EXPEDITED RFQ TEMPLATE

FOR TRAINING SERVICES

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

Training Services ITQ #4400008567

RFQ FOR ITEM WRITING AND HANDSCORING TRAINING(S)

Solicitation Number: 6100039578

12/27/2016

Dear Suppliers:

The attached Statement of Work (SOW) (Attachment A) is provided for you to develop your proposal for the referenced Training Project. The successful contractor will be selected based on Cost. The Best Value Criteria specified below defines the criteria that will be used to determine the successful contractor to be issued a purchase order. It is imperative that you expound in writing on the requirements listed within the SOW. You may complete your proposal on this form and return your quote electronically via SRM no later than 2pm on January 11, 2017.

Best Value Criteria:

  1. Cost: Complete the attached Cost Matrix (Attachment B)to submit the cost portion of yourproposal.

Any questions on this RFQ must be emailed by 2:00 PM on January 4, 2017:

Contact Person:

Emily Rosenberry

(717) 787-8037

E-mail:

Note: This Request for Quotations (6100039578) is a restrictedsolicitation. Only those contractors qualified in both of the designated categories under Contract #4400008567, known as the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Training Services Invitation to Qualify (ITQ), may submit a proposal in response to this RFQ.

Designated Categories:Conference Planning and Professional Education Services

For more information about the Training Services ITQ, please click the following link.

The following documents must be returned with your RFQ response:

Attachment A – Statement of Work (include Contractor Work Statement, Project Work Plan,

Contractor Prior Experience Submittal and Resumes of proposed personnel)

Attachment B – Cost Matrix

Attachment C – Domestic Workforce Utilization Form

ATTACHMENT A – STATEMENT OF WORK

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) seeks a supplier who will work in collaboration with PDE in order to deliver the Item Writing and Handscoring Training(s) to familiarize Pennsylvania educators with the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) and Keystone Exam item writing and handscoring processes. The workshops will focus on English language arts (ELA), mathematics, and science content areas at grade levels ranging from grade 3 through high school. A train-the-trainer approach will allow workshop attendees to launch effective peer-centered training sessions in their own LEAs. To that end, each participant will leave the workshops with two binders of materials (one marked-up, one clean) for use in peer training sessions. Additionally, all materials for all subjects/grade levels will be provided to each participant on a flash drive. PDE plans to conduct 3,two day, trainings across the state in spring 2017. The successful offeror will secure sites for the three training sessions, with one (1) training to be held in western Pennsylvania, one (1) training in central Pennsylvania, and one (1) training in eastern Pennsylvania. PDE wishes these training sessions to be held at ahotel(s) that can accommodate the two day training session(s). The participants at each training session will consist of up to a total of sixty six (66) representatives, 22 from each of the content areas of ELA, Mathematics, and Science, based upon a first come, first serve basis and distributed evenly across the geographic regions of Pennsylvania determined by the Intermediate Units identified in the chart below. Preferred location of facility for each session is a central, easily accessible, location within each geographical region.

Training #
Location / IU(s) Targeted* / ELA Attendees / Mathematics Attendees / Science Attendees / Total Attendees
1
Central PA / 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16 / 22 / 22 / 22 / 66
2
Western PA / 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 27, 28 / 22 / 22 / 22 / 66
3
Eastern PA / 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29 / 22 / 22 / 22 / 66

*Offeror will send out an informational flyer and registration instructions to every Local Education Agency (LEA) who may then apply to send one (1) representative. The LEA must designate in which content area its representative wishes to participate (listed below).

-ELA: grades 3-5, grades 6-8, high school Literature

-Mathematics: grades 3-5, grades 6-8, high school Algebra I

-Science: grade 4, grade 8, high school Biology

-Note: PDE will not be formally approving each participant.

**All registrations will be on a first come, first serve basis. Offeror will receive, process, and send replies to LEA applicants based upon selection for the training. Offeror is responsible for equal distribution and representation of attendees across the content area and grade span(s).

***The successful Offeror would determine the order of the three training sessions, based upon the availability of the sites.

