Over the next few days you will start to receive information about the A-F school grading system, which will be released soon. I will be sharing some of the data with you, and more explanation of how the grading system works. We’ll also be scheduling webinars with superintendents to explain the system and how we plan to unveil it.
Students compete in trade and leadership contests
More than 800 students from 22 technical schools and two colleges competed in trade and leadership contests at the 2013 SkillsUSA Maine State Championships in March at the United Technologies Center and Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor. Gold medalists from this event will have the opportunity to represent the State of Maine at the national championships in Kansas City.
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Attend CTE literacy training
Maine Administrators of Career and Technical Education (MACTE) and the Maine DOE CTE team are co-sponsoring a day-long “Developing Instructional Literacy Strategies for Maine CTE Educators” training. This interactive professional development opportunity offers CTE instructors a practical working definition of literacy that lends itself to integration in a CTE curriculum. Participants in the training will leave with a set of literacy strategies that can be applied to their CTE instructional classrooms and shops.
Former Maine teacher releases book on senior capstone
Linda Aronson, who taught for six years at Hall-Dale High School initiating and developing the senior capstone, has crafted the book Unleashed to Learn: Empowering Students to Learn at Full Capacity out of her experience. Part case study and part advocacy, Aronson describes her work at Hall-Dale and argues passionately for more learner-led education and performance assessment in schools.
Performance assessment–in which students pursue genuine interests, in real world settings, and in ways that suit their learning styles–is one of the keystones of Maine’s vision of proficiency-based/learner-centered education. Continue reading “Former Maine teacher releases book on senior capstone”
Being a Laker, then and now
By Jamie Riel, teacher leader and student advocate, Lake Region High School
I joined the Lake Region High School community shortly after it was recognized as a failing school. Upon reflection, I am convinced there are few things that can be done to or said about a school that has a worse effect than being tagged with such a label. Teachers and staff had worked diligently to offer a quality educational experience to students, and many students worked hard to take advantage of those offerings. Continue reading “Being a Laker, then and now”
Senior reflects on Lake Region HS’s transformation
By Kasey Huntress, senior, Lake Region High School
I’ve always been a big believer in school pride, and thus the changes that Lake Region High School went through after being identified as a “low-performing school” my freshman year were especially hard for me. I had chosen to attend Lake Region over a high school from a different district, and because of that, the bad press and insults surrounding our school following this identification angered me to no end. I had chosen to come to Lake Region because of the overwhelming sense of community and pride that I experienced every time I visited; the welcoming nature that made me feel as if this were the place that I belonged. Where was the press that exposed that side of our school?
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Two Maine schools invited to participate in AP STEM Access program
The College Board shared the following news release with the Maine DOE for publication.
AUGUSTA—Hampden Academy and Scarborough High School are among 800 schools across the country invited to participate in the AP STEM Access program, created to increase the number of traditionally underrepresented minority and female high school students that participate in Advanced Placement® courses in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) disciplines.
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Sign-up fifth grade classes for hurricane awareness webinars
The University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography’s Hurricanes: Science and Society (HSS) project will present webinars for fifth grade classes in the Northeast region on May 8 and 15. Teachers may register their classes on the HSS website.
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Bonny Eagle eighth grader wins Maine Geographic Bee
Archer Thomas, an eighth grader from Bonny Eagle Middle School, took top honors at the 2013 Maine state-level Geographic Bee held April 5 at the University of Maine Farmington. Thomas received $100 and the “Complete National Geographic on DVD,” and will represent Maine in the national finals of the Bee at National Geographic Society headquarters, May 20-22, 2013.
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Register for Emergency Preparedness Conference
The fifth annual Maine Partners in Emergency Preparedness Conference will focus on school emergency preparedness lessons and is open to superintendents, principals and school emergency preparedness teams.
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Maine DOE Newsroom 