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Home > Rules & Legislation > Letters from the Commissioner > Informational Letter 073

Spring 2010 Maine High School Assessment (MHSA)/SAT Initiative

INFORMATIONAL LETTER NO:  73
POLICY CODE:  ILB

TO:               Superintendents of Schools, High School Principals, Guidance Counselors,
                     Special Education Directors and Assessment Coordinators    
FROM:         Susan A. Gendron, Commissioner
DATE:          February 5, 2010
SUBJECT:   Spring 2010 Maine High School Assessment (MHSA)/SAT Initiative
                    Guidelines and Updates
 
Key Points Covered in this Informational Letter:

  • Administration Dates
  • Administration Webinar Presentation
  • Student Registration/Infinite Campus State Edition (ICSE) Verification
  • Free Student Readiness and Preparation Opportunities
  • Professional Development Opportunities in Mathematics, ELA, Science and Data Analysis

Administration Dates
As in previous years, the 2010 MHSA testing program will occur over two distinct administrations: The MHSA Science Test and The SAT Reasoning Test.

The MHSA Science Test will take place during a two-week window beginning Monday, March 29th and ending Friday, April 9th.  Any make-up testing must also be completed during this timeframe. This Science assessment will consist of two 50-minute tests followed by a 15-minute student questionnaire. Please remember that students receiving (or who have applied to receive) accommodations on the SAT should use those same accommodations for the Science test. Practice questions and other specific information regarding the MHSA Science test can be found at: http://www.maine.gov/education/mhsa/science/index.html .

Please note that unlike previous years when a Mathematics Augmentation (Math-A) Test was also required during this administration window, this spring there is no need to augment the Mathematics portion of the SAT.  This is due to Maine’s adoption of the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) high school assessment standards which are adequately measured by the Mathematics items on the regular SAT. 
                             
Measured Progress will be shipping the Science testing materials via UPS for arrival at local high schools the week prior to testing. In the unlikely event that your school has not received the material by noon on Wednesday, March 24th, please contact the MHSA test administration Helpdesk at Measured Progress (1-866-615-2745) to request overnight shipment of materials. There is no need to register your students for the Science portion of the MHSA as a list of your third-year students has been supplied to Measured Progress from your ICSE data file and all Science testing materials will be based on that data file.   

The SAT Reasoning Test component of the MHSA will be administered on Saturday, May 1st with the official make-up occurring on Saturday, June 5th. In keeping with past practice, students taking the SAT for Maine Purposes Only (MPO), resulting in scores that are not reportable to colleges, can take the MPO form of the test from May 1st through Wednesday, May 12th at their respective high schools.
Please remember that all State testing materials are secure documents and security of the materials becomes the responsibility of the school upon signed receipt of delivery. 

Administration Webinar Presentation
The Department, in conjunction with the College Board, will present an MHSA administration workshop designed to address all aspects of the MHSA administration process. This presentation will be made via the Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro program. This computer-based conferencing system is easy to use and requires only an on-line connection and telephone to participate in the workshop. The date of the presentation is Thursday, February 25th from 3:00-3:45 pm. If you would like to participate in this workshop presentation, please click on this link: http://stateofmaine.na4.acrobat.com/cbd/ . If you have questions please e-mail sandra.mckechnie@maine.gov as she will be coordinating this event. A copy of this broadcast will be posted on the MHSA website at: http://www.maine.gov/education/mhsa/testmaterial.html by Friday, February 26th.

Student Registration/Infinite Campus State Edition (ICSE) Verification  
For a second consecutive year, schools had the option of registering their students for the SAT in one of two ways: piloting an electronic, enhanced registration (E-reg) process or remaining with the standard paper-based process. One hundred and eleven high schools have opted to participate in the E-reg pilot this year. The Department plans to incorporate the electronic registration system for all schools when any final irregularities have been addressed –hopefully next year.

