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INFORMATIONAL LETTER:  41
POLICY CODE:  ILB

 

TO:         Superintendents of Schools (Please forward to Asst. Superintendents, Assessment Coordinators, Curriculum Coordinators, High School and Elementary Principals, Guidance Directors, Special Education Directors and ESL Educators)

FROM:   Susan A. Gendron, Commissioner

DATE:    October 30, 2006

RE:         Local Translation of the Maine Educational Assessment (MEA), Personalized Alternate Assessment Portfolio (PAAP) and the Maine High School Assessment-SAT

 

            In years past, the use of local translations of the MEA and PAAP were allowable accommodations for English Language Learners (ELL).  This accommodation was also afforded to eligible students on Maine’s High School Assessment, the SAT; however, scores for students receiving this accommodation were used for Maine Purposes Only (MPO).  These scores were aggregated into AYP determinations for schools, school administrative units (SAUs) and the State to meet federal requirements under P.L. 107-110, the No Child Left Behind Act. 

            We have recently received clarification from the United States Department of Education that the continued use of this rarely used local translation accommodation for the MEA, PAAP, or SAT constitutes a non-standard administration of the assessment, and the scores may not be counted for either participation or performance purposes in AYP calculations.  For this reason, we are no longer offering local translation as an allowable accommodation for this school year or in the future.  Updated versions of “2006-07 Policies and Procedures for Accommodations and Alternate Assessment” reflect this change and are available for the MEA at: http://www.maine.gov/education/mea/AdminInfo.htm, and for the Maine High School Assessment (SAT) at: http://www.maine.gov/education/sat_initiative/index.htm.

            Note: This means that the 2005-06 accommodation, “Tests and/or student responses were translated word for word into native language for an LEP student by local personnel”, coded E6 (for the MEA) and MPO 47 (for the Maine High School Assessment) are no longer authorized for use.  Earlier versions of the “2006-07 Policies and Procedures for Accommodations and Alternate Assessment” containing this accommodation with updated codes are null and void.

 

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