A Publication of the
Madison Public
Schools Office of
Curriculum and
Instruction
August 2015
A Walk in the PARCC
aims to provide all
those with an interest in
the Madison Public
Schools with the latest
information about the
Common Core State
Standards and PARCC
assessments.
Masthead Design:
Dani Bratton
Madison High School Teacher
Office of Curriculum and
Instruction
Madison Public Schools
359 Woodland Road
Madison. NJ 07940
www.madisonpublicschools.org
@MadisonNJPS
Matthew A. Mingle
Assistant Superintendent
Madison Administrator Invited to Standards Review
In May 2015, Governor Christie called on the New Jersey Department of Education to present a plan to review New Jersey’s English language arts and mathematics standards, known as the Common Core State Standards. The plan continues New Jersey’s tradition of professional standards reviews approximately once every five years. Madison’s Supervisor of Mathematics and Business, Kathryn Lemerich, was selected as one of the K‐12 educators to serve on the mathematics content subcommittee. This is an honor for Ms. Lemerich and the Madison Public Schools and ensures that the district’s entire learning community is represented through the process. The New Jersey Department of Education will also be hosting three regional listening events and three community focus groups to provide opportunities for parents and other members of the community to provide their feedback to the standards review process. Details about those events will be shared here when they become available. PARCC Results to be Released This Fall
As described in previous issues of “A Walk in the PARCC,” the first year of a new assessment system requires additional time to process for a variety of reasons. The New Jersey Department of Education has advised districts that PARCC results will be shared with districts in late fall. As with the state’s previous standardized testing system, individual student score reports will be sent home to the parents of each child who completed the entire test. In future years, the results will be shared much earlier, likely in the summer following the test administration. In Madison, efforts are underway now to develop the resources parents and teachers will need to read the new score reports and make the best possible use of the information they will provide about student achievement. The results will be shared publicly at a Board of Education meeting and on the school district’s website. What Do You Think?
“A Walk in the PARCC” is designed to keep the entire Madison learning community informed as we transition to new educational standards and assessments. Please take a moment to complete a brief survey to guide the development of future newsletters. The survey can be accessed at http://tinyurl.com/AWalkInTheParcc. 1