Specifications include, but are not limited to: Pursuant to the State Purchasing Act (Official Code of Georgia Annotated §§50-5-50 et seq.), this electronic Request for Proposals (“eRFP”) is being issued by the Georgia Department of Administrative Services (DOAS), on behalf of the Office of Planning and Budget – The Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC or State Entity) to establish a multi-year contract with one supplier to provide the administration of the state-approved educator certification assessment program, the Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE). GaPSC oversees educator certification/licensure, educator preparation, professional practices (ethics), and educator assessment. The GACE aims to help GaPSC ensure that candidates have the knowledge and skills needed to perform the job of an educator in Georgia's public schools. As Georgia has a state-customized assessment program, all GACE assessments are aligned with the state-approved educator preparation standards and with the state standards for the P-12 curriculum. Each GACE test was developed by committees comprised of individuals from across the state, including Georgia educators, educator preparation faculty, and other content and assessment specialists. The GACE assessments are criterion-referenced and are objective-based and/or task-based. The GACE program currently consists of forty-nine (49) content assessments, one (1) paraprofessional assessment, two (2) performance-based assessments, and two (2) ethics assessments. Currently, all content assessments and paraprofessional assessments are administered at physical test sites across the state. The performance-based assessments are portfolio-based. The ethics assessments are instructional modules completed at home or another secure location. The paraprofessional assessment has an at-home testing option. The annual test volume in 2021-22 exceeded 70,340. See Attachment M Test Volume by Year Compiled AY19-AY23.
