Failure Factories. U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan calls his visit to South Pinellas County schools “the beginning, not the end.” Tampa Bay Times. Testing. The New York Times covers Florida’s testing controversy. Parents will soon get the results from last spring’s round of testing. Orlando Sentinel. A Miami Beach parent-teacher[Read More…]
Tag: Gates Foundation
Florida roundup: Personalization, school boards, charter schools and more
Personalized learning. A Gates Foundation grant helps Pinellas schools try a new approach. Tampa Bay Times. Charter schools. The Lake school board wants more time to decide a charter application. Leesburg Daily Commercial. Principal autonomy. Legislation returns this year. Sun-Sentinel. Lawsuits. The statewide teachers union might sue over a bonus[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Sports, budgets, philanthropy and more
Athletics. Does a Florida sports academy portend the future? New York Times. Philanthropy. A collaboration with the Gates Foundation sees cost overruns in Hillsborough. Tampa Bay Times. Budgets. The Hillsborough school board eyes cuts. Tampa Tribune. Tampa Bay Times columnist John Romano tees off on education funding proposals. Digital learning. Bay[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Tax credit scholarships, politics, philanthropy and more
Tax credit scholarships. Will the program drain $3 billion from public schools? Mostly false. PolitiFact. Politics. Orlando Sentinel columnist Beth Kassab chides a local school board candidate who attacked the “toxic culture of education” for over-the-top political rhetoric. Philanthropy. Teach for America recruits appear to be helping Miami-Dade students in math but not reading, a study shows. Miami[Read More…]
redefinED roundup: Parent trigger in Florida, charter schools in N.C., vouchers in Texas & more
Kansas: Lawmakers are pushing for two new bills, which include recommendations from the National Alliance of Public Charter Schools, to bring the school choice movement to a state with only 15 charter schools (The Topeka Capital-Journal). Georgia: Proposed legislation looks to cap the state’s private-school tax credit program and limit it to students[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Education reporting, education rankings, Diane Ravitch & more
Florida’s status. Matt Reed, Florida Today’s editorial page editor, takes a look at NAEP data and the most recent Education Week Quality Counts report and concludes: “We obviously have room to improve. But our system is neither starving, as educators always say. Nor is it “broken” or “failing,” as reformers keep telling[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Education rankings, teacher evaluations, National School Choice Week & more
It’s National School Choice Week. SchoolZone and StateImpact Florida. Grade inflation? The Palm Beach Post writes there is less to Florida’s No. 6 ranking in the latest Education Week Quality Counts report than education reform supporters suggest, and encourages teachers and politicians “to dig into the details.” Teacher evals. Despite concerns raised[Read More…]
Florida roundup: Quality Counts, Common Core, rezoning retreat & more
Top 10 again. Education Week ranks Florida No. 6 this year in its annual Quality Counts report. redefinED. Orlando Sentinel. Associated Press. Teacher evals. StateImpact Florida writes about the new Gates study on the best way to identify the best teachers. SchoolZone notes it. Jay P. Greene rips it. District[Read More…]