Florida public schools have been going through a systematic effort to defund them and to make charter schools, voucher programs and virtual schools more attractive
In trying to identify the worst move for public schools, there were three in the running:
1- Cutting funding by 8% in addition to the decrease in funding from the stimulus money going away
2- Expanding the McKay Voucher Scholarship Program to include students with 504 Plans -- often a child with ADHD. This made little sense because private schools do not have to provide the protection that public schools do, but with Response to Intervention decreasing the number of Special Education Students, the private schools were going to see a decrease in students, unless the change was made
3- Making it much easier for Charter Schools to expand, even though there is little proof the students get a better education, and there is mounting proof of heavy duty lobbying for people close to the legislators
What the public schools needed least of all was a Christmas Present from the new Commissioner of Education who overrode a group of 300 who had recommended a more balanced approach to FCAT passing scores -- their suggestions included smoothing out the scores so that students did not do well in 7th, 8th and 9th grades only to fail the 10th grade Reading or 10th Grade Math FCATs that are required to earn a high school degree.
The commissioner made three significant changes:
- He made it more difficult to pass to pass the all important 10th grade FCAT in reading and math-- the projections are that 48% of the students will now fail the 10th grade reading FCAT
- The changes at 3rd grade were more subtle. Passing the 3rd Grade FCAT is required for promotion and the new scores are only projected to increase the failing rate from 16 to 18%. The subtle change was that there would be a sharp increase in the students needing remediation -- from 12% to 25%. They doubled the number of students who would now be classified as reading below grade level. Similar changes were made in other grades.
- Then, they made these changes effective immediately. When governments usually make changes, they give industry 1, 2 or 3 years to prepare. In this case the changes will take effective with the 2012 FCATs to be given in April 2012
This is in the face of sharp cutbacks in resources for at-risk students.
We really do need to raise the standards, and it will take an innovate approach, real teamwork and more resources to make it happen
The people of Florida will need to apply pressure on the legislature to invest in public education, or the changes will result in the students, teachers and schools being rated as "failing", when it is the Governor and the Legislature who will have failed our students, teachers and schools.
Let's hope the Governor and the Legislature are open to the challenge
