Maine Department of Education Monthly Assessment Update
Shifting the Culture of Assessment
Over the summer months, the team has been working hard with the help of an intern to develop information and infographics to support understanding about Maine’s summative assessments, their purpose, and how educators utilize provided data. With this in mind, you’ll notice that the assessment team is removing “test” terminology and replacing it with the term “assessment.” This change in terminology reflects the intent of an assessment – to assess where a student is performing in relation to state expectations at a single point in time. Over the coming months, you will see changes in this language in the Departments Test Administration Manuals (TAM), Test Security Handbook (TAS), Test Security Agreements (TSA) and other documents. You will not see changes related to language within the assessment platforms at this time. This is a more long-term project and will be implemented gradually.
Waiver and Planning for Spring 2021 Administration
As you may be aware, the Department requested public comment regarding seeking a waiver from assessment implementation in spring 2021 from the US Department of Education. As the Department continues to finalize this waiver request, we are also working to plan for the implementation of spring 2021 assessment should the waiver request not be granted. With that being said you will be receiving requests related to technology updates, SAT Establishment Survey, and applicable assessment timelines. The MEA Calendar for spring 2021 assessment administration is now available on the assessment webpages.
SAT Establishment Survey
College Board will be releasing their initial request for the completion of the SAT Establishment Survey to high schools on 9/3/20. This is an early annual request to begin preparations for the Maine spring 2021 SAT School Day assessment on 4/13/21 (make-up date 4/27/21). We understand that all districts/schools are prioritizing and focusing on individual district and school reopening plans however, as mentioned above, we must also plan for 2021 spring administration. We ask you communicate with your high schools to let them know the survey request will be arriving in their inboxes from College Board just before Labor Day. The response time frame has been extended. The completed survey is due 9/21/20. As a reminder, this survey includes information such as:
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Test Day Staff – SAT and SSD Test Coordinators must be established so that all communication regarding the SAT assessment reaches the appropriate staff.
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Staff Requirements
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Off-Site Testing process
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Trainings
Update: SAT and Fall 2020 Make-Ups
As a reminder, the Department will not be providing a fall 2020 SAT for students impacted by the non-administration of the SAT in the spring of 2020. Should a school or district wish to provide the SAT assessment to rising seniors should reach out directly to the College Board. Schools and test centers make these decisions on an individual basis. The College Board reminds test centers to report closures as quickly as possible to help ensure students are notified in advance of test day. Once test centers notify the College Board of closure or reduced capacity, the College Board will email students directly to notify them of the change. A full list of reported closures is located on the College Board Test Center Closings page, which is continuously updated. The College Board is encouraging students to opt in to receive text message updates if they haven’t done so already. Students are also encouraged to check their email regularly for messages from the College Board, to check with their local test center, and to check the Test Center Closings page up until the morning of the test.
The College Board has reached out to colleges to extend deadlines for receiving SAT test scores (if applicable) and to equally consider students for admission who are unable to take the test as a result of COVID-19. Colleges understand that testing opportunities are limited this year, and most colleges are not requiring a test score for the upcoming admissions cycle. The College Board also added a weekend SAT administration and an SAT School Day administration in September to give students additional opportunities to participate in the SAT.
If a test center closes, impacted students will receive a refund and then can opt to re-register for a future test date through their College Board account. For more information, please visit the SAT Coronavirus Updates page.
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SAT Covid-19 Updates for SAT Weekend, SAT School Day, and PSAT/NMSQT for Fall 2020 – this includes information about mask requirements, distancing, and health screening questions at SAT Weekend Test Centers
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Find an SAT Test Center – students can use this link to find an SAT Test Center
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Test Center Closings – this link includes information about reported test center closures; as we get nearer to test day it will be updated several times a day
AP Communications Toolkit
The College Board has released an AP Communications Kit for Districts. The kits allow for personalization and contain ready-made communications to share AP updates and supports with your school community. The new communications kit also includes email templates to parents and staff, social media and website posts, graphics, and more.
To download the kit, visit: apcentral.collegeboard.org/pptx/districts-communications-kit-ap-2020-21.pptx
WIDA Corrected Score Reports Available August 26th
The student score report correction window closed July 1st. Thank you to those who informed the Department of errors on student reports and submitted a score report request. The adjusted score reports will be available in the WIDA AMS system on August 26th.
ACCESS for ELLs 2021
There are several recent updates to the ACCESS for ELLs resources, via the WIDA portal, including:
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State specific information page updated for the 2020-2021 school year
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New and improved tutorials for ACCESS for ELLs and Alternate ACCESS for ELLs
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Speaking Supplemental Training materials for paper administration are now available
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Updated and streamlined Test Administrator and Test Coordinator Manuals
The yearly timeline for ACCESS for ELLs administration is in its final stages of development and will be shared soon via both the monthly update and ESOL listserv.
National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Spring 2021
As of the release of this newsletter, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) plans to conduct the Congressionally mandated NAEP Mathematics and Reading Assessments scheduled for the spring of 2021. At the current time plans include a reduction in the sample size and a possible extension to the assessment administration window for NAEP. The National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) has postponed the administration of the NAEP History and Civics assessments scheduled for 2021. Additional information will be provided as it becomes available.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources for Schools
Department and Commissioner updates related to the COVID-19 pandemic are available for schools. Please also note a resource page for families contains updates materials and resources.
Professional Learning Opportunities
The new Maine DOE professional learning calendar is now available on the Maine DOE website. There are many opportunities for professional learning available to Maine educators. The new calendar has increased functionality including a search feature.
General Reminders
Just a friendly for the beginning of a new school year - please ensure all DAC contacts and other contacts are current in NEO. In this time of uncertainty and adaptation, it is imperative that all contacts be accurate and up to date. This will provide Maine DOE personnel the ability to contact the appropriate person in order to share applicable and important information in a timely manner. Teachers, district test coordinators may sign up to receive Assessment Listserv notices for general assessments and for the Alternate Assessment Listserv. For those looking for notifications regarding the ACCESS / Alternate ACCESS for ELLs, please subscribe to the ESL Communication list. Please use the following links to subscribe:
General Assessment (MEA) Listserv https://mailman.informe.org/mailman/listinfo/mea
Alternate Assessment Listserv https://mailman.informe.org/mailman/listinfo/alternateassessments
WIDA/ACCESS English Learner Listserv https://mailman.informe.org/mailman/listinfo/esl.communication
Comments or Suggestions?
Please email Janette Kirk with any comments, questions or suggestions regarding the monthly assessment update. We welcome feedback that helps us to support and clarify our work together.
Assessment Team Contact Information
Interim Assessment Team Leader
Janette Kirk – 624-6707
Assessment Coordinator (eMPowerME, SAT, Science)
Nancy Godfrey – 624-6775
National & International Assessment Coordinator (NAEP, PISA, PIRLS, TIMSS)
Dr. Regina Lewis – 624-6715
Alternate Assessment Coordinator (MSAA, SAA) & WIDA Coordinator (ACCESS for ELs, Alternate ACCESS for ELs)
Jodi Bossio-Smith – 624-6774
Assessment Team Management Analyst
Cheryl Brackett, 624-6770