Earlier this week, we took you to Holmes Elementary School in Miami to get a sense of a one-to-one classroom — where there’s one computer for every student. As Florida schools prepare for a state mandate that requires half of all learning materials to be digital by fall of 2015. Lawmakers and educators are trying to […]
Sara LaBarbera is teaching 6th graders at Walker Middle School near Tampa how to research poets using an online library. One student, working on a series of questions about a Lewis Carroll poem, asks LaBarbera for help. He has the pieces, but doesn’t quite know how to put them together. LaBarbera knows how to ask […]
House Speaker Will Weatherford says Florida needs to be ready in case the test accompanying new education standards isn’t ready by a spring 2015 deadline. The standards, known as Common Core State Standards, are scheduled to be taught in every Florida grade beginning with the 2014-15 school year. The standards are a new way of […]
Pasco County media specialists are rallying Tuesday to oppose a proposal that would restructure their job duties and shift many from library and technology support roles to the classroom. Pasco County schools superintendent Kurt Browning says his budget plan would eliminate 100 media specialists, literacy coaches and other support staff, saving $8 million. The media […]
Depending on your viewpoint, the American Legislative Exchange Council is either a forum for lawmakers to discuss conservative-minded legislation or a secretive organization leading the charge to privatize public education. But the group is a little less secretive Friday after posting hundreds of pieces of “model legislation” online. The bills are templates lawmakers can adapt […]
The 2013 Legislative session officially opens today in Tallahassee. Lawmakers will meet for 60 days and with no election or redistricting, fewer high-profile issues and a small budget surplus, education could be a headline issue this year. Here’s five things to watch as lawmakers return. Budget: Teacher raises? State analysts project Florida will have a […]
The State Board of Education convenes this morning in Orlando with a busy agenda. You can watch live here. Gov. Rick Scott’s proposed $22 billion education budget will be among the biggest draws. The recommended budget includes a boost in teacher salaries and classroom supplies, money for digital instruction materials, and funds for districts to […]
The Lumina Foundation is committed to enrolling and graduating more students from college. CEO Jamie Merisotis takes that message around the country. Last week, he spoke to the Economic Club of Florida. The foundation’s goal is for 60 percent of Americans to earn a high-quality post secondary credential or degree by 2025. Merisotis took questions […]
Today is Digital Learning Day, part of an effort to put more emphasis on the possibilities computers, the Internet and new technology offer to improve education. Advocates argue access and customization are the biggest advantages to digital instruction. Students often find digital instruction more engaging — pull out those smart phones and Wi-Fi enabled iPods, […]
We spent the day poking around FETC, one of the nation’s largest education technology conferences. We played with the latest toys and sat in on a few discussions about how schools in Florida and elsewhere are using technology. Here’s what we learned: 1) Use The Old Bait And Switch Palm Beach Gardens High School media […]
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