AUGUSTA – The Maine Charter School Commission (MCSC) has received applications from four groups interested in opening public charter schools in the fall of 2014.
Those submitting applications by the Dec. 2 deadline to join Maine’s five existing public charter schools included Lewiston-Auburn Academy Charter School, Lewiston; Maine Connections Academy; Maine Virtual Academy; and Many Hands Montessori School, Windham.
Continue reading “New schools proposed to Charter Commission”
As Maine moves to a new high school equivalency exam, thousands looking to advance their career and post-secondary aspirations are completing the current GED® this year though doing so before 2014 is not required
AUGUSTA – A record high number of Mainers have earned their high school equivalency credential this year in advance of the State moving to a new exam provider starting in 2014.
Already in the first 10 months of 2013, 2,699 Mainers have successful completed their GED®, a significant increase over the 1,878 who did so in 2012 and the 2,258 who did so in 2011.
Continue reading “Record number of Mainers earning high school credential”
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”
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.
Continue reading “DOE, UMaine launch autism resource, research institute”
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.
Continue reading “Maine students show improved proficiency in math, reading”