FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
    ?
    STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
    Jeanine Blomberg
    Commissioner of Education
    T. WILLARD FAIR,
    Chairman
    Members
    DONNA G. CALLAWAY
    DR. AKSHAY DESAI
    ROBERTO MARTÍNEZ
    PHOEBE RAULERSON
    KATHLEEN SHANAHAN
    Contact Information
    LINDA K. TAYLOR
    Bobbie Dilocker
    dilockerinc@tampabay.rr.com
    March 21, 2007
    (352) 560-7088
    Pamela Stewart
    (850) 245-0509
    Pamela.stewart@fldoe.org
    MEMORANDUM
    K-12: 2007-59
    TO:
    District School Superintendents
    Assistant District School Superintendents
    Assessment
    Coordinators
    Accountability
    Coordinators
    FROM:
    Jeanine Blomberg
    SUBJECT:
    End-of-Course Examinations (ECE) Clearinghouse and Evaluations
    Many of you have expressed concerns about the availability of exams from the End-of-Course
    Examinations (ECE) Clearinghouse. We recognize the time delay between requesting and
    receiving exams is problematic and are working toward a solution that would result in a faster
    turnaround time. As you know, this has been an enormous undertaking in a short time period
    and all involved have been working extremely hard to accomplish this. We believe the process
    will become smoother as the Clearinghouse fully implements the program.
    The ECE Clearinghouse has mailed out previously requested tests on a secured CD-Rom. The
    district’s Clearinghouse designee will then contact the Clearinghouse to receive the encryption
    code. Subsequent requests will be handled in the same manner and the turnaround should be
    fairly quick.
    In addition to addressing the time delays, the Clearinghouse is identifying the “gap” between
    courses and available exams currently in the Clearinghouse or under development. Once this
    analysis is completed, the Clearinghouse intends to identify strategies to meet these gaps,
    including depositing exams into the Clearinghouse that are made available by districts. We
    hope that all districts will consider contributing to the Clearinghouse to meet the needs identified
    through the gap analysis. However, completely “closing the gap” is not anticipated during this
    implementation year.
    Memorandum
    325 W. GAINES STREET • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0505 • www.fldoe.org
    March 16, 2007
    Page Two
    As you know, all districts continue to have the flexibility in their current STAR plan to use exams
    that may be available at the district-level, including district-wide final comprehensive exams.
    Under this approach, a district could review each teacher’s final exam for their individual
    course(s) and select the one test that best assesses the Sunshine State Standards or
    curriculum frameworks for that subject and grade level and utilize that test district-wide. Many
    districts have considered this option and it may serve as a useful approach for this first year.
    As technical assistance for the implementation of the STAR program, the Florida Department of
    Education will provide each district with the six state level value tables (elementary reading and
    math; middle school reading and math; and high school reading and math). The value tables
    will be based on statewide student performance on FCAT Reading and Math in the current year
    and prior year for students assessed in grades four through ten.
    Additionally you will receive a student-level data file identifying the number of value table points
    an individual student’s performance corresponds to on the state level value table. In this file,
    there will be a points value assigned (one for reading and one for math) to each student record
    if the student is currently enrolled in grades four through ten and has FCAT performance data
    for the current and prior year. This file will allow districts to compute, if they so choose, the
    improved student performance score for teachers based on students that the district has
    matched to particular instructor.
    These value tables and data file will be available to districts to measure improved student
    performance for those instructional personnel who are to be evaluated based on FCAT Reading
    and/or Math, as outlined by your district’s STAR plan.
    JB/psl

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