Closing for storm: Schools in 28 of Florida's 67 counties are shuttered today as Hurricane Michael moves closer to making landfall somewhere in the Panhandle. State officials say it could be the worst storm to ever hit that area of the state. Associated Press. Florida Department of Education. Panama City News Herald. Pensacola News Journal. Tallahassee Democrat. Education Week. Gainesville Sun. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. WFSU. Tampa Bay Times. Miami Herald. Orlando Sentinel. Daytona Beach News-Journal. WLRN. WTSP.
High ranking for Florida schools: Florida is ranked third among the states in K-12 educational quality and No. 1 in educational efficiency, according to rankings by Reason magazine. The rankings are based on National Assessment of Educational Progress reading, math and science test scores. Reason's rankings closely mirror those by Education Week, which recently ranked Florida fourth among U.S. states for K-12 achievement. “Overall, our results demonstrate that existing state education rankings aren’t to be trusted. When those scores are corrected, the conventional narrative is turned on its head,” say study authors Stan Liebowitz and Matthew L. Kelly. redefinED.
Security in schools: The Polk County School District and Sheriff Grady Judd are working on a plan to have an armed "safety specialist" in all county elementary schools this fall. The district is finalizing a job description, but the specialists will fall between a sworn school resource officer and an armed school employee. As many as 90 will be hired, and the school district will pay for them. Superintendent Jacqueline Byrd says the pay will be "significantly less" than what resource officers and teachers make. Judd says the specialists' job is to be a "visual deterrent to an active shooter, and be trained to suppress the active shooter threat” if necessary. Lakeland Ledger. WKMG. WFLA. Manatee and Sarasota school districts are struggling to find funding to comply with the state law to have an officer in every school by fall. Law enforcement authorities in both counties contend that since the school districts are getting some money from the state, they should be responsible for the full costs of school security. WWSB.
Budget 'crisis': Volusia County School Board members say the district is in "crisis mode" after the preliminary budget shows a deficit of $4.2 million. School officials blame a small increase in funding from the state, an underfunded state mandate on school security and proposed 1 percent teacher raises for the deficit. “I’m a little alarmed by it and very cautious about what we must do,” says board chairwoman Linda Cuthbert, who noted that decisions need to be made soon. “It’s certainly going to be a difficult budget cycle,” says Deb Muller, chief financial officer for the district. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Testing cautions: National Assessment of Educational Progress testing results have positive news about Florida, and particularly several three large school districts. But they also show there's work to be done, especially in 8th-grade math and in closing the achievement gap between racial and ethnic groups. redefinED. Florida Education Commissioner Pam Stewart says her top goal is to close the academic achievement gap between students of different racial and economic backgrounds. She says part of the problem is chronic teacher absenteeism. “I can tell you ... with our most vulnerable students that we have our teachers that are less motivated and less capable. We’ve got to make that shift and we’ve got to help them become better or help them find another profession,” Stewart said in a speaking appearance in Sarasota. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. (more…)
School security: The Broward County School Board accepts Superintendent Robert Runcie's recommendation and votes unanimously against participating in the state's guardian program to arm specified school employees. The district will ask the state if it can redirect money from the guardian program to hire resource officers. Sun-Sentinel. Miami Herald. The state will send Duval County $4 million for school safety, but interim superintendent Patricia Willis says the district needs $14 million to place a resource officer in every school. Florida Times-Union. Palm Beach County School Superintendent Donald Fennoy is planning to restructure the district's police force, which includes choosing a new chief and adding 75 officers to the 150 it has now. Palm Beach Post. Brevard Sheriff Wayne Ivey, who had strongly pushed the school board to participate in the guardian program, is now recommending against it, and Superintendent Desmond Blackburn says he agrees. Ivey says he's worried the debate about arming school employees is overshadowing the more important need for resource officers in every school. Florida Today. Polk County school officials are considering hiring armed security guards for their schools. “Basically, what we’re doing is creating our own police force,” says Superintendent Jacqueline Byrd. Lakeland Ledger. To meet state mandates on school security, many Florida districts are shifting money from other projects, including instructional, dipping into reserves or contemplating borrowing. Reuters.
More on report card: While most of the nation had so-so results on the 2017 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading and mathematics assessments, also known as the nation's report card, Florida students outperformed their peers in grades 4 and 8 reading and grade 4 math, and was the only state to show improvements in three of the four categories. Three large Florida districts -- Miami-Dade, Duval and Hillsborough -- also ranked among the leaders of the 27 that participated in a trial urban district assessment. Here's the full NAEP report and highlights. Florida Times-Union. WJCT. WJXT. redefinED. Miami Herald. The 74. Florida Governor's Office. What's Florida doing that other states could emulate? Education Week. U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos praises Florida as a "bright spot" in NAEP testing, but pointing to the stagnant scores and a widening achievement gap, says "we can and we must do better for America’s students." Education Week. Politico Florida. (more…)
Nation's report card: Florida is the only state that improved in the National Assessment of Educational Progress math exam, according the annual report from the National Center for Education Statistics. Florida is also just one of nine states showing improvement in the reading exam. Among the nation's larger districts, Hillsborough County was first in 4th-grade reading and math, and 8th-graders tied for first in reading and were tied for second in math. NAEP exam results are called the "nation's report card" because they are a common test that can compare student academic performance across the country. “Something very good is happening in Florida, obviously,” says Peggy Carr, associate commissioner of assessment at the NCES. “Florida needs to be commended.” Nationally, test results showed little or no gains. Orlando Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times. Chalkbeat. Hechinger Report. U.S. News & World Report. For the first time, a majority of U.S. students took the tests on computer tablets. Some educators are concerned that the change makes year-to-year score comparisons unreliable. Chalkbeat.
