Public schools are helping students perform better on state tests, a report says.
Under the Florida A-Plus Program, established by the Legislature in 1999, schools are graded on a scale of A through F using student scores on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Tests and other indicators, including attendance. Students at schools that receive a failing grade of an F in two of four years on FCAT scores are offered state money to attend a different public or private school. This new study provides clear evidence of what our schools and students are capable of achieving. But some educators questioned the wisdom of putting public schools in a pigeonhole determined by the narrowly focused snapshot of test scores. I think it is a fallacy to label a whole school and a whole community by using snapshot tests.