Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium

Tennessee English as a Second Language Teacher Named 2024 National Teacher of the Year

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, April 3, 2024
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WASHINGTON, April 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) today announced Missy Testerman, a kindergarten through eighth grade English as a second language (ESL) teacher, as the 2024 National Teacher of the Year.

Key Points: 
  • WASHINGTON, April 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) today announced Missy Testerman, a kindergarten through eighth grade English as a second language (ESL) teacher, as the 2024 National Teacher of the Year.
  • She knows families are extensions of the classroom and often advocates for her families who speak little English.
  • As the 2024 National Teacher of the Year, Testerman will spend a year representing educators and serving as an ambassador for students and teachers across the nation.
  • From that group, the National Teacher of the Year is chosen by a Selection Committee composed of 16 individuals and education organizations.

Age of Learning Appoints Education Advocacy Leader Luci Willits as Vice President of Public Policy

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, August 30, 2023
Technology, Children, Family, Other Education, Continuing, Preschool, Consumer, Primary, Secondary, Consumer Electronics, Education, Idaho Department of Commerce, Senior, Public policy, ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy, Policy, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, Age, Multimedia, Research, Government, Organization, ESSA, Management, Nursing, Tutoring, Learning

Age of Learning , leading education technology innovator and creator of the widely popular ABCmouse® Early Learning Academy, today announced it has appointed former Chief of Staff for the Idaho Department of Education Luci Willits as Vice President of Public Policy.

Key Points: 
  • Age of Learning , leading education technology innovator and creator of the widely popular ABCmouse® Early Learning Academy, today announced it has appointed former Chief of Staff for the Idaho Department of Education Luci Willits as Vice President of Public Policy.
  • View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230830180653/en/
    Luci Willits, Age of Learning, Vice President of Public Policy (Photo: Business Wire)
    In her role at the Idaho Department of Education, Willits advised the elected superintendent on multiple policy initiatives designed to improve public education, including academic standards, teacher compensation, graduation requirements, and federal law.
  • Prior to joining Age of Learning, Willits served as Senior Vice President of Government Relations at MetaMetrics, where she oversaw the company’s state portfolio, leading engagement with policymakers and state education departments nationwide.
  • “Luci has a proven track record of achievement and brings invaluable insight into how effective education policy is shaped, thanks to her extensive experience as a public sector leader,” said Sunil Gunderia, Chief Innovation Officer at Age of Learning.

Oklahoma Math Teacher Named 2023 National Teacher of the Year

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, April 19, 2023
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WASHINGTON, April 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) today announced that Rebecka Peterson, a high school math teacher, is the 2023 National Teacher of the Year.

Key Points: 
  • WASHINGTON, April 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) today announced that Rebecka Peterson, a high school math teacher, is the 2023 National Teacher of the Year.
  • Peterson has taught high school math classes ranging from intermediate algebra to Advanced Placement calculus for 11 years at Union High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
  • As Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, she has visited teachers across the state to highlight their important work through the Teachers of Oklahoma campaign.
  • We know people across the country will connect with the stories she shares as the 2023 National Teacher of the Year."

Washington OSPI Recommends Curriculum Associates' i-Ready® as a Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN) Assessment for Early Screening of Dyslexia

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, March 7, 2023
Literacy, Learning, RAN, LAP, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, Student, Reading, Customer service, Superintendent, Weakness, Technical support, Letter, Diagnosis, Mathematics, OSPI, Curriculum, Management, Nursing, Tutoring, Washington State, Dyslexia

NORTH BILLERICA, Mass., March 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) recently named i-Ready's Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN) Literacy Tasks as a recommended RAN assessment for the early screening of dyslexia. Now, districts throughout Washington State can use the award-winning i-Ready program with its additional offline assessment tasks to identify indicators and areas of weakness that are highly predictive of future reading difficulty, including phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, letter sound knowledge, and rapid naming skills.

Key Points: 
  • NORTH BILLERICA, Mass., March 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) recently named i-Ready's Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN) Literacy Tasks as a recommended RAN assessment for the early screening of dyslexia.
  • "When screening for dyslexia, it is imperative that educators have a valid and reliable assessment such as i-Ready," said Rob Waldron, CEO of Curriculum Associates.
  • According to the Washington OSPI, the RAN assessment is a requirement of the early screening of dyslexia under E2SSB 6162-Early Screening of Dyslexia.
  • The recommended RAN assessment screens students' skills in rapid automatized naming and are required to include four assessment options, including colors, numbers, letters, and familiar objects.

Testing, testing: A review session on COPPA and schools

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 1, 2023
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Key Points: 

Bryce Carpenter, Ph.D. and Rochelle Michel, Ph.D. Join Smarter Balanced

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, August 3, 2022
Education, ETS, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, Learning, Educational Records Bureau, Student, Research, History, United States Department of Education, High-visibility clothing, Workforce, Psychometrics, Multimedia, Data analysis, Educational Testing Service, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, Method, Army, ERB, Privacy Office of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Management, Tutoring, Medicine

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Aug. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Smarter Balanced is excited to announce the hirings of Bryce Carpenter as its new Executive Administrative Officer and Rochelle Michel, Ph.D. as its new Deputy Executive Program Officer.

