Football contact: The Florida High School Athletic Association is adopting guidelines to limit contact in high school football practices to 30 minutes a day during the season, and just 80 minutes a week, in an attempt to reduce the risk of injuries. During the preseason, contact would be limited to 40 minutes a day. The new rules begin Aug. 1. Tampa Bay Times. Florida Times-Union. Florida High School Football. USA Today.
Teacher bonuses: The Florida Department of Education is touting the state's Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Program as a recruiting tool for districts. The teacher bonus plan pays up to $10,000 to new teachers who had high SAT or ACT scores. Last year 5,332 teachers qualified, and each received $8,256. Orlando Sentinel.
Opting out: Some parents who are opting their children out of the state's standardized testing are citing 1920s-era Supreme Court decisions, known as Meyer and Pierce, as legal authority. School districts that are demanding the tests have been relying on a 2005 appeals court decision, Fields vs. Palmdale School District. Gradebook.
School absences: Suspensions are down nearly 20 percent in U.S. schools, but about 10 percent of students miss at least three full weeks of school, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Education. The report also suggests that sharp disparities remain between the ways black and white students are disciplined in schools and what types of advanced coursework are offered to black and Latino high school students. Associated Press. Education Week.
Babies and test scores: Children who spend an additional week in the womb have a slightly greater chance to be gifted or achieve higher standardized test scores, according to research from the University of Florida. But children staying in the womb 41 weeks instead of the typical 40 also have a slightly higher chance to be born with physical disabilities. University of Florida. (more…)