REQUIRED SPECIFIC WORK SKILLS

In order to achieve the goals outlined in the Statement of Work, the contractor must demonstrate:

  1. Significant prior experience with developing and managing complex training ventures.
  2. Experience in planning and executing training sessions for educators.
  3. Ability to work with state officials, site management, technical consultants, members of the educational community, etc.
  1. Ability to equitably manage a registration process for 200 registrants on a first come, first serve basis that incorporates the following:
  2. Dissemination of an electronic registration bulletin/flyer with registration instructions and location information for each session to all LEAs within Pennsylvania.
  3. Provision of a help desk to assist registrants in the registration process.
  4. Transmission of e-mail confirmation of successful registration sent to registrants with proposed schedule, driving directions, and, if applicable, lodging details.
  5. Notification of non-selected registrantsby e-mail.
  6. Provision of a printed schedule for all attendees upon arrival at conference.
  7. Regular reporting to PDE Item Writing and Handscoring Training planners with details of session registrations by location.
  8. Ability to provide personnel with the ability to maintain, coordinate, and manage all facets of the Item Writing and Handscoring Trainings and related activities. Vendor is responsible for preparing and presenting all training content and activities. These abilities must be demonstrated through resumes of proposed staff to include knowledge of Pennsylvania core standards and experience writing items to those standards, as well as experience with Pennsylvania rubrics and the ability to score open ended questions aligned to those rubrics.
  9. Ability to maintain and provide on-site technical assistance, diagnostic, and installation services.

Contractor must also:

  1. Develop a proposed Item Writing and Handscoring Training budget for submission for PDE approval once final numbers are received; maintain accurate accounting and reporting procedures.
  2. Schedule all Item Writing and Handscoring Training room arrangements based upon the number of attendees per training; include provisions for approximately nine (9) breakout sessions.
  3. Evaluate sites that meet PDE specifications; recommend to PDE a secure ADA compliant location.
  4. Provide for or contract with training facility and/or its technology contractor to ensure all audio-visual institute requirements are met. Audio-visual specifications must include, but not be limited to, as follows:
  1. Provide A-V equipment to include the following: speakers, video projectors, microphones, and cabling.
  2. Function as the primary point of reference for providing technical support related to the house system.
  3. Provide an audio/visual crew member on site during the training session(s).
  4. Provide an A-V person or crew to set theprojectors, microphones, and speakers.
  5. Set up equipment in the breakout rooms.
  1. Work with training facility to coordinate all aspects of the Item Writing and Handscoring Trainings (e.g., meals, audio-visual needs, room set-ups).
  2. Meals to include: (per location.)
  3. Two breakfasts for each participant, PDE employee, and presenter.
  4. Two lunches for each participant, PDE employee, and presenter.
  5. One supper for eachparticipant, PDE employee, and presenter.
  6. Breaks to include: (per location.)
  7. Two AM breaks with coffee, tea, and healthful snacks.
  8. Two PM breaks with water, juice(s), and healthful snacks.
  9. Develop and maintain an accounting system to provide financial and programmatic reports to PDE on a regular basis as the Item Writing and Handscoring Training plans move forward, and submit within 90 days from the final day of the Item Writing and Handscoring Training a final financial summary report available in both electronic and hard copy.
  10. Schedule a pre-training session(s) with PDE to review all training content, materials and activities.
  11. Schedule a post-training session(s) debrief with analysis and recommendations for future events; provide an executive summary and full report to include financials and all other relevant data that informs Item Writing and Handscoring Training quality; include a qualitative summary highlighting both strengths and needs of Item Writing and Handscoring Training.
  12. Be a currently approved Act 48 provider, subcontract with an approved provider or have filed an application with the Department for approval as an Act 48 provider, in order to coordinate all activities related to awarding Act 48 hours, including Act 48 educator forms, attendance verification, and uploading of hours to the Professional Education Record Management System (PERMS).
  13. Make lodging reservations for all participants and presenters traveling over 50 miles for up to two nights and including necessary ADA accommodations and dietary restrictions.

REQUIRED INFORMATION HANDLING TASKS:

The contractor must perform tasks required to support the management of the Item Writing and Handscoring Training. These tasks include, but are not limited to, maintaining registration numbers, providing statistical reports, and managing and filing correspondence. In addition:

  1. All material produced or compiled by the contractor in accomplishing this project and all materials purchased under this contract will become the property of, and will be turned over to, PDE at the conclusion of this contract.
  2. Final version of all reports must be in a form suitable for print reproduction. Storage and retrieval of all documents must be in Microsoft compatible format (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.).
  3. The contractor must have the ability to receive and send electronic transmissions of documents and data.
  4. Information must be handled in accordance with Commonwealth policy.

