The United Stated Department of Education (ED) has made available a set of free tools for schools on Safe Supportive Learning. This set of tools
MCAS 2.0 Development
MCAS 2.0 is not taking the Commuter Rail to the next-generation assessment station. This train has left the building. DESE has published the Development Process
MCAS 2.0 Bid Posting
Do you have what it takes to develop the next-generation MCAS test? Read the press release from DESE announcing the opening of the request for responses
BESE March 22, 2016 Documents
The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education documents are now available here. On the agenda this week: Items for Discussion and Action Update on
ELA & Math Frameworks Review
Speak now or hold your peace until the next round of revisions! DESE is collecting feedback on the current English Language Arts and Mathematics curriculum frameworks.
Just Say No to the VISTA Survey
MTA is reminding members that the VISTA Survey shared by DESE is voluntary. MTA reccomends educators opt out of taking the survey. The original post
What’s In and What’s Out -NCLB to ESSA
US ED has released an FAQ on what is in an what is out during the transition to the new Elementary and Secondary Education Act-
DESE Educator Effectiveness Guidebook for Inclusive Practice
DESE has released a set of materials for educators designed to support inclusive practices in the classroom. The complete set of materials may be downloaded
Adios, Highly Qualified Teachers
Well, not exactly. We want YOU to stick around but the federal requirement for core teachers to be “Highly Qualified” will no long be required starting
Research on Snow Days from HKS
Joshua Goodman from the Harvard Kennedy School release a paper analyzing what happens when Massachusetts schools do – or do not- close for snow. He
DESE Memo on Alternative to Snow Days
MTA Note: At this time, MTA has not taken a position for or against the use of alternative instructional strategies in case of inclement weather school
DESE Charter School Recomendations 2-16-16
Commissioner to Recommend Two New Charter Schools and 1,500+ New Seats in Existing Charters Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to vote February 23 MALDEN
WIDA – Free ESL/ELL PD
Massachusetts is a member of the WIDA consortium. Educators can create a free profile on the WIDA page and have access to a variety of
MTA Presentation on ESSA 2-10-16
The Massachusetts Teachers Association presented an overview of the Every Student Succeeds Act, the 2015 re-authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. ESSA replaces the
CEPP & MTA Provide Overview of new federal education law to MA lawmakers
FED LAW COULD PROMPT MASS. TO RETHINK EDUCATION APPROACHES [+VIDEO] By Katie Lannan STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, FEB. 10, 2016…..A new federal
Commissioner’s Weekly Update – February 5, 2016
News from Commissioner Mitchell Chester & the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner’s Weekly Update – February 5, 2016 ACCESS for ELLs 2.0
Commissioner’s Update-Friday Messages for All
Link to the Commisioner’s Update archives and sign up information.
U.S. ED – ESSA Links
The United States Department of Education (ED) is updating a new section of their website on the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). To learn more
DESE Data Updates 2016
Typically DESE posts updated student data for the current school year in January. The following updated data have been posted in the past few weeks:
Publications from the Center for Education Policy and Practice
CEPP publishes professional practice briefs, research reports and policy guides for educators in Massachusetts. Read more about our work here.
VISTA Survey
February 1 Update on VISTA Survey by MTA CEPP. Includes links.
