School security: Clear backpacks were in use Monday at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and the verdict is in: the students don't like them. Some say they aren't effective and convey a false sense of security, and others say it's an invasion of privacy. Many personalized the backpacks with protest messages. Sun-Sentinel. WPLG. School leaders in central Florida say the security measures mandated by the new state law will cost more than they've been given and will take too long to implement. For example, money for hardening schools isn't likely to be distributed until 2019. Orlando Sentinel. Putnam County School Board members seem to favor putting resource officers in every school instead of arming school personnel, but need to find about $1 million to hire those officers. WJAX. One overlooked aspect of a school or district arming teachers or school employees is insurance. Some carriers decline to insure schools who arm staff because of heightened liability. NBC News. Lake County School Board members and district officials participate in a mock active-shooter exercise. Orlando Sentinel.

Cell phones in schools: Cell phones are becoming more accepted in U.S. schools, according to a new survey by the National Center for Education Statistics. About two-thirds of U.S. schools still ban cell phones in school, but that's down from 90 percent in 2009-2010. The change is more striking among high school students. Eight years ago, 80 percent of high schools banned them from schools. Now it's about 35 percent. Researchers say parents want to be able to contact their children in emergencies, and districts are finding that phones offer another learning tool that doesn't cost them money. Associated Press.

Podcast teacher resigns: The Citrus County middle school social studies teacher who hosted a white nationalist podcast under a pseudonym is resigning. Dayanna Volitich, 25, acknowledged assuming the name Tiana Dalichov for her podcast, in which she told listeners that some races don't learn as well as others and that Muslims needed to be "eradicated." She claimed her comments were satirical. Volitich was removed from her Crystal River Middle School classroom in March, and submitted her resignation Monday. Citrus County Chronicle. WTSP. WFLA. (more…)

School shooting video: A circuit court judge rules that video taken outside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School during the shootings Feb. 14 that killed 17 people must be made public. Several news organizations had sued the Broward County Sheriff's Office and the school board for refusing to release the video, arguing that it was crucial in analyzing law enforcement’s response. The judge ruled that prosecutors didn't prove how releasing the video could hamper the ongoing investigation, but delayed the release until Thursday to give the sheriff and school board a chance to appeal. Sun-Sentinel. Associated Press. Miami Herald.

Walkout Wednesday: At least 2,500 U.S. schools expect students to stage a walkout Wednesday to protest the shootings at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland on Feb. 14 and call for stricter controls on guns. The walkouts are expected to start at 10 a.m. and, in many cases, last 17 minutes to honor each of the 17 murdered victims. Sun-Sentinel. Students around the state plan to participate in the walkout, and schools are deciding how they will deal with it. Fort Myers News-Press. Bradenton Herald. Gainesville Sun. Northwest Florida Daily News. St. Augustine Record. The 74. Six things to know about the National Student Walkout. Education Week. About 500,000 people are expected to congregate in Washington, D.C., March 24 in the March For Our Lives rally calling for school safety and stricter gun laws, and other rallies will be held in cities around the country, including Parkland. Sun-Sentinel.

New education bills: The school safety bill and the K-12 and higher education bills got most of the attention, but other education-related bills also were passed in the Legislature. Here are some of them. Gradebook. Private schools that accept state scholarship students will have some new rules to follow under the new education bill, H.B. 7055. The state will now be permitted to visit all private schools, starting in 2019, and provisions will make it harder for those schools to hide criminal convictions of owners or file phony fire inspection reports. But they'll still be able to hire teachers without college degrees. Orlando Sentinel. H.B. 7055 also boosts school construction funding for K-12 schools and higher education institutions. News Service of Florida. The Legislature created a scholarship program to help bullied students move to private schools. It's the first program of its kind in the United States. Will it start a national trend? TrustED. U.S. News & World Report. Here's a recap of the biggest issues in the Legislature this year, as well as some of the bills that passed and failed. News Service of Florida. Associated Press. News Service of Florida. (more…)

Retention decision: A judge says the state erred in automatically holding back third-graders who do poorly on the state Florida Standards Assessments tests or opt out from taking them. Leon County Judge Karen Gievers says the state and six districts that were sued must provide students the option to present a portfolio of work that demonstrates their readiness for fourth grade. Gievers stopped short of ordering the state and districts to promote 14 students who were held back. Another hearing will be held today for students from Hernando County who were not given the option to present a portfolio. News Service of Florida. Associated Press. Orlando Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times. WFTV. WFSU. Sunshine State News. Politico Florida. The retention lawsuit has rekindled an old argument: Should third-graders who struggle with reading be held back? "The overwhelming majority of the research concludes that the practice does not help most students and ends up harming many," said Bob Schaeffer, public education director for FairTest, a nonprofit that works to prevent the misuse of standardized testing. Tampa Bay Times. States with high opt-out rates could face penalties from the U.S. Department of Education. Education Week.

Florida tops in choice: The American Federation for Children ranks Florida's Tax Credit Scholarship program as the top school choice program in the United States. The national advocacy group cites Florida's accountability, its wide availability, its inclusion of disabled students, its limits on administrative expenses and the dollar-for-dollar tax credits for companies. Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog, helps administer the programs. redefinED. The Lake County School District has 1,462 students getting tax credit scholarships, a 24 percent increase over last year, and some school board members worry about how the district could absorb those students if opponents of the program successfully appeal a recent court ruling. Daily Commercial.

Recess movement: The parent-driven movement to provide students more time for free play at school is spreading across the United States. Several Florida districts have changed recess policies after lobbying from parents, and Rhode Island just initiated a law requiring 20 minutes of recess a day. Independent Journal Review. (more…)