Assessment/Accountability
Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System

Important MEPA Updates

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide you with important information on required English proficiency assessments for limited English proficient (LEP) students. Included herein are updates regarding:

• Fall 2005 and Spring 2006 MEPA test administration schedule and participation requirements
• Ordering MEPA test materials for the fall 2005 administration
• Spring 2005 MEPA test results for schools and districts
• Database of MELA-O administrators and trainers

I encourage you to share this information with your faculty and staff, particularly those involved in the instruction and assessment of LEP students. Should you have questions or need assistance, please contact the Department's Student Assessment Office at (781) 338-3625.

Fall 2005 and Spring 2006 MEPA Test Administration Schedule and Participation Requirements

For the 2005-2006 school year, only newly enrolled LEP students not tested in spring 2005, and all grade 3 LEP students must participate in the fall 2005 MEPA administration. The table below shows the schedule and participation requirements for administering the MEPA assessments during the 2005-2006 school year.

Ordering MEPA Test Materials for the Fall 2005 Administration

You will receive a memorandum in early September containing detailed instructions and a password for online ordering of MEPA test materials for the fall 2005 administration. Please note that test materials must be ordered online no later than Wednesday, September 21, so that all LEP students are tested as indicated above. Please note that there will be no MEPA test administration workshops in fall 2005. Directions for administering the fall MEPA tests, including manuals, will be sent to schools with orders of test materials.

Spring 2005 MEPA Test Results for Schools and Districts

Later this fall, the Department will release updated reports of school and district results from the spring 2005 MEPA test administration. These reports include results for students who participated in the fall 2004 and spring 2005 MEPA tests. These matched results show, at the school and district levels, the progress that LEP students made toward English language proficiency during the last school year.

Database of District MELA-O Administrators and Trainers

As you know, the Massachusetts English Language Assessment-Oral (MELA-O) is the assessment required for assessing the English proficiency of LEP students in Comprehension (Listening) and Production (Speaking). The MELA-O must be administered by a qualified administrator (QMA) or a qualified trainer (QMT). Since superintendents are responsible for ensuring that all LEP (grades K-12) be assessed annually on MELA-O, it is important to ensure that your district has an adequate number of trained staff to conduct the test administration. To assist you with this, the Department's list of QMAs and QMTs within each district has recently been updated. We request that you review your district's information at http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/2004/news/0223melao_lep.html and report any inaccuracies via e-mail to Lydia Smith in the Student Assessment Office at lsmith@doe.mass.edu.

Fall 2005 MEPA Reporting Workshops

The Department will conduct MEPA Reporting Workshops for principals in early November 2005. These sessions will provide information on the fall MEPA school and district report updates and the Annual Measurable Achievement Objectives reports that will be issued later this fall as required by Title III of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. Information on these workshops will be posted next month to the Department's Web page at www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/mepa/.

I want to take this opportunity to thank you and your staff for your assistance with this important initiative for LEP students.