School security: The Jefferson County School Board votes against allowing school employees to carry concealed weapons in schools. School Superintendent Marianne Arbulu and Sheriff Mac McNeill agree that only deputies and resource officers should be armed on campus. WTXL. Manatee County School Superintendent Diana Greene says the district will need to find $1.8 million to put a resource officer in every school in August. The state is contributing $3.4 million to the district for the officers, but the total cost will be $5.2 million, Greene says. She also provided details of how the district will spend money from the voter-approved increase in property taxes for schools. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Citrus County commissioners are considering using law enforcement impact fees and the other drug seizure funds to pay for school resource officers. Citrus County Chronicle. Student leaders from Lake County high schools collaborate to create a survey on school safety for students. Daily Commercial. (more…)
Education bill: The Florida House Education Committee passes H.B. 733, the nearly all-inclusive education bill that would cut standardized testing and make significant changes to the state's K-12 education system. The bill does not include mandatory recess time for elementary students, which is in the Senate's proposal. Miami Herald. Sunshine State News. Florida Politics. Included in a 76-page amendment to the bill are several provisions to help charter and virtual schools. redefinED. The feud between House and Senate leaders over the state budget continues, though several still think they can reach an agreement before the session is scheduled to end May 5. News Service of Florida. Sunshine State News.
Autonomy for schools: A bill passed by the House would broaden autonomy for principals from a pilot program in seven districts to the highest-performing 20 percent of all public schools. Under the pilot program, principals at low-performing schools have greater control over hiring and would be freed from some state regulations. redefinED.
Teacher contracts: Two special state magistrates have issued different interpretations to districts about whether they can negotiate contract renewal guarantees for teachers who are rated highly effective or effective. In both cases, the districts told the teachers unions a 2011 law did not allow guaranteed teacher contracts. Unions in St. Johns and Pasco counties wouldn't agree to a contract without that guarantee. In St. Johns, a magistrate agreed with the teachers union. In Pasco, a magistrate sided with the district. Gradebook.
High school rankings: Pine View School in Osprey is rated the top high school in the state in the latest U.S. News & World Report's rankings. Design and Architecture Senior High in Miami is second, International Studies Charter High School in Miami third, International Studies Preparatory Academy in Coral Gables fourth, and Westshore Junior/Senior High School in Melbourne fifth. U.S. News & World Report. Miami Herald. Naples Daily News. South Florida Business Journal. (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…)
Bathroom fights: The Duval County School District, the school board and Superintendent Nikolai Vitti are being sued over the district's policy that permits children to use the bathrooms that conform to their gender identity. The suit was filed by Wes White, a Republican running for state attorney, on behalf of Wryshona Isaac and her four children. The suit says the policy "denies her children a safe and supportive environment.” Florida Times-Union. Florida Politics. Washington and Holmes counties school officials say they will not follow the Obama administration directive urging districts to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms that conform to their gender identity. Panama City News Herald. The Collier County School Board is asking for input from the community to help set a bathroom policy for transgender students. All board members say the letter from the U.S. government was an "overreach." Naples Daily News.
Charters on notice: The Pinellas County School Board votes unanimously to cancel contracts with three Newpoint Education Partners charter schools in 90 days unless several financial and curriculum problems are corrected. Another charter school, Florida Virtual Academy, also was given notice because it has not met the requirements of a corrective action plan. The four schools have almost 1,000 students and collect $6 million in public money. Tampa Bay Times. WFLA.
School resegregation: The number of U.S. public schools that were both poor and racially segregated jumped from 7,009 in 2001 to 15,089 by 2013-2014, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office. Los Angeles Times. Education Week.
Girls rule: For the first time, girls outscore boys on the National Assessment of Educational Progress national test of technology and engineering literacy among eighth-graders. Washington Post. THE Journal. (more…)
Bathroom access: The Marion County School Board approves a policy to ban transgender students from using the bathroom based on their gender identity. The measure goes into effect today. Ocala Star Banner. Earlier Tuesday, the ACLU of Florida issued a letter warning the board that the policy would harm students and "violate Title IX sex discrimination requirements, violate the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution and jeopardize federal funding for the school district." Ocala Star Banner. WCJB.
LGBT policy: A divided Brevard County School Board is asking school officials to amend the district's nondiscrimination and equal employment policies to include protection for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students and staff. The revisions would be discussed at a public meeting before being voted on by the board. Florida Today.
