May 28th, 8:30am – 3:30pm
Federal Reserve Building
60 Dorrance Street (at Westminster)
Providence, RI 02903
Join the Coalition of Essential Schools (CES), the Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (RIDE), and Maine’s Great Schools Partnership (GSP), for a New England symposium on performance assessment in celebration of CES’s National Exhibition Month.
Exhibitions are student presentations representing a culmination of their independent learning. Students present to a panel of community judges to share what they know, what they have learned and what they are able to do. National Exhibition Month is a campaign sponsored by CES to show that exhibitions effectively and comprehensively assess student progress toward proficiency in the real world and meet state and school standards. Responding to the limitations of a single, high-stakes standardized test, many states are exploring ways to integrate forms of performance assessment into education policy. Rhode Island leads the nation as one of the few states to adopt performance assessments as a requirement for high school graduation.
This symposium convenes state policymakers and school officials from across New England to learn about performance assessments and to explore Rhode Island’s inclusion of them in its Diploma System, with attention paid to the resulting impact throughout the region.
8:30-9:30am |
Breakfast and Registration |
9:45-10:00am |
Welcome and Remarks by Rhode Island Commissioner of Education Peter McWalters |
10:00-11:00am |
Panel I: Defining Exhibitions and Performance Assessments |
11:00am-12:00pm |
Panel II: Exploring Performance Assessment in a Single District |
12:00-1:00pm |
Lunch |
1:00-2:00pm |
Session III: Student Demonstrations of Exhibitions and Portifolios |
2:00-3:30pm |
Panel IV: Policy Implications for New England States |
3:30pm |
Adjourn |
Featured guests will include:
On the following day, May 29, from 9:00 am - 2:00 pm, a small number of attendees will have the opportunity to visit one of two Rhode Island schools to observe performance-based assessment in action. Space is limited so please register early.
Barrington High School is a residential community located on upper Narragansett Bay. Barrington High School was the first Rhode Island school to institute exhibitions as a performance-based graduation requirement. Students have been presenting their Senior Projects for eight years. Barrington High School is a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence and ranked as a High Performing Rhode Island High School with an enrollment of 1130 students.
Portsmouth High School is a residential community located on Aquidneck Island. Portsmouth High School recently implemented exhibitions as a graduation requirement. This multi-community high school of 1074 students is ranked as a High Performing Rhode Island High School.
Buses will depart from the Westin Providence Hotel at 9:00 am and will return at 2:00 pm. Lunch will be provided.
Space is limited for both the symposium and school visits – registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Westin Providence
One West Exchange Street
Providence, RI 02903
800-937-8461
A limited block of rooms have been set aside at a conference rate of $139.00 + taxes. Reservations must be made before May 24th to receive this rate. Please call 1-800-937-8461 and mention the New England Symposium on Performance Assessment when making reservations or use the secure online reservation form.