The Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 agency that governs public education in the state of Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

. The department manages funding and testing for local educational agencies accountable for student achievement. The Department is managed by the State Superintendent of Schools

Superintendent (education)

In education in the United States, a superintendent is an individual who has executive oversight and administration rights, usually within an educational entity or organization....

, a publicly elected position currently held by John Barge, as of 2011. The department is headquartered in the 2054 Twin Towers East building at 205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive SE at Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Downtown

Downtown Atlanta

Downtown Atlanta is the first and largest of the three financial districts in the city of Atlanta. Downtown Atlanta is the location of many corporate or regional headquarters, city, county, state and federal government facilities, sporting facilities, and is the central tourist attraction of the city...

 Atlanta.

Organization

The following five offices comprise the Georgia Department of Education: the Office of Standards, Instruction and Assessment, the Office of Finance and Business Operations, the Office of Policy and External Affairs, the Office of Education Support and Improvement, and the Office of Technology Services.

Office of Standards, Instruction and Assessment

The Office of Standards, Instructions and Assessment is made up of three Divisions: the Division of Standards Based Learning, which works to provide learning materials and instruction to assist teachers in making sure their students are prepared for graduation and beyond, the Division of Innovative Instruction, which provides educational programs and material for students, and the Division of Assessment and Accountability, which assesses student achievements and provides data to teachers and schools in order to better learn from their strengths and weaknesses.

Office of Finance and Business Operations

The Office of Finance and Business Operations has seven divisions: Account Services, Budget Services, Facility Services, Financial Review, Internal Support, Pupil Transportation and School Nutrition. For the most part these divisions see to the financial needs of the Department of Education and the schools in Georgia. However, the Pupil Transportation and School Nutrition divisions also work to interpret of laws and regulations and provide leadership and training assistance.

Office of Policy and External Affairs

The Office of Policy and External Affairs maintains divisions which deal with charter schools, communication

Communication

Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...

, human resources

Human resources

Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for example, business sectors or even whole nations...

, policy

Policy

A policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcome. The term is not normally used to denote what is actually done, this is normally referred to as either procedure or protocol...

 and state schools.

Office of Education Support and Improvement

Several divisions make up the Office of Education Support and Improvement. Learning Support provides services to schools, teachers and students. Migrant Education works with eligible children in Georgia . School Improvement helps schools by putting together a "statewide system" of tools and resources.

Office of Technology Services

The Office of Technology Services is split into two divisions: the Instructional Technology division,which integrates technology into the classroom and the Information Technology division, which builds infrastructures so information can be given to decision makers in the state.

State exams

The State of Georgia requires students to take several state test

Standardized test

A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a...

s. They are: the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests

Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests

The Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests are a set of tests administered at public schools in the state of Georgia that are designed to test the knowledge of first through eighth graders in reading, English/language arts , and mathematics, and third through eighth graders additionally in science...

, End-Of-Course Tests, Georgia High School Graduation Test

Georgia High School Graduation Test

The Georgia High School Graduation Test, or GHSGT, administered to all students in the eleventh grade, determines whether or not a student will graduate from a high school in the US state of Georgia.The test consists of five subject areas:...

, Georgia Alternate Assessment, and the Georgia Writings Assessments.

External links

• Georgia Department of Education