Test scores: U.S. high school seniors' National Assessment of Educational Progress test scores dropped slightly in math and stayed about the same in reading, according to the 2015 Nation’s Report Card from the National Assessment Governing Board. Florida seniors' results mirrored the national ones, though Florida scored slightly higher than the national average in both subjects. Sunshine State News.
District overspending: The Broward County School District's police department has overspent its budget by about $2.5 million, prompting an audit and a request to the school board for more money. The department has just $50,000 left in its budget for this fiscal year, and $3.5 million in expenses that have not been paid. The financial problems were discovered in a review of the way the department handles personnel investigations. Sun-Sentinel.
School choice: Dismantling school choice would harm Florida students, schools and taxpayers, warns John Kirtley, venture capitalist and chairman of Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog. He was speaking to the Economic Club of Florida. The Florida Education Association and other groups have sued the state, challenging the constitutionality of the school choice programs. The case goes to a state appeals court in May. Step Up For Students administers tax-credit scholarships for about 80,000 low-income students, and also the Gardiner Scholarships for students with disabilities. Tampa Tribune. Miami Herald. Politico Florida. WFSU. (more…)
Latinos and literacy: Miami-Dade is the top-performing school district in the nation in reading proficiency by Hispanic students, according to a report by Child Trends, a research nonprofit in Maryland. The survey compared Hispanic fourth- and eighth-graders in 21 urban school districts by scores on National Assessment of Educational Progress testing. Duval County was second in both groups, and Hillsborough County was third among fourth-graders. Florida's fourth-graders led all other states in reading achievement, and the state's eighth-graders were eighth. Miami Herald.
Evaluation errors: Evaluation reports for 642 Pasco County teachers were incorrectly rounded. "Of these 642 teachers, roughly 50 teachers will receive a higher overall summative rating (example - highly effective as opposed to effective)," assistant superintendent Kevin Shibley wrote in a memo. "District staff is in the process of generating corrected summative forms for the impacted teachers." Gradebook.
Diddy's charter school: Rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs is opening a free public charter school in Harlem for grades 6-12. Danita Jones, an Orlando educator, will be the principal of the Capital Preparatory Harlem Charter School. Jones helped run the Human Experience charter middle school in Orlando. Associated Press. Rolling Stone. Hip Hop DX. Music-News.
Testing pressure: Parents say the emphasis on standardized testing puts too much pressure on students and teachers, and they worry about what effect that might have. They spoke at a community meeting in Lakeland. Lakeland Ledger. Marion County school officials say the computers for standardized testing are ready to go. The bulk of the testing begins the week of April 11. Ocala Star Banner.
Recess petition: Miami-Dade parents start a petition drive demanding 20 minutes of recess time a day in elementary and pre-K schools. Miami Herald. (more…)
Education legislation: A massive state education bill that widens school choice is awaiting Gov. Rick Scott's signature. The bill changes the was charter school facilities funding is distributed, limits school districts’ spending on capital projects, allows open enrollment for all K-12 public school students, grants immediate eligibility for high school athletes who transfer schools, and more. Miami Herald. Politico Florida. Lakeland Ledger. News Service of Florida. redefinED. The education bill could change the landscape of high school sports in the state. Florida Times-Union. The Foundation for Florida’s Future praises the work of the Legislature on educational issues. Florida Politics. Wondering about a specific bill? This database has information on all 260 bills passed. Politico Florida.
Teacher bonuses. Five senators voted against the $49 million set aside for the state's "Best and Brightest" teacher bonus program. Politico Florida. A St. Petersburg city councilman who thinks teachers are unfairly targeted by legislators says those lawmakers should release their SAT or ACT scores. The state's teacher bonuses program, which is based partially on teachers' SAT or ACT scores, was extended for a year by the Legislature. Tampa Bay Times.
Principal autonomy: Principals in seven Florida school districts are being given greater authority to deal with low-performing public schools through a bill that was approved Friday. The districts are Broward, Pinellas, Palm Beach, Duval, Jefferson, Madison and Seminole. Officials must get approval from the state by identifying three D or F schools and offering a plan for principals at those schools to better use resources. Miami Herald.
What didn't pass: Among the major education proposals that were not passed by the Legislature: Allowing students to take computer coding to fulfill a foreign language requirement; allowing students to use alternative tests, such as the SAT or ACT, instead of the Florida Standards Assessments; requiring daily recess for all elementary students; creation of a state board to supervise charter schools; and making the education commissioner an elected position and placing it back in the Cabinet. Miami Herald. WFSU.
Kindergarten readiness: For a second straight year, the Florida Office of Early Learning will not release kindergarten readiness rates. Pensacola News Journal. Related stories: The rules for measuring kindergarten readiness keep changing. What is kindergarten readiness? Author Dr. Dana Suskind says early education offers the biggest return on investment. Suskind promotes the three T's - tune in, talk more, take turns - as keys to getting children ready for learning. (more…)
