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Putting Education Reform To The Test

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Background

Merit pay; eliminating tenure; new teacher evaluations — how are school, district and state policies affecting how educators and their students perform?

Latest Posts

May 15, 2013

What The Florida Teacher Evaluation Lawsuit Could Mean For Other States

Teacher's unions around the country are waiting and watching the Florida Education Association's challenge of the state teacher evaluation law.

The Florida Education Association’s lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the state’s test-based teacher evaluations — if successful — could become a model for teacher’s union across the country, Governing magazine reports. And over at the Quick and the Ed, labor attorney Danny Rosenthal argues the FEA normally would have a difficult time proving the government [...]

May 9, 2013

Florida Teachers Will Attend Summer Camp For Common Core Standards

Florida teachers and school administrators will get help this summer understanding how to implement Common Core State Standards. The new standards are designed to make sure high school graduates are adequately prepared for college or the workforce. The standards are based on international benchmarks at each grade level. Common Core assessments will be given at [...]

April 26, 2013

Bennett Says State Leaders Are Listening To Complaints About Teacher Evaluations

Florida Education Commissioner Tony Bennett says state leaders and lawmakers are listening to teacher concerns about evaluations. The Florida Education Association is suing Bennett, the Department of Education, and a few school districts over teacher evaluations. The union believes a 2011 law requiring teacher evaluations violates the equal protection and due process rights of school [...]

April 18, 2013

FEA President Wants More Teacher Input And Less Testing Tied To Common Core

Most states are moving toward Common Core State Standards – a new way of teaching that dives deeper into fewer topics. That means new assessments are on the way. Florida is phasing out most of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. The new PARCC assessments are scheduled to be in place for the 2014-15 school year. [...]

Study: Error Rate Of Test-Based Teacher Evaluations High, But Might Still Be More Accurate

The error rates of test score-based teacher evaluations is "quite high" according to a new report. But the evaluation may still be better than traditional performance measures.

A new study says error rates for teacher evaluations based on student test scores is “quite high,” but that the evaluations may still be more accurate than traditional measures. The study, by Dan Goldhaber of the University of Washington-Bothell and Susanna Loeb, of Stanford University, might be cited as evidence as Florida’s largest teacher’s union challenges [...]

April 17, 2013

Five Questions For Florida Teacher’s Union President About Common Core

FEA President Andy Ford likes the freedom Common Core gives teachers, but he's concerned about too much testing.

Florida is working toward full implementation of Common Core State Standards by the 2014-15 school year. The standards set benchmarks for each grade level. And instead of learning a little bit about a lot of things, students will be expected to absorb a lot of information about fewer subjects. Education Commissioner Tony Bennett says Florida’s [...]

April 16, 2013

Teachers Union Files Federal Lawsuit Challenging Florida Teacher Evaluations

The Florida Education Association and National Education Association filed a federal lawsuit today challenging the constitutionality of Florida’s teacher evaluation system. The system was created under a law passed in 2011 known as Senate Bill 736. State law requires school districts base at least 40 percent of a teacher’s evaluation on student Florida Comprehensive Assessment [...]

April 15, 2013

The Resignation Letter That Has Common Core Critics Talking

Gerald Conti's resignation letter is making waves with critics of the Common Core.

As the spring semester winds down around the country, one teacher, Gerald Conti, is not going quietly. Conti is retiring from Westhill High School in Syracuse, NY at the end of this school year and his resignation letter has become a manifesto for critics of the Common Core. In his letter — which he posted [...]

March 28, 2013

Bill Requires Teachers Are Evaluated Based On Students They Taught

Lawmakers are working on adjustments to the state's teacher evaluation law, including requiring evaluation be based only on students in the teacher's classes.

Florida lawmakers moved a step closer to requiring teachers only are evaluated based on the performance of students in their classes, according to the Gainesville Sun. Currently, evaluations for teachers in subjects not tested by the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test are assigned a score based on the school-wide average. That means an art or music [...]

March 13, 2013

Senate Committee Approves Bill Expanding Job Training, Financial Education Programs

Financial literacy is part of a proposed law designed to better prepare students for life after graduation.

A Senate committee has approved a bill which would change requirements for certain degree programs in Florida, designating some as “high demand.” The Career and Professional Education Act, known as CAPE, would also require high school students to take a financial literacy course. The bill is a priority for Senate President Don Gaetz. The legislation [...]

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