School safety. Superintendents and lawmakers talk about more funding for more security. Coverage from Gradebook, St. Augustine Record, Sarasota Herald Tribune, Daytona Beach News Journal.  Some are worried about “open campuses,” reports SchoolZone. A bill is filed that would require private schools to get safety alerts, just like public schools, from police departments and other emergency response agencies, reports redefinED.

The chairman of the Osceola County School Board, Jay Wheeler, writes in this Orlando Sentinel op-ed that the federal government should tax guns and bullets to pay for school guards: “When 26 students and school staff get killed by a crazed gunman in a public elementary school, it is a sad wake-up call for all of us that we have to do a better job protecting ourselves from our own freedoms.”

In Palm Beach County, mayors plead with the school board to install metal detectors in every school, reports the South Florida Sun Sentinel. More from the Palm Beach Post. In Lee County, deputies begin patrolling elementaries, reports the Fort Myers News Press. More from the Naples Daily News.

Test score limbo. If high school students fall short on the FCAT, he or she can still graduate if they get a high enough score on the ACT or SAT. But the state has yet to set new concordant scores for the other tests since upgrading the FCAT, leaving many students in limbo. Tampa Bay Times.

Charter school laws. SchoolZone notes the Center for Education Reform’s annual report card.

Why grading schools is good. EdFly Blog.

Vouchers and creationism. A Jacksonville school is among those highlighted in this MSNBC op-ed by student activist Zack Kopplin.

Privatization. The Bay County school district moves towards privatizing bus service. Panama City News Herald. (more…)

Another week, another report card. Florida earns a B on the Center for Education Reform's latest annual look at charter school laws, which was released this morning. The state gets high marks for not capping the number of charters, and for decent equity in operational funding. It gets low marks for not having multiple authorizers and for limited facilities funding. Florida ranked No. 7 overall (up from No. 8 last year), behind Washington D.C., Minnesota, Indiana, Michigan, Arizona and New York. More on this year's report here. Last year's report here.

Don’t back up, don’t back down. “Compromise” may be a watchword for 2013, but it wouldn’t be a good thing for education reform, writes Jeanne Allen, founder and president of The Center for Education Reform, in the Huffington Post. She points to Florida as a state that hasn’t compromised on accountability and school choice – and, as a result, has seen rising student achievement.

Acknowledging progress. Pointing to the recent PIRLS results as a “crucial mark of excellence,” the Miami Herald editorial board says Florida schools are making gains but need more money.

Tony Bennett. His views on Common Core and teacher evaluations. Gradebook.

More on charter school closing. School Zone weighs in on the one in Flagler that shut down during the holiday break.

Say no to Robin Hood. Some Seminole County parents don’t like the idea of using family incomes as a factor in drawing new school boundary lines. “The school board needs to stop playing Robin Hood,” one said. School Zone.

Inappropriate. The Hernando school district’s CFO posts pornographic images and makes critical comments about the superintendent online during work hours, reports the Tampa Bay Times.

After Newtown. School district officials in Palm Beach County say metal detectors aren't the answer, reports the Palm Beach Post. Armed officers and deputies will be at every Hillsborough elementary school when students return Monday, the Tampa Tribune reports. School resource officers will be in every Alachua elementary, beginning today, reports the Gainesville Sun. Beefed up security in Marion, too, reports the Ocala Star Banner.

Even with more than 40 states authorizing charter schools now, the process is still an experiment of sorts – and one that some advocates say has a dramatic impact on a school’s success.

Look what happens when a charter school seems to fail, said Jeanne Allen, president of The Center for Education Reform.

Critics sound the alarm and lawmakers rush in to “meddle’’ with charter school design and accountability, Allen said this week during a panel discussion at the Excellence In Action National Summit in Washington, D.C. Pretty soon, the school that’s supposed to operate without being bogged down in red tape like a traditional school ends up looking a lot like that school, Allen said.

Charter schools need more time to be innovative, she said.

They also need better accountability measurements and more funding if they are going to be successful, panel members said.

Their comments came a day before the National Association of Charter School Authorizers announced a campaign to set tougher standards for charter schools.

According to the association, about 900 to 1,300 charter schools nationwide are among the lowest 15 percent of academic performers in their states, judging by standardized test scores in reading and math. (more…)

We like to think of Florida as School Choice Central, but there is more competition for that title every year and, alas, according to the Center for Education Reform, it may now belong to Indiana. The Hoosier State takes the top spot in the center's newly created “Parent Power Index,” released today, while Florida comes up short by a hair.

The center credits Florida for being a leader in private learning options and online course enrollments. But it says the state should allow independent bodies such as universities to authorize charter schools (there are constitutional questions here) and adds that “funding of charter schools in Florida has become increasingly inequitable.” It also notes: No parent trigger law.

Indiana, meanwhile, gets praise for its fledgling statewide voucher program and a “much tested and improved charter school law.”

The center says the upcoming movie Won’t Back Down inspired the index, which “measures the ability in each state of a parent to exercise choices, engage with their local school board, and have a voice in the systems that surround their child.”