The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) today issued guidance in the form of a Dear Colleague Letter to states to ensure students with disabilities attending public virtual schools are getting the special education and supports that they deserve and is their right. The guidance focuses on specific requirements…
5 Things You Should Know What should US education be doing differently? ESSA feedback criticizes federal government for overreach Florida’s $100 purchasing power Which students perform better—video game players or social media posters? Parents across country—not just Florida—want recess
Between now and August 18, 2016, the U. S. Department of Education is collecting input from stakeholders on the educational and technical assistance needs of states and school districts. The input received will inform priorities for the next grant cycle of Regional Educational Laboratories as part of the Comprehensive Centers program. Read full article
A group of parents filed a complaint in Leon County civil court late Tuesday night, seeking to stop their children from repeating third grade under Florida’s social promotion law. The case, against the Florida Department of Education and seven school districts including Hernando and Pasco counties, aims for an injunction against the rules as students…
As retained Florida third graders return to school this week and next, district leaders are reminding principals and teachers that the children still may move up to fourth grade after classes resume. State law requires all districts to have midyear promotion plans for children held back in third grade because they did not show grade-level reading…
In 2015, slightly more than half of the nation’s children younger than 1 were non-white, U.S. Census Bureau data indicate. It’s just the latest data point marking a demographic transition, the shift from a majority white nation to one with no majority racial or ethnic group that’s also playing out in the nation’s K-12 classrooms.…
Florida’s first charter school opened 20 years ago. Since then, enrollment in these publicly funded, privately run schools has exploded. Today, more than 250,000 students attend about 650 charter schools across the state and many of them are returning to school this week. But the rapid growth has come with more than a few speed bumps. Read…
Students with disabilities who are frequently suspended from school may be missing out on the behavior supports they are entitled to, says new guidance released this week from the U.S. Department of Education. The “Dear Colleague” letter on the Inclusion of Behavioral Supports in Individualized Education Programs noted that 10 percent of students with disabilities were subject to short-term…
Days after closing the window on public input for Florida’s effort to implement new federal education accountability rules, state education commissioner Pam Stewart has sent her own views to U.S. Education Secretary John King. In her seven-page letter, Stewart touts Florida’s existing system, and reminds the secretary that the federal government cannot force states to…
The new federal K-12 education law contains the strongest requirements to date that states gather and weigh the opinions of principals, parents, and others as they create new education plans. But whether states are practicing this kind of “meaningful consultation”—and particularly whether they are tapping the expertise of their principals — depends very much on…