|
Assessment
ILEARN is Coming!: ILEARN presents an exciting opportunity for Indiana to increase effectiveness in measuring student academic progress. ILEARN will be computer adaptive and custom-built to meet Indiana-specific standards and requirements. This includes blueprints and specifications. This FAQ answers some common questions about the new assessment. Additionally, there are several key factors to understanding the new assessment. You can use this infographic to dive deeper into the process of developing ILEARN.
NEW! Science Blueprints & Item Specifications Now Posted: The new Item Specifications for Science Grades 4 and 6 and Biology are now posted on the IDOE website. This memo explains the purpose of these documents as they relate to Indiana’s assessments and includes access to a video designed to assist the schools in understanding how to use these resources.
Nominations for the Alternate Assessment Request for Proposal (RFP) Review Committee: The Office of Student Assessment requests nominations for the RFP Review Committee convening December 2017 – January 2018 via online and in-person meetings for the Alternate Assessment. The primary goal of the RFP Review Committee is to review proposals from testing vendors in order to select a qualified vendor that will implement the Alternate Assessment beginning with the 2018-2019 school year. You are invited to nominate Corporation or Building-Level Administrators, Corporation or School Test Coordinators, Technology Coordinators/Directors, Superintendents, Special Education staff or teachers (both general and special education) to serve as participants on the Alternate Assessment RFP Review Committee. Please submit this survey no later than Friday, October 13, 2017. You can visit here for more details regarding the current Alternate Assessment.
Rural and Low-Income School (RLIS) Grant Allocations and Applications Now Available
The 2017 RLIS allocations for eligible districts are now available, along with the 2017 RLIS Application. Both documents are posted on the IDOE RLIS webpage. Applications are due December 15, 2017, and should be sent to Dwayne Marshall. Please contact Cole Dietrich for any questions regarding RLIS grants.
Office of eLearning
The 2018 Summer of eLearning grant application is open now through October 27, 2017. Last year the grants supported 22 eLearning conferences around our state, providing opportunities for thousands of Indiana educators to learn about teaching and learning in technology-rich environments. Click here to learn more and apply to host a world-class professional learning opportunity in your district.
Office of Title Grants and Support
Charter School Program (CSP) Funding: The Indiana Department of Education is pleased to announce that Indiana has been named a recipient of the U.S. Department of Education’s Expanding Opportunity through Quality Charter School Program (CSP) grant. Indiana will receive more than $59 million in CSP funding over the next five years. The focus of the IDOE’s grant, Quality Counts, is to emphasize and strengthen the quality of Indiana’s charter schools through responsible replication and expansion. State-level technical assistance funding will be utilized to target support to build capacity and improve evaluation and authorizing practices. Opportunities to apply for CSP funding will be available in the coming weeks. Further information can be found here. Questions may be sent to Nathan Williamson.
Charter School Peer Review: Due to the recent award of Charter School Program (CSP) funding, the IDOE will need qualified individuals with charter school experience to serve as peer reviewers for the competitive CSP grant applications. Interested individuals who would like to serve as peer reviewers should complete this form by October 31, 2017.
Possible Reduction in Title I, Tittle II, and A Funding: IDOE was notified in late September that Congress will be operating under a continuing resolution, rather than a fully appropriated budget. An automatic reduction of .6791 percent (less than one percent) was applied to Title I (including Part A, Part C-Migrant, and Part D- Neglected and Delinquent and Title II, A). During the past several years, this automatic reduction in funding was fully restored when a full appropriations bill was passed. Therefore, instead of reducing all LEA Title I and Title II funding by this very small amount, requiring amendments and possibly restoring the funding later in the year, the IDOE will be waiting for further notice from U.S. Department of Education. It is important to remember to not fully obligate 100 percent of the funding allocated for this fiscal year by leaving at least .6791 percent (less than one percent) unobligated.
Comparability: In order to comply with Section 1118 of ESSA, each LEA must determine comparability annually at the local level. Written procedures must be filed every two years with the IDOE to ensure Title I schools receive comparable services through state and local funds (e.g. classroom teachers, support staff, etc.) as non-Title I schools. Each LEA with a corporation number ending in zero must complete the comparability forms found here by October 31, 2017.
Office of Special Education (OSE)
The Office of Special Education publishes a biweekly newsletter filled with updates and information about special education. Click here for the latest news from OSE.
Stay Up-to-Date
Miss a message? View previous weekly emails here. Want daily updates? Be sure to follow the Department on Twitter and Facebook.
|
