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The Right Test Preparation Materials
Florida Gets Mediocre Marks for Teacher Policies in New Report Labeled "Weak But Progressing" The National Council on Teacher Quality 50-state encyclopedia on states’ teacher policies, concludes that while Florida takes a leadership role in some areas, many policies are counterproductive to the nation’s teacher quality goals. The State Teacher Policy Yearbook is the first project of its kind to provide a 360-degree detailed analysis of how states are hurting or helping teacher quality--and what they can do to fix broken and anachronistic policies. While Florida did better than most states, its overall performance shows how much work it still has ahead. In the six areas reviewed, Florida earned one “B” grade, four “C” grades, and one “F” grade. Among the findings:
Despite these findings, Florida performs quite strongly in some areas. Providing a model for the rest of the nation, the state requires that teacher evaluations be based primarily on measures of teacher effectiveness and improved student learning. The state has also encouraged efforts at compensation reform, including performance pay initiatives. Florida has also eliminated obstacles that make it hard for career changers to enter the profession. To download copies of the Florida report, which includes national comparisons: http://www.nctq.org/stpy/reports/stpy_florida.pdf ACT High School Profile Report The Graduating Class of 2007 - Florida The ACT High School Profile Report for each state provides information about the performance of 2007 graduating seniors who took the ACT as sophomores, juniors, or seniors. The reports focus on performance, access, course selection, course rigor, college readiness, awareness, and articulation. To see the report: http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/states/Florida.pdf 2007 Marked the Largest Ever Increase in Florida High School Graduates Taking the ACT 2007: Florida’s largest ever increase in both the number and percentage of high school graduates who took the American College Test (ACT). This year, 81,527 of Florida's 2007 high school graduates took the ACT, an increase of 23 percent (15,228 graduates) over 2006. Nationwide, the number of ACT-tested graduates increased only 8 percent. In addition to the record number of graduates who took the ACT, Florida saw a large increase in the percentage of students who took the ACT as compared to last year. Of Florida’s 153,100 high school graduates, 53 percent took the ACT in Florida compared to 45 percent (147,700 graduates) the prior year and 42 percent nationally. The ACT is one of two college entrance tests Florida students can choose to take. Florida has significantly larger percentages of minority students taking the ACT than the national average. Minority students represent 51 percent of this year’s test takers, compared to 31 percent nationally. During 2007, African Americans represented 23 percent of the Florida test takers, compared to 13.5 percent nationwide. Hispanic students comprised 19 percent of Florida test takers, compared to 8 percent nationally. Since 1987, the percentage of Florida minority test takers has increased 26-percentage points, reflecting a long-term positive trend. The ACT is comprised of four separate exams in English, reading, math and science and an optional writing test. Students receive a score for each subject as well as a composite score, which is the average of all the subject scores. In Florida, the 2007 average composite score is 19.9, down four-tenths of a point from 20.3 last year, which is not uncommon when there are also increases in the percentage of test takers. Florida's Hispanic students continue to outscore Hispanic students nationally with an average composite score of 19 compared to 18.7 nationally. Florida's African-American students scored slightly lower than their national counterparts earning a 16.4 compared to 17. Results on the ACT underscore the importance of students taking rigorous coursework, especially in math and science. In general, students who took higher-level math and science courses in high schools scored much higher on the ACT than those who did not. Florida students who took Calculus while in high school scored an average 24.3 on the math section of the ACT, compared to 20.4 for those whose highest math course was Trigonometry or another advanced math and 17.4 for those who had not gone beyond Geometry and Algebra 2. Similarly, students who had skipped past general science to take Biology, Chemistry, and Physics averaged 22.7 on the ACT science section. Whereas, students with three years or more of science, but not Physics, averaged 19.1, while those who had less than three years of natural science averaged 18. To bolster student achievement in math and science, the Florida Department of Education recently created the new Office of Mathematics and Science to increase the rigor and relevance of secondary programs to increase the number of students who graduate prepared for postsecondary education and the workforce. This new office will oversee the development and implementation of new world-class math and science standards, develop and deliver professional development, and coordinate all state and federally funded programs in these subject areas. For more information on the Office of Mathematics and Science, visit www.fldoestem.org. In addition, Florida’s high school requirements have increased this year and require four years of math. The ACT is a voluntary college entrance exam. ACT scores can be used for admission to a state university, the Talented 20 program, for meeting qualifications for the Bright Futures Scholarship Program or for placement into regular college courses. Students may access information about the ACT and other college