Testing reform: Three legislators say they will file a bill today that would cut back on state-required assessment testing. The "Fewer, Better Tests" bill's goals are to cut down on and improve state tests, move the exams to later in the school year, get the test results to teachers sooner, and provide better student score reports. Filing the bill are Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami; Rep. Manny Diaz Jr., R-Hialeah; and Rep. Chris Sprowls, R-Palm Harbor. Sunshine State News. Gradebook. The Manatee County School Board tables a discussion on a proposal to limit district-required testing. Bradenton Herald.

Charter school takeovers: Members of the House education committee who are discussing district methods of turning around underperforming schools say districts should consider allowing charter school companies to take over operations at those schools. This week, the Florida Board of Education will consider a plan to make the Jefferson County School District a charter district. Politico Florida.

Student ID cards: The Duval County School District will issue new student IDs that are linked to data such as grades, academic progress, attendance and discipline. Students would have to swipe the cards when they get on and off school buses and when they go to classes. The setup cost is $1.1 million, with a $123,500 annual fee. Florida Times-Union.

School recess: The 2016 bill that would have required daily recess at all Florida elementary schools also would have prohibited teachers from withholding recess for misbehaving students. This year that provision has been stripped out of the recess bills, at the insistence of two powerful legislators who say they don't want to take away teachers' flexibility. Miami Herald. (more…)

Daily recess: Elementary school students in the Orange County School District will be given 20 minutes of recess daily. The school board approved the measure, although it also allows teachers some discretion in how recess is scheduled. Orlando Sentinel.

Early education: Most of Florida's children eligible for the Head Start program aren't enrolled because there isn't enough money to add classrooms, according to a study by the National Institute for Early Education Research. Fixing the problem would cost about $20 billion a year. Orlando Sentinel. Washington Post. The 74.

District rankings: The St. Johns County School District is named tops in the state in an annual survey by Niche.com. The Seminole County School District is second, Okaloosa third, Sarasota fourth and Brevard fifth. Ratings are based on data from the U.S. Department of Education, including test scores, college readiness, graduation rates, SAT/ACT scores and teacher quality. WPLG.

Failing schools: New Miami-Dade County School Board member Steve Gallon is proposing the district focus on improving schools that have received grades of D or F from the state. Florida Bulldog.

SpringBoard survives: The Hillsborough County School District will keep using English and math textbooks from SpringBoard. Teachers and students have complained about effectiveness of the materials, which the district buys from the College Board. Replacing the textbooks would have cost almost $12 million, a price the financially strapped district was unwilling to incur. Tampa Bay Times. (more…)

Class size violations: Fewer Florida schools are in violation of the state's class size amendment this year, according to Department of Education records. They show 1,433 of 125,159 public school classrooms in violation, 1 of 6 lab schools, 47 of 649 charter schools and 10 of 2,331 choice schools. The class size amendment, approved by voters in 2002, puts caps of 18 students in grades K-3, 22 in grades 4-8 and 25 in grades 9-12. A loophole approved in 2013 allows districts to use schoolwide averages to meet the caps if those schools were designated as choice schools. So the number of choice schools has grown from 1,193 in 2013-2014 to 2,331, and 29 of the state's 67 districts show no traditional public school classrooms. An attempt to close the loophole went nowhere in the 2016 legislative session. Gradebook.

Spending and education: A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research suggests that spending more on education improves achievement. The national study in 49 states broke down results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress testing, and showed a consistent pattern of improvement in low-income school districts where spending increased. The effect of the extra money also had a much greater impact than lower classroom sizes. New York Times.

Education leadership: House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O'Lakes, announces leadership assignments to education committees for the next legislative session, which begins in March. Rep. Manny Diaz Jr., R-Hialeah, will chair PreK-12 Appropriations. Rep. Chris Latvala, R-Clearwater, will chair PreK-12 Innovation, and Rep. Jake Raburn, R-Lithia, will chair PreK-12 Quality. Rep. Elizabeth Porter, R-Lake City, is the chair of Post-Secondary Education, and Rep. Larry Ahern, R-Seminole, will lead Higher Education Appropriations. The full committee membership lists are here. Gradebook. (more…)