Brooklyn Town Hall Meeting Re: Teacher Certification Exams!

How do you feel about the new teacher certification exams?

 BROOKLYN TOWN HALL MEETING

New York City Teacher Certification Meeting with Regents on the Higher Education Committee

RSVP: crystal.jackson@lehman.cuny.edu (SUBJECT LINE: Brooklyn Town Hall Meeting)

The purpose of this meeting is to convene a group of NYC teacher education faculty, public school teachers, and teacher candidates to describe the impact of new teacher certification exams (ALST, edTPA, EAS, CST). Of particular importance is the impact of these exams on the preparation of future teachers, on the racial and ethnic composition of the teaching force, and on the professional autonomy of teacher educators. New ways to move forward into the future will also be discussed.

Date:              Monday December 7th

Time:              6:00 to 9:00 p.m.

Location:        St Francis College (180 Remson Street in downtown Brooklyn a two-block walk from the Borough Hall subway stop. The event will take place in the first floor auditorium. The auditorium seats several hundred people)

This is an extremely important forum to amplify faculty and student experiences. The format will involve panels of presenters, with discussion. Speaking panels are already filled, but it’s important to fill the room and show support.

This meeting has been called by Regents Charles Bendit and Kathleen Cashin, co-chairs of the Regents Higher Education Committee.

Regent Cashin has been an outspoken critic on high stakes testing in K-12 schools. This is an opportunity to share with her and other Regents what is happening in higher ed.

http://dianeravitch.net/2015/04/02/regent-cashin-of-new-york-speaks-out-against-high-stakes-testing/

Important field test opportunity for the NYSTCE program

Field testing for the following tests is available at Pearson Professional Centers and Pearson Authorized Test Centers throughout New York State from November 9 – December 23, 2015.  Each field test takes approximately 120 minutes to complete, except Educating All Students, which takes 60 minutes to complete.

Educating All Students (EAS)
Academic Literacy Skills Test (ALST)
English Language Arts
Mathematics
Literacy
Health Education
Physical Education
Multi-Subject: Teachers of Early Childhood (Birth – Grade 2)
Multi-Subject: Teachers of Childhood (Grade 1 – Grade 6)
Multi-Subject: Teachers of Middle Childhood (Grade 5 – Grade 9)
Multi-Subject: Secondary Teachers (Grade 7 – Grade 12)
Students with Disabilities

For information on the new tests, see the NYSTCE Test Development and Requirements flyer at: http://eswebbeta01/nystce_15_16/fieldtest.asp

Advantages of Field Test Participation (There is no cost to participate in the field test):
For each test form completed (1), participants are offered their choice of ONE of the following:
a $100 voucher (2) that can be applied toward future test registration fees
a $50 Barnes & Noble eGift card

Note: Participants may take up to two test forms of each field for which they are eligible.

In addition to the incentives listed above, participants will also:
Provide input into the test that will be taken by future educators; and
Gauge professional knowledge by taking actual test items; and
Gain practical testing experience.

Who is eligible to participate?
Juniors, Seniors, or Graduate students currently or recently enrolled in an approved educator preparation program preparing them for New York State licensure are eligible.
Those who have taken the NYSTCE in one of the fields listed between May 1, 2014 and the present are eligible.
Those who are registered for a future administration of an NYSTCE exam in one of the fields listed are eligible.

Note: Faculty are not eligible to participate in the field test.

How Can You Help?
Encourage your students to register today, at the website below, to take a field test!
Forward this e-mail to colleagues so that they may share this information with their students.
Share and post this link http://eswebbeta01/nystce_15_16/fieldtest.asp to promote this field test opportunity.

Registration opens November 2, 2015. Eligible students should visit the NYSTCE field test website to register:  www.pearsonvue.com/espilot

Thank you for your assistance in the development of the NYSTCE program.

Questions? Contact:
evaluationsystemscrg@pearson.com

(1) Incentives are issued upon verification of completion of each test form.

(2) A voucher may be applied toward registration fees for a future NYSTCE New York State Teacher Certification Examinations Test.  Registration vouchers are transferable and expire on December 31, 2016.