All bulk registration materials for the May 1st SAT administration should have been received at your school last month. There are two registration deadlines referenced in the material: February 16th for those students filing a Declaration of Testing Accommodations form (students must use the same accommodation(s) for both the SAT and the Science tests); and March 25th for the bulk registration form. The individual high school codes assigned last year will remain the same and fee payment cards will not be used; the final school roster will serve as the official document for state payment purposes. The list of students at your school who are expected to participate in the MHSA program and for whom payment will be forwarded to the College Board can be found online within Infinite Campus State Edition. To review the list for your school:
Log into Infinite Campus State Edition https://maine.infinitecampus.org/campus/mese.jsp

  • Insure that the year is set to 09-10
  • Open ME State Reporting
  • Open the Assessment Reports folder
  • Select Maine High School Assessment Reports
  • Click Generate Report.

Your list of MHSA students will be in Excel. Save the list to your computer and then open the list. Verify that the list of students is complete and accurate.
Note: The MHSA list should contain the names of all students who are in their 3rd year since initial enrollment into high school regardless of their present grade level. If this list is incorrect (students need to be added or removed), contact John McCue at john.mccue@maine.gov with the following information: name of school; name of student; state student ID; grade of student; and the reason for adding or removing the student from the list.

Maine high school juniors who are homeschooled (and not enrolled in a private institution) are also eligible, but not required, to participate in the SAT Initiative. Homeschooled students should fill out a paper registration form and ask to be included in the bulk registration mailing from the local high school where they will take the test. The scores from homeschooled students will not affect the school scores of the local high school or district.

 More specific information regarding the registration process can be found at: http://www.maine.gov/education/mhsa/registrationmaterial.html .

Free Student Readiness and Preparation Opportunities
The Official SAT Online Course continues to be made available as a free, year-round readiness/preparation resource to all Maine public high school students in grades 9-12 as well as to all faculty and administrators across Maine public high schools. If your school is not utilizing or maximizing this resource, more information can be found at: http://www.maine.gov/education/mhsa/studentrp.html . David Adams, from the New England Regional Office of the College Board, is also able to assist you and can be contacted at: dadams@collegeboard.org or (781) 663-2741.

Additionally, PrepMe.com of Chicago, a company not associated with the College Board, will also continue to make available their preparation program free to all Maine Juniors for approximately three months prior to the May 1st administration of the SAT. More information on this program can be found at: http://www.prepme.com/maine .

Professional Development Opportunities in Mathematics, ELA, Science and Data Analysis
The MDOE in collaboration with the College Board will present content-specific webinars (possibly the first in a series) featuring the availability and use of local school-based data from the PSAT/NMSQT and SAT programs. The presentations will also feature resources for addressing data findings as well as instructional strategies for teachers of ELA and Mathematics. The Mathematics specific content webinar will be broadcast live on Tuesday, February 23rd from 3:00-3:45 pm and can be accessed at: http://stateofmaine.na4.acrobat.com/cbmath/ . The ELA specific content webinar will be broadcast live on Wednesday, February 24th also from 3:00-3:45 pm at: http://stateofmaine.na4.acrobat.com/cbela/ .
The MHSA Science test, while not a College Board assessment, will also be supported with a live webinar professional development opportunity. Anita Bernhardt, MDOE Science specialist, will highlight data use, interpretation of standards and instructional strategies during a 45-minute webinar presentation that will be broadcast on Thursday, February 25th beginning at 3:00 pm and can be accessed at: http://stateofmaine.na4.acrobat.com/sciprodevel/ .
Generic illustrated instructions for joining any of the meetings described above can be found at: http://www.maine.gov/education/lsalt/paap/materialstools/documents/PK20-2logininstructions.pdf .  All broadcasts will be recorded for posting on the MHSA website at: http://www.maine.gov/education/mhsa/training.html . Questions regarding any technical connections to these broadcasts should be addressed to: peter.bernard@maine.gov .    
 
Please be advised that the MHSA website is updated continually with the latest information regarding the high school assessment program. The MHSA website is located at: http://www.maine.gov/education/mhsa/index.htm .  

Contact Information for MHSA Support 

MHSA Policy: Dan Hupp, Director of Student Assessment, (207) 624-6827 or (207) 624-6770 or dan.hupp@maine.gov

Science Test Administration Helpdesk: Measured Progress at (866) 615-2745
SAT Administration: The College Board at (888) 728-4357

Infinite Campus State Edition: MEDMS Helpdesk at (207) 624-6896 or medms.helpdesk@maine.gov .

Test Accommodations and Alternate Assessment: Susan Fossett at (207) 624-6774 or susan.fossett@maine.gov