Teacher Training Opportunities

    The Department of Elementary and Secondary (DESE) has actively recruited and involved teachers in the development of the MAP. The Department also sponsors an intensive professional development program that gives teachers a unique opportunity to learn more about performance-based assessment and participate in state-level decisions about the MAP. Hundreds of teachers in school districts across the state are already involved, and the network continues to grow.

Benefits for MAP Teachers

Learn to develop, use and score performance-based assessment tools.

     DESE and local school districts share the cost of providing released time during the year for teachers to take part in regular workshops designed to provide in-depth, practical understanding of Missouri's emerging assessment system and related changes in public education.

Use performance-based assessment in your classroom.

     Teachers learn how to integrate performance-based strategies and techniques into their daily classroom practice.

Help Shape the Statewide Assessment System by...

 Determining the format and content of statewide assessments.

  MAP participants work with other teachers, curriculum specialists and citizens across the state to decide the appropriate content for each subject-area assessment. Items and scoring guides for the MAP are being designed by Missouri teachers, in cooperation with specialists from CTB/McGraw-Hill, the test publisher for the MAP.

Setting levels of achievement.

   Working with business and civic leaders, legislators and other educators, MAP teachers help define expectations for achievement in each subject and grade level.

Paving the way for statewide implementation.

   As performance-based assessment becomes required throughout the state, there is growing demand for MAP teachers to provide leadership and training for local school personnel.

Scoring the assessments.

   Each summer, teachers are hired to score the MAP assessments given during the previous spring. This allows state officials to be sure that the contracted scoring service (conducted out-of-state) conforms to Missouri standards.

How MAP Teachers Work Together

  Regional Facilitators are professional educators who direct MAP activities in nine geographical areas of the state. The Regional Facilitators maintain the MAP Regional Centers and provide training for teachers in regional school districts. When called upon, the facilitators serve as resources for local districts and the state's nine Regional Professional Development Centers (RPDCs).

    The Assessment Section at DESE is responsible for the overall coordination of professional development activities related to the MAP. The Assessment Section is the source of the policies that guide MAP, the funding that fuels most of its activities, and the information that Regional Facilitators need to stay abreast of statewide issues and developments.

For more information, contact the MAP Center in your region. See list below.