Florida School Boards Association
Florida education commissioner Pam Stewart’s school grading simulation showed the state would see a similar distribution of A through F marks for 2015 as it saw in 2014. That simple fact led some observers to question how that could be, given the state’s tests and standards were supposed to be more difficult. Since the numbers were…
How best to set proposed “cut scores,” or passing rates, for the new Florida Standards Assessments continues to divide state Board of Education members and state Education Commissioner Pam Stewart. The board plans to set the cut scores in January and continues to debate whether the scores should be set higher than what Stewart recommends…
Overcoming years of partisan bickering over the federal government’s role in public education, congressional negotiators came to an agreement on Thursday to revise the No Child Left Behind law for the first time since it was signed by President George W. Bush 14 years ago. Although Democrats and Republicans agreed that the law — passed…
Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho is gearing up for the next round of a months-long battle with the state over flawed standardized student tests that will also determine school grades and measure teacher performance. The controversy centers on the state’s Department of Education’s plan to use scores from the new state tests given this spring —…
Christmas seems to have come early this year for education advocates. After weeks of long and hard negotiations, House and Senate lawmakers have reached preliminary agreement on a bill for the long-stalled reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act, multiple sources say. The agreement will set the stage for an official conference committee, which…
The lines have been clearly drawn in Florida’s approach to setting the “cut” scores for the Florida Standards Assessments five achievement levels. Some State Board of Education members have called for connecting the scores to NAEP proficiency levels, a position forcefully promoted by state business interests and former Gov. Jeb Bush’s education foundation. Education Commissioner…
The senior member of Florida’s State Board of Education called for more honesty in test score reporting Wednesday, just hours after the release of new nationwide data showing student performance had slipped in key areas. Fourth- and eighth-grade scores in the 2015 National Assessment of Educational Progress slid in Florida, after years of steady improvement.…
TALLAHASSEE — Members of the Florida Board of Education want Education Commissioner Pam Stewart to provide them with more data to help them set passing marks for the new statewide assessment, which continues to attract backlash from superintendents, teachers and parents statewide. Standing by the Florida Standards Assessments and in an effort to prove the…
When the Education Department releases its biennial scorecard of reading and math scores for all 50 states this week, Florida and Texas are likely to look pretty mediocre. In 2013, the last time that scores were released, Florida ranked 30th on the tests, which are given to fourth and eighth graders, and Texas ranked 32nd.…