REQUIRED ADDITIONAL TASKS:

Any tasks apparent to the potential contractor but not stated in this RFQ should be identified in the response. In addition to the tasks required in the Statement of Work, Work Skills and Information Handling sections, the potential contractor is responsible for the following:

  1. ADMINISTRATION.

The contractor must:

  1. Post all Item Writing and Handscoring Training information and registration on a publicly accessible website.
  2. Ensure the availability of supplies and equipment on hand to support all functional tasks.
  3. Produce nametags, and have onsite ability to copy/print documents, agendas, etc.
  4. Ship or deliver materials to event locations.
  5. Provide on-site logistics.
  6. Create an evaluation form (PDE approved) and summarize results and provide to PDE within 30 days of the end of the institute.
  7. Provide the PDE with reports, plans, and other information requested by directive, letter, message, or verbal communication by the requested due date. This shall include, but not be limited to a final completion report, and preliminary and final training conference plan.
  1. EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS.

To support continuity of operations during an emergency, the contractor must describe its emergency response continuity of operations plan, which plan should include the elements listed below. Contractor may satisfy this requirement by providing a copy of its plan or a summary describing how the plan addresses the listed elements.

  1. How communication within the organization and externally will continue when primary communication systems are overloaded or otherwise fail.
  2. How cancellations will occur and events be rescheduled and how those changes will be communicated in the event of emergencies, to include inclement weather.
  3. Employee training (describe your organization’s training plan, and how frequently your plan will be shared with employees)
  4. Identification of essential business functions of this project and key employees (within your organization) necessary to carry out project functions.
  5. Contingency plans to address staffing issues when key employees are incapacitated due to illness or kept from the primary workplace due to contagion control or other reason.
  1. PROJECT TO BE COMPLETED Upon final approval through June 30, 2017:

PDE will only pay for actual expenses incurred for the planning and execution of this conference. Invoices submitted for payment will be reviewed for accuracy prior to payment.

CONTRACTOR WORK STATEMENT (Append to Attachment A)

The Pennsylvania Department of Education is planning to offer training to allLEAs in the Commonwealth onPSSA and Keystone ExamItem Writing and Handscoring to assist Pennsylvania educators in planning and implementing effective curricular and instructional practices to increase student learning. Each LEA may apply to send a maximum ofone (1) participant in one of the following categories: ELA, Mathematics, or Science. Registration will be granted on a first come first serve basis. Each training session will begin in a large group setting for up to 66 participants. Participants will then break into the three content specific groups for up to 22 participants. A proposed agenda follows.

Day 1:

7:30 – 8:30Hot breakfast – (Up to 80 people)

8:30-9:30General session – (Up to 80 people)

Screen, projector, sound equipment, Internet connection

9:30-10:00Break into content areaswith PDE to address each content area separately

One breakout room for each content area, ELA, Mathematics, and Science

Up to27 people per room/area

Screen, projector, Internet connection each room/area

10:00-10:15Item Writing/Handscoring training

10:15-10:30Break – (Up to 80 people)

Coffee, tea, healthful snacks

10:30 -12:00Item Writing/Handscoring training continued

12:00-1:00Lunch – (Up to 80 people)

1:00-2:15Item Writing/Handscoring training continued

2:15-2:30Break – (Up to 80 people)

Water, juices, healthful snacks

2:30-4:00Item Writing/Handscoring training continued

Break into grade specific groups

One breakout room for each grade specific group

Up to 9people per room/area

Screen, projector, Internet connection each room/area

4:00-7:00Supper – (Up to 80 people)

Day 2:

7:30 – 8:30Hot breakfast – (Up to 80 people)

8:30-10:15Item Writing/Handscoring training in grade specific groups continued

(Same room/area requirements as earlier)

10:15-10:30Break – (Up to 80 people)

Coffee, tea, healthful snacks

10:30 -12:00Item Writing/Handscoring training in grade specific groups continued

12:00-1:00Lunch – (Up to 80 people)

1:00-2:15Item Writing/Handscoring training in grade specific groups continued

2:15-2:30Break – (Up to 80 people)

Water, juices, healthful snacks

2:30-4:00Item Writing/Handscoring training in grade specific groups continued

The successful offeror will ensure that all meals and breaks are successfully handled. The successful offeror will ensure that all rooms have Internet access, a screen, a projector, and sound amplifying equipment for the large room.

