. In my first two weeks with the Department, I have gained a broad sense of the status of performance evaluation and professional growth (PE/PG) systems implementation among school administrative units (SAUs) across the state.  I am now seeking to refine my understanding and at the same time develop a mutually-valuable, continuous source of data, information and resources for you. Continue reading “Survey on educator evaluation implementation” →

Oct. 21-25 National Digital Citizenship Week

Common Sense Media has declared Oct. 21-25 as National Digital Citizenship Week to teach students about being safe and smart online. Maine educators are invited to engage students in grade-appropriate lessons about what it means to be online, which may help students identify and stand up to cyberbullying.

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DOE, UMaine launch autism resource, research institute

AUGUSTA – Mainers who serve children with autism and their families will soon have a statewide system of supports.

The Maine Autism Institute for Education and Research (MAIER), a partnership of the Maine Department of Education and the University of Maine’s College of Education and Human Development, will open on Jan. 1 at the UMaine campus. The two organizations have committed to contribute a total of $288,000 to fund the first 18 months of the new collaborative.

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Commissioner’s Update – October 17, 2013

From the Maine DOE

In the spring of 2018, the students now in eighth grade will become the state’s first class to graduate having demonstrated their mastery of all State standards in the eight content areas of the Maine Learning Results.

Last week, the Department rolled out the resources we created to support schools in this transition to the proficiency-based diploma, most notably our comprehensive online resource center at www.maine.gov/doe/proficiency.

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Notices and Reporting

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Successful transition to proficiency-based diploma starts now

In the spring of 2018, the students now in eighth grade will become the state’s first class to graduate having demonstrated their mastery of all State standards in the eight content areas of the Maine Learning Results.

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Maine students show improved proficiency in math, reading

Performance of third-year high school students increased in math and reading, but students showed concerning slippage in the content areas tested for which schools are not held accountable for achievement results

AUGUSTA – Proficiency in math and reading is on the rise again in Maine high schools according to the scores just in from last May’s SAT, suggesting students are better prepared for success in college and their careers.

Most notable was the nearly 2 percent increase in the number of tested students who achieved proficiency or above in critical reading, up from 47.2 percent in 2011-12 to 48.9 percent in 2012-13, with 8.6 percent of those students exceeding proficiency standards.

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Educators help develop formative assessment digital library

This summer, 71 Maine educators began helping to develop a formative assessment digital library to accompany Maine’s new assessments, which will be administered starting in the spring of 2015. The library is an online, interactive clearinghouse of resources, tools and professional learning opportunities for educators, students and families. It will include examples of instructional best practices at each grade level, strategies for cross-classroom collaboration and professional development resources related to the assessment system, such as scoring rubrics for performance tasks.

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Upcoming events provide dyslexia information

Project D.E.B.U.N.K. (Dyslexia Educational Bandwagon, Uniting Noteworthy Kids!) along with Decoding Dyslexia-Maine is inviting educators, legislators and Maine families to several upcoming informational events.

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ELA teachers to host colleagues for teacher-led discussion of next generation assessments

In partnership with the Maine DOE, the Maine Council of English Language Arts is hosting two informational Dine and Discuss sessions about Maine’s next generation assessments. Each session, one at Kennebunk High School and one in Rockland at Oceanside High School, will be facilitated by Maine teachers who participated in range finding on last year’s pilot test of the performance task full writes.

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