entrance exams through Florida's online student advising system, the Florida Academic Counseling and Tracking for Students at www.FACTS.org. To learn more about the ACT and to view the Department’s ACT Trends Report, visit http://www.fldoe.org/evaluation/. Information Underload: Florida's Flawed Special-Ed Voucher Program Students with disabilities have long had the right, under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), to attend private schools at public expense if the public schools in their community are unable to provide them with appropriate special educational services. But less than 1 percent of students with disabilities have such private placements, in part because these placements can be costly, complicated, and time-consuming to obtain under the existing law. Florida's popular McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program seeks to tilt the balance in these students’ favor. The program provides parents with an alternative to expensive legal proceedings and complicated bureaucracy—a voucher that they can use at a public or private school of their choice. Florida's legislature approved the program in 1999 and named it after a then-state senator, John McKay, who is also the father of a special-needs child. Today, about 17,900 of Florida's estimated 402,000 students with disabilities, or a little more than 4 percent, receive McKay vouchers. They attend 802 private schools at a total cost of nearly $108 million. That's up from just under 1,000 students, 100 private schools, and $6 million in costs during the program's 2000–01 debut as a statewide initiative. The program is now the nation’s second largest private school voucher initiative of any sort in terms of student participation, ranking only behind Milwaukee's 17-year-old school experiment with vouchers for low-income youngsters. And school choice advocates promote the McKay program as a model for other states and the federal government. Arizona, Ohio, Utah, and, most recently, Georgia have all passed similar legislation. Currently, six other states are weighing whether to follow suit. But despite its growing popularity, the McKay program has not yet proven that it works as either an adequate school-choice or special-education reform measure. Unlike with Florida’s other school choice options, the state collects very little information from schools and students participating in the McKay program. McKay students do not have to take the annual state tests administered to public school students, and McKay schools are not required to report any information on student outcomes—which goes against the national trend toward standards and accountability in public education. Thus, it is virtually impossible to say whether special-needs children using McKay vouchers to attend private schools are faring better, worse, or about the same as they had in their old public schools. It is also difficult to determine whether the McKay program is improving existing special-education services, since, unlike public schools, McKay schools are not required to provide these services at all. Expanding school options for all students, those with disabilities and those without, is a worthy objective. But McKay's lack of accountability requirements and its minimal quality and service expectations make McKay a seriously flawed program. Under the current structure of the program, taxpayers have almost no knowledge of how their money is being spent, and neither taxpayers nor parents have access to solid information about the performance of different McKay schools. For parents, the stakes are very high, as they are required to give up their due process rights under IDEA if they choose to participate in the McKay program. Parents, taxpayers, and the state's special-needs children deserve better. Please download the full report: http://www.educationsector.org/usr_doc/McKay_Vouchers.pdf 14 Grantees Share $25 Million in Funds from the Voluntary School Choice Program – Florida Get the Most By Far 14 projects in 12 states will share $25 million in grants under No Child Left Behind's Voluntary School Choice Program (VSCP) to help states and school districts create or expand public school choice initiatives. "Parents know what's best for their children. By giving families more choices and injecting a little competition into the system, we support innovations that help students and schools improve," Spellings said. The grantees—states, school districts or partnerships—are in Florida, Michigan, Oregon, Illinois, Texas, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Alaska, and South Carolina. Seven grantees are also recipients from the first implementation of the program in 2002. The VSCP is a competitive program that supports projects for up to five years that aim to offer the widest variety of choices to students in participating schools, including options that allow students to transfer from low-performing schools to higher performing schools, and projects that seek to implement an inter-district approach. Under No Child Left Behind, students in under-performing Title I schools must be given the option to transfer to a higher performing school in their school district, if their school has not met adequate yearly progress for two consecutive years. Grantees develop the program with parental and community involvement, in concert with those who will carry out the program, including teachers, administrators and other staff. Some grantees use the first project year to plan and design the public school choice initiative. To ensure the widest possible reach and participation, the funds can be used to help notify parents about the existence of the choice program, what the program offers and the program's availability. A portion of the funds can be used to provide transportation (or the costs of transportation to and from public elementary, secondary or charter schools) for students selected to participate in the program. For more program information visit www.ed.gov/programs/choice/index.html. Grantees and their first-year funding amounts follow (* return grantee):