DETAILED DRAFT AGENDA – Large Group Training – Day 1 AM

Day 1 (all content areas)

Timeframe / Activity / Additional Information
7:30—8:30 / Breakfast / Breakfast served at the workshop location.
8:30—9:30 / General Session / The 66 participants from all three content areas share the general session.
PDE: Introductions/opening remarks
PDE: ELA, Mathematics, and Science content staff: Option to address participants
Supplier: PowerPoint presentation describing item development and handscoring processes
9:30 / Divide into Content Area Groups in breakout rooms / The 66 participants from all three content areas will divide into groups by content area:
  • Group A: ELA – approximately 22 participants
  • Group B: Mathematics – approximately 22 participants
  • Group C: Science – approximately 22 participants

DETAILED DRAFT AGENDA – ELA Break-out Rooms

Timeframe
ELA Day 1 / Activity / Additional Information
9:30—10:15 / Item Writing Training / ELA participants will engage in a series of item-writing exercises.
Supplierand PDE ELA content staff provide guided, ELA-focused training on the item writing process that will highlight the essential features of, and differences among, the various ELA item types:
  • Multiple Choice Questions (MC)
  • Evidence-Based Selected Response Questions (EBSR)
  • Short Answer Questions (SA)
  • Constructed Response Questions (CR)
  • Open-ended Writing Prompts (OE)
  • Text-Dependent Analysis questions (TDA)
This segment of the training will also address essential differences in how each item type is scored.
Supplierand PDE ELA content staff provide guided, ELA-focused training on the concept of close reading and its relation to the TDA item type.
Participants actively engage in the development of test questions.
10:15—10:30 / Break / Snack and beverages will be provided.
10:30—12:00 / Continue Item Writing Training / Participants continue with ELA item writing activities, progressing through each item type.
12:00—1:00 / Lunch / Lunch served at the workshop location.
1:00—2:15 / Continue Item Writing Training / Participants continue ELA item writing activities, progressing through each item type.
2:15—2:30 / Break / Snack and beverages will be provided.
2:30—4:00 / Continue Item Writing Training / Participants wrap up ELA item writing activities.
4:00—7:00 / Supper / Supper served at the workshop location.

DETAILED DRAFT AGENDA – ELA Break-out Rooms (continued)

Timeframe
ELA Day 2 / Activity / Additional Information
7:30—8:30 / Breakfast / Breakfast served at the workshop location.
8:30—10:15 / Handscoring training / Supplierand PDE ELA content staff continue the guided, ELA-focused training with thorough handscoring training sessions.
Participants break into two groups, one focused on PSSA, and the other focused on Keystone. The PSSA group will have approximately 14-16 participants. The Keystone group will have 6-8 participants.
Supplierand PDE ELA content staff provide item-specific ELA handscoring training. The PSSA group will be trained on one text-dependent analysis item from grade-6. Training will address how the concept of close reading plays into student performance on the TDA item type. The Keystone group will be trained on one or two Keystone Literature CRQuestions.
Training begins with a thorough review/discussion of an annotated anchor set (including the question, rubric, and passage or passage set).
Next, participants practice applying scoring criteria by taking (and thoroughly discussing) a series of training sets.
10:15—10:30 / Break / Snack and beverages will be provided.
10:30—12:00 / Continue handscoring training / Participants continue ELA handscoring training activities.
12:00—1:00 / Lunch / Lunch served at the workshop location.
1:00—2:15 / Continue handscoring training / Participants continue ELA handscoring training activities.
2:15—2:30 / Break / Snack and beverages will be provided.
2:30—4:00 / Continue handscoring training / Participants wrap up ELA handscoring training activities.

DETAILED DRAFT AGENDA – Mathematics Break-out Rooms