The Laboratory: Florida's Education Experiments

Background

If someone has a new idea or theory about education, Florida might be the state most willing to give it a shot. Florida pioneered school choice, voucher programs, testing both student and teacher performance and other reforms now considered nationwide.

Those ideas included the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, a statewide test of math, reading and science given to elementary, middle and high schoolers. The state introduced the second generation of the test this year. Those test results carry consequences, serving as the basis for school report cards and teacher evaluations.

Hillsborough County, which includes Tampa, is using a $100 million Gates Foundation grant to develop a new system to evaluate and train teachers. That system will be applied to Florida teachers statewide in 2012.

Florida voters also approved a state constitutional amendment in 2002 limiting class sizes — as few as 18 students for prekindergarten through grade 3. Voters reaffirmed the amendment in 2010, but lawmakers have exempted schools from some of the mandates due to budget cuts and growing schools.

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February 17, 2012

Feedback Loop: Florida’s Teacher Formula Only As Good As Its Assumptions

Reader Scubus has a detailed response to yesterday’s story about Florida’s teacher evaluation formula: You know how hurricane models vary in their predictions, and are not often in agreement or 100% accurate? That is a similar mathematical model. They are only as good as the underlying assumptions. In addition, study after study shows that children […]

February 9, 2012

White House Gives Florida ‘Green Light’ On ‘No Child’ Waiver

The White House has confirmed that Florida is one of ten states which has been granted a waiver from No Child Left Behind requirements. Of eleven states initially applying, only New Mexico was not approved today. In a statement, President Barack Obama said the move will give states the “green light to continue making reforms […]

January 27, 2012

How The GOP Field Disagrees With Florida’s Education Plan

Do the Republican candidates for president support the ‘Florida model’ for education? On issues of accountability and school choice the answer is yes. However, many in the field criticize the federal role in education and would reduce or eliminate the agency. That puts some of the candidates in conflict with former Gov. Jeb Bush, a […]

January 23, 2012

Everything You Need to Know About Education and the Florida 2012 GOP Primary

As the Republican candidates for president arrive in Florida, they agree on one thing: The federal government should have a smaller role in education. But what that role should be varies among the candidates. If you’re still trying to make up your mind, here’s StateImpact Florida’s guide to where the candidates stand on education.

October 26, 2011

Three School Ideas Ohio Should Import From Florida

In the trade balance between Ohio and Florida, the Sunshine State usually imports far more than it exports. (Those imports are usually in Clearwater wearing Ohio State jerseys on Saturdays) But School Choice Ohio believes the Buckeye State should import some education ideas from Florida. The group released a Friedman Foundation report today that argues […]

October 24, 2011

Can School Reform Move Too Fast?

Washington Post education blogger Valerie Strauss looks at the legacy of former Washington D.C. schools chancellor Michelle Rhee and concludes that Rhee left something behind in a rush to overhaul that city’s schools. While Rhee was pushing a controversial teacher evaluation system that led to hundreds of firing, Strauss writes, she did not address fundamental […]

September 28, 2011

From Minnesota to Miami: The History of Florida Charter Schools

Charter schools are an idea dreamed up by an obscure education professor in the 1970s which have grown into a primary alternative to traditional public schools. One in 17 Florida students attended a charter school last year, a number that has increased almost six-fold in a decade. But where did charter schools come from? Like […]

September 27, 2011

The Three Types of Florida Charter Schools

More than 500 charter schools were scheduled to open this fall in Florida and all of them fit into one of three categories. Experts say no particular type of charter school is more successful than another, but each kind of school has particular strengths and weaknesses. The original charter school model focused on local leaders […]

September 26, 2011

A StateImpact Florida Series: Do Charter Schools Work?

For 15 years Florida has conducted an experiment in public education. The goal was to improve the entire education system by granting charter schools more leeway to innovate. Welcome to StateImpact Florida’s Charter Schools 101 series examining the effect those schools have had on students, teachers, parents and communities — and what comes next. One […]

August 15, 2011

Merit Pay Could Mean Big Rewards for Florida Teachers

The best Miami-Dade teachers could buy a new car with their bonuses this year while most of their colleagues may only be able to replace an alternator with their bonuses. The difference in the size of those checks is an attempt to pay teachers based on their performance and that of their students, also known […]