Amid heated debate over what Florida Standards Assessment levels mean, the Florida Department of Education has offered up a revamped student score report. It aims to make more clear exactly what a Level 1 through Level 5 mark represents, commissioner Pam Stewart told State Board of Education members Wednesday. “It’s not just a number,” Stewart said,…
An issue that has bedeviled dozens of counties across Florida — including Miami-Dade and Broward — returns to the spotlight this legislative session thanks to a Clearwater senator who has filed a bill that would fix a shamefully inequitable state mandate. In 2004, the Florida Legislature forced 38 counties to pay a portion of the…
With two votes Wednesday, the State Board of Education put to bed a lengthy, heated debate over how difficult Florida’s student testing and school grading formulas should be. Board members made it harder to get a passing score on the tests, and easier for a school to earn an A, just weeks before students begin…
Fresh off a year spent snared in gridlock over redistricting and the state budget, the Florida Legislature returns Tuesday for its annual 60-day session with fresh optimism that it will restore harmony to the process and put a halt to taxpayer-funded overtime. The session, set two months earlier than normal, is expected to open with…
AS HE OFTEN DOES WHEN DISCUSSING the merits of education bills before the Legislature, state Sen. Don Gaetz is drawing heavily on his days as a school board member and district superintendent from 1994 to 2006. “For way too long, children with intellectual and physical disabilities have been pushed to the margins of education,” he…
BRADENTON — School impact fees will be collected in April for the first time since 2009 after Manatee County Commission voted 5-2 on Thursday to allow the Manate Conty School Board to reinstate them. School impact fees are collected on new residential development, and can only be used for projects related to building new schools…
TALLAHASSEE — Although Florida lawmakers don’t plan to revamp the beleaguered Florida Standards Assessments this session, they’re likely to consider a related proposal to let students take other standardized tests — like the ACT or SAT — instead. State Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, this week filed a highly anticipated plan to let students make use…
1. Cut Scores and School Grades approved by State Board of Education http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/testing/state-education-board-to-make-key-decisions-today-on-florida-school-grades/2260120 2. Florida high school graduation rates improved http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/floridas-graduation-rate-soars-0?utm_source=Constant%20Contact&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=News%20Alert 3. Legislative session starts next week: issues to watch http://miami.cbslocal.com/2016/01/04/10-issues-to-watch-during-the-2016-session/ 4. Tallahassee downtown public parking (see you soon!) http://www.tallahasseedowntown.com/sites/default/files/dntwn_parking_2014.pdf 5. Just for fun: NEW elements added to periodic table http://www.huffingtonpost.com/melanie-fine/our-ephemeral-periodic-table_b_8921490.html Have a great weekend!…
The Constitution Revision Commission is a big deal, and voters should pay attention. This group of unelected appointees will have the power to put constitutional changes directly on the ballot. The CRC is required to meet every 20 years to review and recommend changes to the Florida Constitution. That’s pretty heady stuff. The politically well-connected…
Marion Brady is a veteran educator who has long argued that public education needs a paradigm shift. Brady says schools need a complete transformation in what and how students learn — not the Common Core State Standards, standardized tests and other elements of corporate-influenced school reform. Here’s his latest piece, on efforts by some reformers…