INFORMATIONAL LETTER NO.  65

POLICY CODE:  ILB

 

 

 

 

To:       Superintendents (Please forward to high school principals and high school guidance staff)

 

From:   Susan A. Gendron, Commissioner

 

Date:    January 9, 2004

 

Re:       Informational Session with American College Testing Program (ACT) and the College Entrance Examination Board (SAT)

  

            I am pleased to announce an opportunity for superintendents, high school principals, and high school guidance staff to participate in an informational session with representatives of the American College Testing Program (ACT) and the College Entrance Examination Board (SAT).  The overall purpose of the session is to inform local educators of the assessment modifications that have been made to better meet the demands of changing expectations for students and new state and federal accountability requirements.  This informational session is one component of the shared work on assessment that Maine has undertaken with three other New England States (Vermont, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island) through the New England Compact and is being underwritten by the Compact. 

 

            The session will take place from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. on January 20, 2004 at the Hampton Inn at 425 Kennedy Memorial Drive in Waterville.  Space is limited to 75 people, and registration will be on a first-come, first-served basis.  Districts will be limited to two registrants per district.  Please e-mail registrant names to georgette.valliere@maine.gov

             

The following preliminary questions will be among those addressed by the presenters; however, there will be ample time for an open-ended question and answer session:

 

1. How are the SAT and ACT exams evolving over time to better reflect changing demands?
2. What specific changes have been made or planned that Guidance staff and Administrators should be aware of?
3. As expectations increase for ALL students leaving school prepared for post-secondary education, what role with the SAT, PSAT, and ACT plan in supporting the achievement of those expectations?
4. Are there particular courses that student should have taken before taking either assessment?
5. Can one correlate student performance on the exams to high school courses taken or programs of study?
6. What is the necessary academic preparation for students to achieve better than average on the SAT and ACT?
7. What does each assessment report about student performance?
8. How can the assessments be used to report performance of individual students, schools, district, and states?
9. Can all students engage in the assessment?
10. How are the exams aligned to NCTM, NCTE, or other standards?
11. Can the student data be disaggregated? How is demographic data collected?
12. How are the needs of students with disabilities/ELL addressed? Accommodations?
13. How is data presented to parents, schools, and communities?
14. What efforts are being made to conduct regional information sessions on the SAT and ACT?
15. What programs are being developed at the middle school level to help prepare students?
16. What research is being conducted to track post secondary success rates based on SAT and Act information?

 

For additional information on content, please contact Wanda Monthey at 624-6831 or wanda.monthey@maine.gov

 

For registration questions, please contact Georgette Valliere at 624-6606 or georgette.valliere@maine.gov