Florida School Boards Association
Federal education officials have decided Florida does not know best when it comes to school accountability and English-language learners. State legislators, supported by educators and advocates, changed the law in the spring to reflect that students still learning English should not be expected to immediately excel on Florida’s annual tests. They gave the students two…
The U.S. Department of Education is on the verge of releasing the first draft of new guidance on the peer-review process for standards and tests, a document that could exert a powerful influence on how states set academic expectations. Little known outside the assessment world, the process is wonky and technical. But it is an…
The old-fashioned way may be the best way when it comes to teaching math. A new study finds struggling students learned more with much-maligned “drill and kill” techniques to teach basic math concepts. Some parents and critics have complained that Common Core standards encourage schools to put less emphasis on drill-based math instruction. To help…
While kids are (possibly) doing summer reading, some activists are working hard to flunk the Common Core. Four years ago, when 44 states had adopted the K-12 curriculum standards, the whole thing seemed quiet and inevitable. Today, resistance is everywhere: from teachers and parents who chafe over testing requirements to Tea Party types who see…
U.S. students’ understanding of personal finance might be average when compared with their peers overseas, as results from an international test showed last week, but some states and nonprofits are aiming to strengthen the teaching of financial in American schools. Last month, the state board of education in Florida adopted a financial-literacy strand to its…
More Florida elementary and middle schools earned an F rating this year, according to preliminary public school grades released Friday. But the number of schools earning the state’s highest rating also increased this year. “The increase in the number of schools earning an ‘A’ this year is great news for students and teachers who have…
ST. PETERSBURG — Parents, teachers and public school officials are getting their first look at the new Florida Standards Assessment, and some are concerned with what they see. The Florida Department of Education unveiled a new website this week containing practice tests, test summaries, testing policies and administrator information about the FSA, which replaces the…
Florida finance and business leaders have long pushed for the state’s students to better understand the way money works in today’s society. Lawmakers mandated financial literacy instruction for high school students in 2013. In June, the State Board of Education adopted a “financial literacy strand” into its social studies standards. Did you know Florida was…
The Florida Department of Education has released practice questions for the new assessments that will replace the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test next year. The tests, which are aligned to the new Common Core-based Florida Standards, are available at the Florida Standards Assessments website. Some questions are similar to what students might have seen on the…
Forget the FCAT. Think FSA instead. Florida’s 15-year-old test officially gave way Monday to the Florida Standards Assessment, with the launch of a new website that gives a first look at the state’s new accountability exams. “We wanted parents and students and teachers to see the different types of questions there might be,” said Vince…