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Florida
Education News
December
2008
Copyright
© 2008 Queue, Inc.
FloridaÕs High School Graduation Rate
Continues to Climb
Measuring Up Ð Florida Report Card
Lee County School District Brings Data Analysis
Capabilities to Classroom Level
Florida Education Report Back
Issues (http://www.queuenews.com/FLnews.html)
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In another sign of an economy gone sour, Florida schools lost nearly 24,000 students this year in an unprecedented enrollment drop.
The
exodus has forced districts to eliminate teachers and make other cuts because
fewer students mean less money from the state.
Across
Florida, 48 out of the 67 county school districts saw declines in student
enrollment since last year, according to the Department of Education. Orange,
Seminole, Volusia, Osceola and Brevard schools all saw losses. Only Lake and
Polk showed any growth during that time.
For
many counties, including Orange, Seminole and Brevard, the declines continue a
pattern that began three school years ago -- a marked change from routine
growth that had some districts begging for teachers as recently as 2005.
"Each
of the last two years we have lost 1,000 students," said George Kosmac,
deputy superintendent of Seminole schools, which are down nearly 500 more
students this yearÉ
Complete
story:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/state/orl-enroll2508nov25,0,7454051.story
~ Increased number of minority graduates
push graduation rate to highest point ever ~
FloridaÕs graduation rate has reached its
highest point ever last year at 75.4 percent, according to results released
today by the Florida Department of Education (DOE). This rate exceeds the
previous yearÕs rate by three percentage points and represents an overall
improvement of 15.2 percentage points since the 1998-99 school year. The
results indicate that rising numbers of minority graduates continue to play a
significant role in the improvement of FloridaÕs overall graduation rate.
Similar to last year, graduation rates for
African-American and Hispanic students showed some of the largest growth this
year, increasing by 3.8 and 3.1 percentage points, respectively. White students
also showed sizeable growth, with a 2.6 point increase in their rate compared
to 2006-07.
The DOE bases its graduation rate on data that follows every single student from ninth grade to graduation, a method that more accurately calculates the number of students who graduate high school. Florida currently stands alone nationally in its practice of compiling and following individual student records to determine a true, four-year graduation rate. In October, the United States Department of Education announced that all states must adopt a uniform graduation rate calculation by the year 2010-11. Consequently, the DOE is reviewing its graduation rate to determine what changes are needed to meet the new federal requirement.
Decreased Dropout Rate
As FloridaÕs graduation rate continues to
rise, its dropout rate continues to decline. According to the results,
FloridaÕs annual high school dropout rate dropped to its lowest point ever this
year at 2.6 percent. This rate is a decrease of 0.7 percentage points compared
to last yearÕs rate, and a decrease of 2.8 points since 1998-99.
Increased minority achievement was the
leading force behind this decline. From 2006-07 to 2007-08, the dropout rate
decreased for African-American, Hispanic, American Indian and multiracial
students, with African-American students showing the most significant
improvements in dropout reduction.
For
more information about FloridaÕs 2007-08 graduation and dropout rates, visit http://www.fldoe.org/news/pdf/grad_rate_data.pdf (PDF, 164KB).
What is Measuring Up?
The purpose of a state report card
is to provide the general public and policymakers with information they can use
to assess and improve post secondary education in each state. Measuring Up
2008 is the fifth in a series of biennial report cards. The report
card grades states in six overall performance categories:
Preparation: How
adequately does the state prepare students for education and training beyond
high school?
Participation: Do state
residents have sufficient opportunities to enroll in education and training
beyond high school?
Affordability: How
affordable is higher education for students and their families?
Completion: Do students
make progress toward and complete their certificates or degrees in a timely
manner?
Benefits: What benefits
does the state receive from having a highly educated population?
Learning: What is
known about student learning as a result of education and training beyond high
school?
Grades compare the current
performance of each state with the best-performing states, but do not compare
with past performance. Key indicators (back page) allow states to compare
current performance with past performance.
Florida scored a C in Preparation:
ÒFloridaÕs fairly low performance
in educating its young population could limit the stateÕs access to a
competitive workforce and weaken its economy. Eighth
graders have improved in writing, but they perform poorly in science, math, and
reading. Only 78% of Hispanics and 84% of blacks have a high school credential,
compared with 90% of whites.Ó
Complete Florida
report:
http://measuringup2008.highereducation.org/print/state_reports/long/FL.pdf
Math and Science Facilitator LaKenya
Sanders-Sharpe of Van E. Blanton Elementary School is a recipient of the Milken
Family Foundation National Educator Award. Ms. Sanders-Sharpe received her
$25,000 award during a surprise school assembly at Blanton Elementary School.
