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Education is big business. These are stories about the politicians, businesses, lobbyists and other leaders seeking to impact education decisions.

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October 22, 2014

South Florida State House Candidates Agree There’s Too Much Testing

The candidates running for three South Dade state House seats — Republican, Democrat, independent — all agree that Florida students and schools spend too much time testing. Candidates running for the Florida House of Representatives in the 112th, 114th and 115th districts gathered for an education forum Tuesday night at Palmetto Middle School. “The biggest […]

October 20, 2014

Why Florida Is Fighting The U.S. Education Department Over English Learners

A 10th grader born in Haiti struggles to read in his class at Godby High School in Tallahassee. The student is more comfortable with Haitian Creole than English. Teacher Althea Valle has students of various nationalities trying to master the language. “It’s a challenge,” Valle says. “There’s a lot of gesturing, and you know sometimes I […]

September 29, 2014

Why The ACLU Is Challenging Single-Gender Classes In Florida Schools

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed federal complaints against school districts in Broward, Hernando, Hillsborough and Volusia counties over the use of all-girls or all-boys classes. The ACLU wants the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights to investigate the programs. StateImpact Florida’s Gina Jordan spoke with Galen Sherwin, a senior staff attorney […]

September 17, 2014

Florida PTA Wants State To Consider Delaying School Grades

The Florida PTA is asking state leaders to consider delaying school grading to give students and schools time to adjust to new math and language arts standards and online tests. This is the first year every grade is using Florida’s Common Core-based standards and students will take the new Florida Standards Assessment early in 2015. […]

September 16, 2014

Americans Want Higher Standards, More Training For Teachers

A strong majority of Americans surveyed want teachers to have at least one year’s practice time in the classroom and pass a board certification before teaching, according to a new national poll. The Phi Delta Kappa professional teacher’s organization and Gallup released a second batch of their annual survey data Tuesday. The poll surveyed 1,001 […]

September 11, 2014

Miami-Dade Community Groups Say School District Contracts Aren’t Fair

The Urban League of Miami and the local NAACP want the Miami-Dade school district to stop work on a $1.2 billion bond project to renovate schools and upgrade their technology. The groups believe black-owned businesses aren’t getting a fair chance at school construction projects. It was a district review of contracts — a legal requirement […]

September 8, 2014

New Teacher’s Union Leader Promises More Florida Activism

At a Spanish restaurant in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood, one of the most powerful women in education, Lily Eskelsen Garcia, pumps up union members by telling them where her career started – the cafeteria. Lily Eskelsen Garcia is the first Latina elected to lead the nation’s largest union – the National Education Association. Thursday was her […]

September 3, 2014

ACLU Challenges Single-Gender Programs In Three More Counties

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed federal complaints challenging single-gender education programs in Broward, Hernando and Volusia county schools. The group argues single-gender programs violate anti-discrimination laws and are based on flawed science. The ACLU has previously filed a complaint against single-gender programs in Hillsborough County schools. “Parents should know that their school districts […]

Miami-Dade Schools Chief Wants To Delay New Testing, School Grades

Miami-Dade superintendent Alberto Carvalho said Florida leaders should rethink the scope and purpose of education testing and give schools more time to prepare for new math and language arts standards. Carvalho’s proposal was published online and emailed to reporters. Carvalho has also been tweeting excerpts since Monday. Carvalho draws a hard line at eliminating testing, […]

September 2, 2014

Lee County School Board Reverses Testing Boycott

The Lee County school board has reversed its decision to reject state tests, after board member Mary Fischer changed her mind. Last week the board became the first in Florida to refuse to offer state tests to its students on a 3-2 vote. The test are required by state law, and the results help determine […]

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