Key Points: 
  • SANTA CLARA, Calif., Aug. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Smarter Balanced is excited to announce the hirings of Bryce Carpenter as its new Executive Administrative Officer and Rochelle Michel, Ph.D. as its new Deputy Executive Program Officer.
  • Dr. Michel joins Smarter Balanced with 15 years of experience in psychometrics, research, and people leadership.
  • Smarter Balanced is a member-led public agency that supports educators as they help students on a path to progress.
  • The Smarter Balanced dynamic system of toolsdeveloped in collaboration with our members and educatorsis a standards-aligned balanced assessment system and provides teachers with lessons, activities, and methods of gauging progress.

Literably Wins Learning Engineering Tools Competition

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, June 29, 2022
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SAN FRANCISCO, June 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Literably, the reading assessment platform that empowers educators to "know every reader," today announced it has been named as a winner of The Learning Engineering Tools Competition. The new funding will enable Literably to advance the reach of its education technology solution and continue to deliver on its mission to remedy the critical issue of low literacy rates. The competition provides Literably with important resources to accelerate scalability and adoption of its literacy assessment platform across the United States.

Key Points: 
  • SAN FRANCISCO, June 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Literably , the reading assessment platform that empowers educators to "know every reader," today announced it has been named as a winner of The Learning Engineering Tools Competition.
  • The competition provides Literably with important resources to accelerate scalability and adoption of its literacy assessment platform across the United States.
  • The Learning Engineering Tools Competition aims to spur the growth of new and improved technologies that will help remedy critical issues in education for learners of all ages and across the globe while also advancing the field of learning engineering.
  • Literably is a diagnostic digital reading assessment platform that replicates teacher-administered assessments online and enables educators to know every reader.

Smarter Balanced Hires Executive Program Officer

Retrieved on: 
Monday, June 13, 2022
Data analysis, Psychometrics, Time, Research, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, Learning, Multimedia, University, Assessment, Method, Growth, Student, Technology, David Morgenthaler, Quiana Lynell, Master, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Educational technology, Education, Management

SANTA CLARA, Calif., June 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Smarter Balanced is excited to announce the hiring of Lynelle Morgenthaler as its new Executive Program Officer. Morgenthaler brings over 20 years of executive experience in education technology, with deep roots in education, learning and assessment, technology, and people development.

Key Points: 
  • SANTA CLARA, Calif., June 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Smarter Balanced is excited to announce the hiring of Lynelle Morgenthaler as its new Executive Program Officer.
  • Smarter Balanced is a member-led public agency that supports educators as they help students on a path to progress.
  • "This is an exciting time for Smarter Balanced, as we continue to innovate and help teachers help students to learn more," says Tony Alpert, Executive Director of Smarter Balanced.
  • As Executive Program Officer, Morgenthaler will provide oversight and strategic direction for Smarter Balanced around psychometrics, product and test design, item development, teaching and learning, data analysis, and accessibility in Smarter Balanced's tools.

Literably Wins $1 Million Grant To Get Every Child in America Reading at Grade Level

Retrieved on: 
Monday, May 16, 2022
Department, Education, Library, Comprehension, Oral, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, Research, Multimedia, Solution, Stanford Graduate School of Education, ORF, Encinitas Union School District, SBIR, Literacy, Small Business Innovation Research, Institute, Efficiency, SAN, IES, Child, United States Department of Education, School, Institute of Education Sciences, Union school district, Student, Reading, Love, Education sciences, COVID, CA, Tutoring, Literate environment

Literably's expanded capabilities will build upon its existing Oral Reading Fluency and Foundational Skills solutions, which are already deployed in hundreds of U.S. schools.

Key Points: 
  • Literably's expanded capabilities will build upon its existing Oral Reading Fluency and Foundational Skills solutions, which are already deployed in hundreds of U.S. schools.
  • The United States still struggles to ensure that every child graduates from a K12 program with a mastery of reading.
  • Approximately 63 percent of fourth grade students read at or below a basic level, and 34 percent read below a basic level.
  • Literably is a diagnostic digital reading assessment platform that replicates teacher-administered assessments online and enables educators to know every reader.

Ohio History Teacher Named 2022 National Teacher of the Year

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, April 19, 2022
Biography, Awareness, Teacher, Faculty, COVID-19, Google, Department of Defense Education Activity, ETS, Equitable, Leadership, Learning, District, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, Department, Education, Oberlin Heritage Center, Oppression, Pearson, Humble High School, NWEA, Clorox, Student, NAACP, VOYA, Black Student Union Center, Curriculum, Male, Defense, Attention, Missouri State Teachers Association, School, Council, Oberlin High School, Congress, Tutoring, Medicine, Cognia

WASHINGTON, April 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) today announced that Kurt Russell, a veteran high school history teacher, is the 2022 National Teacher of the Year.

Key Points: 
  • WASHINGTON, April 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) today announced that Kurt Russell, a veteran high school history teacher, is the 2022 National Teacher of the Year.
  • "I am truly humbled and honored to be selected as the National Teacher of the Year," Russell said.
  • CCSSO has been honored to support excellent educators through the National Teacher of the Year Program since the first National Teacher of the Year was recognized 70 years ago."
  • Kurt will be a passionate and authentic voice for teachers and students as 2022 National Teacher of the Year."