Co-workers and education officials nominated Sanders-Sharpe for her creative
and enthusiastic teaching methods, the increased academic achievement of her
students, her strong presence as a role model and her proven commitment to the
teaching profession.
Ms.
Sanders-Sharpe began her teaching career in the Chicago Public Schools system
in 2002 and joined Miami-Dade County Public Schools in 2005 as a 4th and 5th
grade teacher. As a Math and Science Facilitator, she finds ways to transform
the complexities of these subjects into concepts that her students are able to
understand and apply.
An independent committee, appointed by the
Florida Department of Education, makes nominations to the Milken Foundation,
from which final selections are made. Predetermined criteria for the award
include the following:
á exceptional educational
talent as evidenced by effective instructional practices and student learning
results in the classroom and school;
á exemplary educational
accomplishments beyond the classroom that provide models of excellence for the
profession;
á strong long-range
potential for professional and policy leadership; and
á an engaging and inspiring
presence that motivates and impacts students, colleagues, and the community.
In
addition to the $25,000 award, recipients attend the annual Milken National
Education Conference, an all-expense-paid professional development conference
held in Los Angeles in the spring. They also join the Milken Educator Network,
a valuable resource of fellow educators, legislators, school boards and others
in shaping the future of education.
Gone
are the days when teachers in the Lee County School District have to speculate
about the steps that they need to take to help their students improve their
performance in the classroom. Lee County School District, through the adoption
of Student Performance SnapShot, has now given teachers access to objective
data analysis that previously only existed at the district level.
SnapShot
takes key data that schools collect on their students, such as test scores and
demographics, analyzes it, and presents it in an easy to comprehend format. By
simplifying data analysis, teachers and administrators are able to make the
best use of their time and maximize their impact on student performance and
school improvement.
"Snapshot
will allow teachers to have important data on their students in real time, at
their desks," said Dr. James Browder, Superintendent of Schools for Lee
County, Florida. "This will help our teachers ensure their classroom
activities and lessons reach all students, and they'll know which students may
need a little extra help. That is invaluable in the teaching profession."
Miami-Dade County Public
Schools has been selected by InfoWorld for inclusion in the InfoWorld 100
Awards for 2008.
"We are extremely
delighted to be recognized as a winner of the InfoWorld 100 Awards for our
commitment to energy efficiency," said Tom Sims, director of network
systems for Miami-Dade County Public Schools. "In looking for the best
solution to meet our goals for energy efficiency, we found BigFix Power
Management, which has enabled us to achieve the impressive financial and environmental
ROI recognized by this award."
Every year, the InfoWorld 100
Awards celebrate 100 IT organizations that have implemented and integrated
technologies in innovative ways in pursuit of concrete business goals. These
100 real-world projects stand as proof that striking a new path in IT can reap
deep organizational rewards.
With 345,000 pupils, 22,000 teachers, and over 400 schools and
administrative sites, Miami-Dade County Public Schools rates as the fourth
largest school system in the United States. The school system's IT
infrastructure has over 100,000 computers, which cost the district several
million dollars annually for electric power. Additionally, the school district
realized its power consumption indirectly released large quantities of carbon dioxide
into the Earth's atmosphere. Based on cost savings and environmental concerns,
the school system decided to implement a highly customized power conservation
program utilizing BigFix Power Management to reduce its electricity bills and
carbon footprint.
Leon
County Public Schools Warning System
viaRadio
Corporation, an emergency equipment manufacturer, announced the live activation
of their Emergency Warning System in FloridaÕs Leon County Public Schools this
week. The viaRadio receivers known as HEARO are now in the CountyÕs 24
elementary schools, nine middle schools, six high schools, six
special/alternative schools, five charter schools and various administrative
offices.
By
placing the HEARO receivers in schools and all district facilities, Leon County
Public Schools plans to inform the schoolsÕ administration of lock downs,
weather emergencies and other pertinent information.
ÒOur
decision to incorporate viaRadioÕs HEARO alert system was based on our ability
to control the outgoing messages themselves through viaRadioÕs web interface,Ó
says Robert Tricquet, Leon County Public School Coordinator for the Department
of Safety, Security and Emergency Management.
viaRadio
works with other school systems around the country including FloridaÕs Brevard
County Public Schools for more than a year. Currently, schools use the systems
for internal communication among employees.
ViaRadio:
http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.viaradio.com&esheet=5844390&lan=en_US&anchor=viaRadio&index=1
HEARO:
http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hearoalert.com&esheet=5844390&lan=en_US&anchor=HEARO&index=3