School choice. A political group that supports school choice gets involved in the Democratic primary for a Northeast Florida state House seat. News Service of Florida. Private schools. A new private school, started by two charter school teachers, is aimed at low-income students in urban Orlando. Orlando Sentinel. A St. Petersburg private[Read More…]
Tag: digital learning
Legislators, educators talking school technology in Tampa
A top Florida lawmaker for education issues is convening a group of educators, elected officials and tech industry representatives in Tampa Thursday morning. One of the goals: Find ways to close the technology gap between schools and other institutions. Thanks to the proliferation of smart-phones and affordable tablets, students, like adults, are becoming accustomed to having[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Single-gender schools, testing, accountability and more
Single gender. The Hillsborough District responds to an ACLU complaint. Tampa Tribune. Tax credit scholarships.Sunshine State News reports on the latest evaluation of student results. Digital learning. A Collier bring-your-own device policy proves popular. Naples Daily News. Testing. The Lee County School Board discusses a district-wide testing boycott. Fort Myers[Read More…]
Florida launches K-12 online course catalog
Florida students now have a tool that allows them to shop around for different courses. Legislation passed last year broke down several barriers in virtual education. It allowed students enrolled in one school district to take virtual courses offered in another. It also laid the groundwork for a course choice[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Technology, growth, testing and more
Technology. StateImpact delves into E-rate, the obscure funding source helping schools go wireless. Hillsborough officials say they’ve worked most of the kinks out of their online gradebook software. Tampa Tribune. Manatee schools upgrade their Microsoft suite. Bradenton Herald. Growth. Escambia officials are pushing a local school tax as a way[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Digital learning, campaigns, special needs and more
Digital learning. Two previously defunct Pinellas schools are set to reopen as magnets focused on digital instruction. Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Tribune. Campaigns. Collier County school board candidates express “general support for school choice” during a public forum that touches on charters and vouchers. Naples Daily News. An Okaloosa County[Read More…]
Florida roundup: School choice, digital learning, special needs and more
School choice. Florida’s major school choice legislation officially lands on the governor’s desk. Tampa Bay Times. Sentinel School Zone. Digital learning. Pasco Schools plan to expand a competency-based blended learning program after seeing promising results. Tampa Tribune. Turnarounds. Struggling schools subject to state intervention see mixed results in their first[Read More…]
Scott okays funding for digital learning, nixes it for single-gender schools
Florida school districts will have to come up with a detailed strategy for using technology in their classrooms under a bill Gov. Rick Scott approved today alongside the state budget. The governor approved the $77 billion spending plan that sets aside additional funding for “digital classrooms,” as well as legislation[Read More…]