In the next few weeks, the man in charge of kindergarten through twelfth grade education in Florida has to answer a multiple choice question: Which standardized test should the state pick to replace the FCAT? The new test is part of Florida’s move to new, tougher education standards known as Common Core. Students will begin […]
Two new states are backing away from next-generation standardized tests, this time because of worries about cost. Oklahoma state superintendent Janet Barresi, in a memo published by Education Week, says the state could save $2 million a year by developing its own test. Similarly, Georgia lawmakers are also concerned about the cost of a online […]
Editor’s note: Names of teachers and students have been changed. There are some real perils to systems which try to reduce teacher performance to a single number, such as many of our new “value-added” formulas. The first is that whatever you decide to measure — and, implicitly or explicitly reward — is what you are […]
Editor’s note: Names of teachers and students have been changed. Let’s take a moment to look closely at test scores, which are the basis of our new “teacher accountability” system. I just got back the test results for the students at the magnet school where I taught this year, and I honestly don’t think they […]
The State Board of Education has asked that a panel of school superintendents and other education officials to review the state’s school grading system and potentially recommend changes. Superintendents from Hillsborough and Miami-Dade schools said that they are concerned changes to the school grading system will mean a dramatic drop in school grades. The board […]
Editor’s note: Names of teachers and students have been changed. A week ago Thursday — the end of the year for students — brought with it the usual catharsis of the last day. There were hugs and tears as well as exchanges of notes and cards, gifts and promises, and words of wisdom and encouragement. […]
The Florida Education Association’s lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the state’s test-based teacher evaluations — if successful — could become a model for teacher’s union across the country, Governing magazine reports. And over at the Quick and the Ed, labor attorney Danny Rosenthal argues the FEA normally would have a difficult time proving the government […]
By now, most Florida parents have heard the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test is on its way out. But they might not know a whole lot about what’s replacing the FCAT. The most likely replacement is known as PARCC, or the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers. Students are scheduled to begin […]
A professor at Teacher’s College, Columbia University has set up a website to allow New York students, parents and educators to post comments about the new state English language arts test. The tests are now tied to Common Core education standards adopted by 45 states — including Florida. New York students have been taking the […]
Knock it off. That’s the tone in a series of exasperated editorials aimed at critics of new education standards known as Common Core. Florida has been leading the consortium of 45 states who are developing Common Core standards for education. In the past few weeks, objections to the new national benchmarks—and the new standardized tests […]
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