Florida teachers at A-rated schools still have a few more weeks before they see their bonus.
Florida educators at high-performing schools will have to wait until at least early February for their state bonuses, according to the Department of Education.
But Department of Education spokeswoman Cheryl Etters said the agency still must wait for any appeals to be heard.
Etters expected the bonuses would be sent out in early February.
The bonuses will pay about $70 per student enrolled at the school, and staff decide how to split the bonuses.The state will pay a total of $129.9 million in bonuses.
Because the anniversary is looming, I am getting lots of statements on the law and its impact, most offering a mixed review of its effectiveness. I listened Tuesday to a panel by RAND Corporation education experts. I will write about the panel later this week, but the consensus was that the law was effective in directing attention to previously ignored students, but that it was too proscriptive and overly reliant on multiple choice testing that narrowed instruction.
But one group that sees little benefit from No Child is FairTest, which has issued a report maintaining the controversial law “failed badly both in terms of its own goals and more broadly” and led to a decade of “educational stagnation.”
What do you think? Did the benefits of NCLB — such as the focus on subgroup performance — outweigh the negatives of the law? How will NCLB be remembered? Should it be renewed?
“Five of seven Manatee District High Schools scored enough points to qualify for an A grade from the state,” a press release read.
What the carefully worded release did not say is that five of seven Manatee high school actually earned an A — and it’s worth asking why.
The Florida Department of Education includes a lot of factors when calculating school grades: Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores; high-level college prep courses such as Advanced Placement; graduation rates and performance on SAT or other college entrance exams.
The state has fewer “F” schools and more “A” and “B” schools, according to new high school grades released by the state.
The Florida Department of Education said, “Based on the results… school recognition funds will be determined and will reward schools that have sustained high student performance or demonstrated substantial improvement in student performance.”
The “A” Through “F” Schools For The 2010-2011 School Year: These figures include all public high schools and combination schools that serve high school grade levels.
F = 6 schools earned an “F” compared to 11 schools the year before.
D = 25 schools earned a “D” compared to 57 schools the year before.
C = 72 schools earned a “C” compared to 69 schools the year before.
B = 224 schools earned a “B” compared to 188 schools the year before
A = 147 schools earned an “A” compared to 145 schools the year before.
A legal challenge is being waged over a contract with the Florida Department of Education. A rejected vendor is protesting DOE’s selection of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) to develop test items and more under the “Florida Interim Assessment Item Bank and Test Platform.” The funding is provided by a Race to the Top grant from the U.S. government.
CTB/McGraw-Hill contends the state’s negotiation team goofed in their assessment of the bids. DOE issued an Invitation to Negotiate and received bids from eight vendors. The bids were narrowed down to five companies, then two. CTB and HMH were the two finalists. Now, the rejected company has filed a formal protest with the state. At issue is a contract worth nearly $37 million for HMH.
This was a good year for us at StateImpact Florida.
We launched six months ago with the mission of becoming Florida’s source for education news and analysis brought to you by NPR and WUSF in Tampa, WLRN in Miami, and WJCT in Jacksonville.
We had a few successes and learned a few lessons along the way. Here’s a look back at our biggest, best and favorite stories from 2011.
The New Year will bring consideration of a four-day school week in a suburban Tampa district. It’s been the goal of Pasco County School Board member Steve Luikart since he came on the job a year ago.
Luikart is a Pasco native who spent several decades as a teacher and administrator before running for a seat on the board. He now chairs a task force that is researching four-day weeks as a way of saving money while making sure student needs are met.
The task force had its first meeting in September. Members are examining an array of possible scenarios beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, like closing all schools and district buildings on Mondays or Fridays. Initial estimates several years ago suggested Pasco could save $3.2 million annually.
Rep. Will Weatherford is the next Florida House Speaker. The Pasco County Republican also was involved in trying to open a rejectd Pasco County charter school.
When the Legislative session opens next month, expect these folks to make the most news — or maybe just the most noise.
Gov. Rick Scott — Scott got much of what he wanted last year. The first bill he signed into law — with a press event at a charter school — required statewide teacher evaluations.
This year Scott has thrown out two markers: He’d like $1 billion added to K-12 budgets and he wants state universities to graduate students in fields which expect job growth, such as math, science and engineering.
StateImpact seeks to inform and engage local communities with broadcast and online news focused on how state government decisions affect your lives. Learn More »
