After a year that saw parents rise up against standardized testing, Florida lawmakers on Wednesday said they are prepared to improve the state’s assessment program. “We have a chance to do a rewrite so we can ensure that we are not over-testing our children, and ensure that we provide a road map to the districts […]
Florida’s ever-changing school accountability system breeds confusion
One of the key issues surrounding the latest release of Florida’s individual school grades is the higher bar the state employs as enshrined in law. When more than 75 percent of the state’s high schools earn A’s or B’s in one year, the grading criteria gets tougher the next. That occurred in 2013, so this […]
Florida Gets More Time Before Counting English-Learner Test Results
The standoff between Florida and the federal Education Department about testing students learning English is over, and Florida will get its way. The federal agency will allow the state to start counting English-learners results after two years in school. The feds wanted the state to count results after one year. Read the full article
School District, union support review of testing practices
Marion County officials with the school district and the teachers union on Tuesday welcomed a state review of standardized testing practices of all the state’s 67 public school districts. State Education Commissioner Pam Stewart ordered the review late Monday and asked the Department of Education to gather accurate information about the number of tests districts […]
More time to learn English
At last. Some sanity has made its way into the frenzied world of high-stakes testing. It wasn’t easy to get to this point and, incredibly, it wasn’t assured, though anyone who has studied a foreign language for a trip abroad would understand. The U.S. Department of Education — DOE — reversed its unhelpful policy that […]
Florida Senate President Expects Legislative Hearings Into School Testing
Teacher and parent groups say Florida public school students are spending too much time taking – and getting ready for – assessments. Now, Senate President Andy Gardiner says lawmakers will likely hold hearings to review the amount of testing being done. “I think the jury’s still out on, you know, are we over testing,” Gardiner […]
School testing poised to get scaled back by Florida lawmakers
When the Lee County School Board voted in August to rid its classrooms of state-mandated tests, superintendent Nancy Graham says the district lost sight of a key factor: Children. Adults with political agendas on testing, accountability, Common Core and other issues held sway with passionate pleas, and board members took the bait. The conversation about […]
Your Guide To The Florida Standards Assessments
We’re taking this week to help parents and students understand the new Florida Standards Assessments, which students will take for the first time beginning in March. The math, reading and writing exam (reading and writing are combined as English language arts) is intended to measure how well students in third through eleventh grades understand Florida’s […]
Meet Florida’s New Statewide Test – Florida Standards Assessment
This spring, Florida students will take a brand new test tied to the state’s new math, reading and writing standards. This is the test that replaces the FCAT. It’s known as the Florida Standards Assessment, and it’ll be online. What’s on the test won’t be the only thing different about the exam. Students will also […]
New writing test will be paper-pencil version for grades 4-7
Students in grades 4 to 7 will take Florida’s new standardized writing test using old-fashioned paper and pencil to quell educators’ fears that younger students don’t have the typing skills needed to take an online writing exam. Education Commissioner Pam Stewart said Tuesday the state will revisit the issue next year, before deciding whether the […]