A New Report from the Century Foundation Focuses on Manatee County Socioeconomic Integration Plans Steer Clear of Supreme Court's Objections on Race and Meet Goals of Achievement and Racial Diversity Communities that are committed to fostering diversity in public schools were dealt a serious blow today when, in an historic ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court restricted the ability of school districts to use race as a factor in school assignment plans. Districts should not give up on integration, however, says Richard D. Kahlenberg, senior fellow at The Century Foundation. “A growing number of school districts across the country have begun to use students’ socioeconomic status as a factor in school integration plans,” he says, “and preliminary evidence suggests such plans can raise academic achievement and produce racially diverse schools in a manner that is legally bullet-proof.” He examines twelve such school systems and finds that when socioeconomic school integration plans are well implemented, they can boost academic achievement and also provide students with a racially integrated schooling environment. Rescuing Brown v. Board of Education: Profiles of Twelve School Districts Pursuing Socioeconomic School Integration features detailed studies of three leading districts with the longest standing and most comprehensive socioeconomic integration policies—Wake County (Raleigh), North Carolina; La Crosse, Wisconsin; and Cambridge, Massachusetts. It also includes profiles of nine additional communities that are using socioeconomic status as a factor in assignment—Berkeley, California; Brandywine, Delaware; Charlotte- Mecklenburg, North Carolina, Manatee County, Florida; McKinney, Texas; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Omaha, Nebraska; Rochester, New York; and San Francisco, California. In addition, the report looks at school districts that may move toward socioeconomic integration. These include districts already discussing that possibility (including Burlington, Vermont; and Pasadena, California) as well as districts now employing race as a criterion which may shift toward socioeconomic status (including Louisville, Kentucky; Seattle, Washington; Lynn, Massachusetts; and others). “Brown v. Board of Education stood for racial integration of schools and equal educational opportunity,” says Kahlenberg. “School districts that are promoting socioeconomic integration are vigorously pursuing both goals. Given the Supreme Court’s decision, socioeconomic integration moves to the cutting edge of equitable school reform.” The report notes that today, most districts seek to achieve socioeconomic integration through public school choice and magnet schools rather than compulsory busing. Rescuing Brown v. Board of Education: Profiles of Twelve School Districts Pursuing Socioeconomic School Integration: http://www.tcf.org/publications/education/districtprofiles.pdf 2007 Just Read, Florida! K-12 Leadership Conference Draws Largest Crowd Ever On Monday, August 6, more than 4,600 reading coaches, literacy experts, educators, school administrators and state and national leaders will converge at the sixth annual Just Read, Florida! K-12 Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida, to share the latest in reading instructional strategies and best practices. This year’s attendance marks the largest crowd ever for the event, surpassing last year’s total by more than 1,000 attendees. Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp, State Board of Education Chairman T. Willard Fair, Just Read, Florida! Executive Director Dr. Evan Lefsky and award winning author and educator, Sharon Draper will kick off the conference. “I am delighted to see such a large and varied group of reading professionals come together for this important event,” said Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp. “The importance of literacy skills cannot be overstated, and I look forward to witnessing the positive results of this conference.” Sponsored by the Florida Education Foundation, the leadership conference features presentations by state and national leaders, accomplished authors, reading experts, literacy professionals and prominent educators. The conference includes more than 300 sessions, led by principals, educators, professionals and reading coaches from across the state. Additional guest speakers include Education Commissioner Jeanine Blomberg, K-12 Public Schools Chancellor Dr. Cheri Pierson Yecke, and celebrated educator and motivational speaker Samuel Betances. “Each year Just Read, Florida! does an outstanding job of working with educators, community leaders, school administrators and reading experts to promote a more literate Florida,” said Commissioner Blomberg. “Conferences such as this allow these professionals to come together to share ideas and best practices for the greater good of our children.” Established in 2001, Just Read, Florida! is a statewide initiative that has helped to make reading a priority in Florida's public schools and among the community groups and volunteer organizations that support them. The primary goal of Just Read, Florida! is to ensure every school-aged child is able to read at or above grade level by 2012. The initiative has helped school districts implement researched-based reading programs and strategies to improve student learning. For more information on Just Read, Florida!, please visit www.justreadflorida.com. The Just Read, Florida! 2007 Leadership Conference will be held: August 5-8
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