Posted inLocal & State, sj-web

Maine rethinks requiring student proficiency to earn a diploma

State education officials are proposing a radical restructuring of Maine’s proficiency-based diploma law, which was one of the first in the nation and touted by the governor as one of his key education reforms when it passed in 2012. Six years later, Department of Education officials are proposing the elimination of a key tenet of […]

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Posted inLocal & State, sj-web

Maine lawmakers offer no clarity on guidelines for proficiency-based diploma

AUGUSTA (AP) — Lawmakers are requiring high school students, starting with this year’s freshmen class, to prove they truly understand the subjects they study before they can graduate, but they still haven’t worked out many details teachers need to prepare students. And legislators offered no clarity Wednesday, taking no action on a bill to delay […]

Posted inLewiston-Auburn

Lewiston board tweaks grading for new diploma program

LEWISTON — In response to concerns from parents about a new diploma that this year’s freshmen will face to graduate, School Committee members heard an update and made a few changes to the program Monday night. Lewiston High School is in its first year of a proficiency-based diploma for the Class of 2018. This year, […]

Posted inLocal & State, sj-web

UMPI moving to proficiency-based standards

BANGOR (AP) — The University of Maine at Presque Isle is ready to provide details of its move to proficiency-based education. Public high schools are required to incorporate proficiency-based standards by 2018, and UMPI aims to become the first university in Maine and the first in the country to do the same. UMPI President Linda […]

Posted inOur View

We must not abandon Common Core

We tried setting education standards locally. Didn’t work. We tried having each state adopt and apply its own standards. But results varied wildly from state to state, leaving millions of children with inadequate educations. Finally, U.S. governors, educators and corporate leaders put their heads together and decided that children, to be successful adults and competitive […]