Media Alert: Special PARCC Assessment Information Session Targets Spanish-Speaking Parents

MSDE Experts Will Take Questions

For Immediate Release                                                      Contact: Bill Reinhard, 410-767-0486

Baltimore, MD (February 27, 2015)

The Maryland State Department of Education on Monday is hosting an information session to help Spanish-speaking parents gain exposure to the new state assessments in English Language Arts and math that their children begin taking in early March.

Parents will participate in an online tutorial and review sample math tests. This session is specifically for parents of elementary and middle-school students in Baltimore City and Baltimore County, in grades 3-8.

Kristina Kyles, Assistant State Superintendent for the Division of Student, Family and School Support, will be on hand to welcome parents and provide introductory remarks.

The new PARCC assessments are aligned to the Maryland College and Career-Ready Standards, which are based on the Common Core State Standards, adopted in 2010 and fully implemented in 2013-14.  The testing window for PARCC’s Performance Based Assessment opens next week.

Bilingual speakers will be on hand to translate for parents who are not fluent in English.

WHAT:          PARCC Information Session for Spanish-Speaking Parents

WHEN:          6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
                     Monday, March 2

WHERE:       José Ruiz Community Center, 606 South Ann Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
                     (On-street meter parking available; parking behind building also available.)

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