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StateImpact Florida and WLRN are holding an online education chat in advance of our WLRN-Miami Herald News Town Hall, where you’ll get the chance to ask lawmakers about their education priorities this legislative session.
Sen. John Legg, R-Port Richey, says some Florida schools might not be ready for a fall 2014 deadline for new education standards and testing.
Florida lawmakers are considering allowing the state education commissioner to partially delay implementation of new, tougher education standards and testing.
“I think it’s going to be a challenge,” Legg says. “It’s going to be difficult to meet that deadline unless we start looking at significant investments or perhaps even delaying that deadline or looking at an alternative course.
“You don’t want to have students moving around the schools getting ready to do assessments, figuring that out mid-year. You want to have that plan in place before school starts, before you start doing the testing schedule. I’m real concerned that we’re not going to be able to implement it correctly.”
The standards, known as Common Core, have been adopted by 45 states. The standards put more emphasis on analysis and critical thinking, experts say, asking students to prove not only what they know, but how they know it.
The recommended budget includes a boost in teacher salaries and classroom supplies, money for digital instruction materials, and funds for districts to implement additional safety measures following the Sandy Hook shootings.
It provides $100 million for charter school facilities and another $100 million to expand STEM programs at Florida universities.
Senate President Don Gaetz says students and teachers should have school choice options.
Supporters say the charter school bill that has a good chance of passing Florida’s Republican controlled Legislature this year will better regulate charters and expand choices for parents.
“It’s great public policy. It empowers families. It empowers parents, gives them the choices that they need,” Weatherford told StateImpact Florida. “It engages them in the education of their children.”
The measure enables parents at a chronically failing school to petition the school board for significant changes. Turnaround options include firing some or all of the staff, letting a charter school operator take over or closing the school. Seven states, including California, Indiana and Texas, have some version of a parent-trigger law in place.
Florida is one of 11 states with a tax credit scholarship. Here’s how it works.
Students are eligible for the program if:
Their family household income is no more than 185 percent of the federal poverty level. That’s about $43,500 for a family of four.
Were enrolled in a public school the previous year. The Legislature will consider a bill ending this requirement.
Are attending kindergarten or first grade.
Businesses can take a tax credit for donations to eligible “nonprofit scholarship funding organizations,” according to state law. Businesses can claim credits for corporate income taxes, insurance premium taxes, alcoholic beverage excise taxes, direct pay sales taxes and oil and gas severance taxes.
Education Commissioner Tony Bennett updated a Senate committee on the transition to new state education standards.
Education Commissioner Tony Bennett updated a Senate budget committee that oversees Florida education funding on the implementation of Common Core State Standards today.
Bennett gave a presentation explaining where we are in the process and what’s next. He told the committee the Common Core will transform learning, teaching and assessments.
“Florida’s children will be exposed to a set of standards that will enable them – if mastered – to compete with students not only across our country but around the world,” Bennett said.
The report lays out the purpose of Common Core: To define the English language arts, literacy, and mathematical skills and knowledge students in grades K-12 should achieve in order to graduate from high school ready to succeed in entry-level, credit-bearing academic college courses and workforce training programs.
“I think it was an unintended stroke of genius that you have international benchmark standards developed by states that honor local control,” Bennett said. “I think that is a very huge benefit to these standards and the fact that they produce students who are college and career ready.”
Bennett ticked off the state’s goals during his presentation. Continue Reading →
Florida U.S. Senator Marco Rubio delivered the Republican response to the State of the Union last night. He also proposed a federal tax credit scholarship similar to a program in Florida.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is proposing a federal tax credit to provide private school scholarships to students in low-income families.
The program is similar to a Florida tax credit scholarship program approved in 2001. More than 50,000 students are enrolled in the Florida program, claiming $229 million in benefits.
Individuals could claim a dollar-for-dollar tax credit for up to $4,500 in annual donations to groups awarding private school scholarships under Rubio’s plan, according to The Miami Herald. Businesses could claim tax credits for up to $100,000 in donations.
Students in families earning up to 250 percent of the federal poverty level would be eligible for the program. For a family of four that totals $58,875.
NEA President Dennis Van Roekel represents more than three million members.
The president of the National Education Association (NEA) expects to hear a few things from President Barack Obama during his State of the Union address tonight.
Dennis Van Roekel leads the 3 million member labor union, which represents public school teachers and college and university staff.
“[Obama] really talked about opportunity in his inauguration speech and that it requires an economy that works for everyone,” said Van Roekel. “He mentioned that opportunity begins with great public schools for every student.”
Van Roekel hopes the speech will include talk of early childhood education and college affordability.
He says research and experience show that funding early childhood education is “the most important investment we can make.” Continue Reading →
The agreement — known a 2+2 in higher education circles — enables students to complete a two-year Associate in Arts degree and then transfer to the upper division of a bachelor’s degree program.
The original deal was crafted in 1992 and has undergone a few updates since then.
“We want to recognize the importance of transfer opportunities and demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the ideal of cooperation between public and independent sectors of post secondary education,” said Randy Hanna, chancellor of the Florida College System.
State colleges remain the primary point of access to higher education. About two-thirds of Florida’s high school graduates begin their pursuit of a post secondary degree at a Florida college. Continue Reading →
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