The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) and the Educational Testing Service (ETS) are developing a new Praxis Series TM licensure assessment for entry-level Pennsylvania Grade 4-8 teachers. A licensure assessment is intended to provide information regarding the knowledge and skills that are important for entry-level teachers to engage in independent practice.

The assessment development process involves two major phases: construct definition and test design. In order to complete these two phases, PDE needs to recruit teachers and/or teacher-educators to provide their professional judgment regarding which knowledge and/or skills are important for safe and effective entry-level practice (construct definition phase), and how that content should be measured (test design phase).

You are invited you to nominate teachers teaching middle grades to become a member of the Pennsylvania Grades 4-8 Advisory Committee. Committee members will be expected to attend either a three-or-two day meeting depending on assignment.

The goal of the first part of the meeting will be to define the construct to be measured by the assessment. Committee members will work collaboratively to determine the knowledge and skills important for safe and effective entry-level practice. The goal of the second part of the meeting will be to develop test content specifications (i.e., a blueprint that defines how the content will be measured by the test). Additional responsibilities may include pre- and post-meeting web-based assignments.

Details regarding the meeting include the following:

Subject:   Pennsylvania Grades 4-8
Dates:   April 18-22, 2011
Times:   9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Place:   Harrisburg, PA
Honorarium:     $250/day for each full day
Travel:   All expenses paid by ETS
Certificate:   Professional Development hours
Reimbursement for Substitutes: Upon request by committee member

If you or the appropriate staff would like to attend, e-mail Debra McKee at dmckee@ets.org and attach a resume by February 25, 2011. Please be sure that your school or institution has approved your leave if you are chosen to serve on this committee.