North Carolina teacher Cindi Rigsbee participated in Wednesday's #NPRedchat StateImpact Florida hosted with Tell Me More.
This is a guest post from North Carolina teacher Cindi Rigsbee, who participated in the Wednesday Twitter education discussion we hosted with Tell Me More. It was first posted at Rigsbee’s blog.
I took a minute during my lunch break to hang out on Twitter, specifically to glance at the NPR Twitter Education Forum (#npredchat) and see what some national names in education were saying…um…tweeting. As I scanned down the TwitterChat page, I kept seeing the word “reform” over and over. It was at that point that my tweeting fingers started twitching. Here’s my first post:
We shouldn’t be talking about how to REform education; we should be talking about how to TRANSform education. #npredchat
The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act lays out how school districts should place students. The "strong preference" is in general education classrooms, according to a Florida Department of Education memo.
The school district wants Frost to attend a specialized program at another school, his family says, and are asking him to take tests and provide evidence he can handle life at his neighborhood school before enrolling him.
Privacy laws prevent Hillsborough County school officials from commenting on Frost’s case. The district says it follows all federal and state laws for placing students with disabilities.
The big highlight? There is a “strong preference” for placing students with disabilities in general education classrooms. And the burden is on the school district to prove the student is better served somewhere else — not on the student to prove they can handle the work or environment.
Miami-Dade school superintendent Alberto Carvalho speaks with Tell Me More host Michel Martin. Online the debate was happening at #NPRedchat.
Since early September, #NPRedchat has allowed us to take a deeper look at education and explore ways of engaging not only with our radio audience, but with the digital public on Twitter as well. Today, we are talking with educators, parents and students from Florida to California, on critical education issues facing the nation.
The conversations on #NPRedchat have informed our journalism in unexpected and exciting ways and today’s LIVE Twitter Education Forum was no different.
Miami-Dade College student Shakira Lockett and New York high school senior Nikhil Goyal talked to NPR’s Michel Martin about their schools.
Lockett was angry about her experience: She was forced to retake five courses because she couldn’t pass the Miami-Dade College entrance exams.That meant paying for courses for which she received no credit and extending the time it will take for her to earn a degree.
“I do feel angry about the cost and how it takes longer for you to graduate,” Lockett told Tell Me More host Michel Martin.
The State Board of Education had a day-long meeting in Orlando Tuesday.
Here are the highlights:
The Board approved a plan by the Florida Department of Education to ask lawmakers for $15.2 billion in spending next fiscal year. That’s a 4.4 percent increase over the current year.
The Board figures the state’s transition to digital textbooks over the next few years will cost $441 million.Vice Chairman Roberto Martinez likes the idea of giving districts the freedom to choose whatever materials they think will work best in the classroom. “I think we’re at that stage where we can give them that kind of freedom to accomplish the outcomes that we want,” Martinez said.
There’s still no decision as to whether the state will appeal a judge’s decision in a tuition lawsuit. U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore found that Florida’s practice of charging out-of-state tuition to Florida residents whose parents are undocumented is unconstitutional. The Board is awaiting the judge’s final ruling.
The Board discussed a lawsuit that claims the state is unconstitutionally reneging on its responsibility to provide students with a high quality education. The plaintiffs in Citizens for Strong Schools v. Haridopolos say schools are unsafe and underfunded. Martinez called their efforts “an exercise in futility.” The case is awaiting trial in Leon County.
A plan adopted by the Board would expand school choice options and double enrollment in charter schools over the next six years. Options include private school vouchers.
2013 Legislative priorities for the Board: K-12 Accountability, Workforce Readiness, School Choice, Common Core State Standards Transition, Teacher Preparation Program Accountability.
The Board meets again November 5th and 6th in Boca Raton.
Tell us about your schools. What’s working? What doesn’t?
What issues are on your mind? Join the conversation at #NPRedchat.
Check local listings for when you can hear the Tell Me More broadcast, featuring U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, StudentsFirst founder Michelle Rhee and Miami-Dade schools superintendent Alberto Carvalho.
School boards in Orange and Seminole counties said no to Florida Virtual Academy, but Pinellas County's school board gave a tentative approval.
A network of online charter schools tied to a company under investigation by the Florida Department of Education won a split decision from Florida school districts Tuesday.
School boards in Orange and Seminole counties rejected Florida Virtual Academy for the second time. But the Pinellas County school board approved the application despite concerns the school’s curriculum is outdated.
The Florida Virtual Academy network will be run by K12 Inc, the nation’s largest online educator. The Florida Department of Education is investigating whether the company used teachers who were not properly certified to teach online courses and then asked teachers to cover it up.
Henry Miles Frost and his service dog, Denzel, protest outside a downtown Tampa building during the Republican National Convention. Since he posted the photo to Facebook, he's found global support in his effort to enroll in his South Tampa neighborhood school.
Sometimes a picture can be worth a thousand followers too.
That’s what happened to Henry Frost after he posted a photo to Facebook.
The photo shows 13-year-old Frost sitting on the steps outside a downtown Tampa building with his service dog Denzel. Not shown are the thousands of Republicans who had gathered nearby for the week-long Republican National Convention.
Frost holds a sign. It reads:
“The Civil Rights Act of 1964 granted equal rights to all people. I am a person. I want these rights.”
Frost has autism and a list of related physical problems which have so far eluded a tidy diagnosis. He communicates using an iPad app that speaks what he types.
The right Frost is seeking is the ability to attend Wilson Middle School in his South Tampa neighborhood. The Hillsborough County school district has told Frost they believe he is better off at a specialized program at Coleman Middle School, his family says.
Disabilities and special education experts say it’s a common dispute: A family and a school district disagree about what school is best for the student.
School officials say they work hard to give thousands of students with disabilities and their parents what they want. But sometimes parents don’t get the final decision and school officials do.
Florida has gone to a lot of trouble to follow federal guidelines for a healthy mix of protein, produce, grains and dairy in school lunches.
Local districts follow requirements for proper portions, serving sizes and limits on fat intake — without paying much attention to calories.
The restrictions used to be that less than 30 percent of calories were from fat.
Those restrictions are no longer there, according to Rick Parks, lead dietitian with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
But that doesn’t mean school veggies are being doctored with butter. Continue Reading →
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