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High School Graduation May Get A Lot Harder
March 17, 2010
A key Senate committee gave its approval Tuesday to a bill that would make it more difficult to graduate high school in Florida, putting more emphasis on high level science and math classes.
Under the bill, all students would eventually have to take geometry, two years of algebra, biology, chemistry or physics and an additional “rigorous” science course. The class requirements would be phased in over the next few years as will end-of-course examinations. The measure would still allow students who fail the exams in those classes to progress to the next grade, but they must pass it by the end of their senior year in order to graduate.
The Senate Ways and Means Committee voted in favor of the plan, which heightens graduation standards, a promise the state made in its application for Race to the Top, a $4.35 billion federal grant that could bring $1 billion in additional dollars to Florida for education reform.
“We are choosing to make courses more rigorous for college bound students and those headed into the workforce,” said Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, the sponsor of the measure.
The legislation, Detert said, would make students more competitive in a global economy. Business organizations such as the Florida Chamber have been major backers of the measure, saying that Florida needs a more educated workforce to rebuild the economy.
“Our kids are not prepared for today’s world, and all of the data we see from every source says the same thing,” Detert said.
Similar legislation passed the House last year, but faltered in the Senate with many members concerned about how to fund the changes. Some lawmakers are still not convinced that the changes can be made without a significant infusion of money.
Legislative analysis indicates it will cost $1.5 million annually to implement the new exams, and there are still several unknown budget scenarios that could affect the overall education budget.
Stimulus money will eventually run out and it is still unknown whether the state will get the Race to the Top money. There is also a movement to change the class size provision in the Constitution, which would also save the state money; however, it requires 60 percent voter approval to make that change.
With all the unknowns, said Sen. Nan Rich, D-Weston, it would be very difficult to implement these changes without putting major stresses on the public school system.
“I perceive that to be an unfunded mandate to our schools,” Rich said.
Comments
19 Responses to “High School Graduation May Get A Lot Harder”
REGARDING;
“We can’t compete in a world economy without a strong foundation in math and science.’
Actually, we CAN compete as long as ENOUGH have a strong foundation in math and science. For a while now, we have been getting enough by letting intellegent students from other countries stay and contribute. Remember: Einstein was an immigrant. Tesla, von Braun, Fermi.
The less educated can do the low paying grunt work.
The real problem is the less people know, the more limited their options are in life. Schools can’t teach everything but they can teach how to learn.
David thinking nuclear physics, noneuclidian geometry, linear algebra, tensor analysis and home economics should be considered part of it too
PROPOSED BILL:
No bill setting requirements for graduation shall be approved without all members of the legislature making at least an 80% on said requirements..
Better yet:
Noone elected to the legislature will be trusted on committees until they make at least an 80% pass rate on the FCAT.
ALL SCORES TO BE PUBLISHED TO THE VOTERS.
Yeah, like anybody would vote for such a bill–not that they couldn’t pass, but I remember how they say Ted Kennedy (a great American) paid others to take his tests for him. He was too important to bother with such.
David thinking literacy would be nice too
no one is trying to dumb it down.
I have been to mcdonalds and got ppl who couldn’t give me the correct change,
nobody wants that. All children will never however be rocket scientists.
Our biggest problem is we pass them on because mommy don’t want johnny
to be held back, and to many kids don’t get the basic.
If school becomes that hard for you in the beginning years, I’ll bet your not
going to go anywhere or FINISH!
MOM’S your not doing your babies any favor.
SW
YOUR RIGHT ON THE MONEY.
We need good common sense frm our law makers, and their butt heads if
you ask me.
>Dad
I disagree with your premise. I, too, use the maths and some sciences and, on occasion, physics; however, that has not always been the case. Everyone won’t be an engineer just like everyone won’t be a laborer.
None of it works if students cannot read, write, know history or understand civics; of course, a basic understanding of the maths and sciences is important as well. I just don’t think everyone can be treated the same way.
Raising the bar to some is a challenge; to others it is an obstacle.
Education is the key to success; however, each of us measures success differently.
Under this idea being presented, what will happen to the students who don’t make the new standard? Catering to the advanced student is just as important as working with the average student as helping those with learning disabilities.
Maybe I’m being too idealistic?
They start teaching algebra in elementary school now. If you don’t understand algebra by the 12th grade, you don’t deserve to graduate. If you don’t understand geometry, algebra, biology, chemistry or physics, you are not prepared for college. I graduated 25 years ago and I use algebra daily. I use geometry and physics weekly. I even use biology and chemistry on occasion. I wish I had a better understanding of calculus. I could use it at least weekly. Math is a powerful tool. Without it, you’d have a hard time understanding any advanced science.
American industry is already facing a shortage of qualified technicians or even trainable applicants. We can’t compete in a world economy without a strong foundation in math and science.
Raise the bar and prepare them for success or dumb it down and watch them fail.
Willie B I take offense to that comment about what to do with children that don’t learn as fast as others. My son does not have a problem with his attitude. He is a very sweet and giving child. He just has a learning disability that has been tested and medically diagnosed. So you see whipping him for that would be cruel because every child comes into this world different. Now there are children that goof off and don’t put effort into school but there are many other cases like my son.
The new motto should be “No child left without a whupped’ behind”
The kids have to bear some of the fault if they don’t learn.
It is easy to blame the teachers, but their hands are tied.
Who owns your children? The government does! And our taxes are paying for it.
i’VE BEEN OUT OF SCHOOL NOW 13YRS AND HAVEN’T USED ALGEBRA OR BIOLOGY SINCE GETTING OUT OF SCHOOL. THIS SEEMS TO BE A LITTLE ON THE CRAZY SIDE.
You have got to be kidding me!
The key Senate committee members all need to personally go and spend some time in the classrooms observing the students that struggle daily with just the average classes, much less forcing them all to take advanced classes. They need to seriously reconsider this plan as it doesn’t even meet with what’s reality.
They already currently have in place in the high schools classes that are set up for the average students and classes that are set up for the advanced students.
We had a son who struggled through his learning disabilities just to get through the average classes just to graduate and we have a daughter, currently a Senior who exceeds at all her advanced classes and will graduate with honors.
So clearly not everyone is the same and one size does not fit all!
Just improve on what’s already in place and get creative to motivate the children who are capable of learning more, to want too.
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND means ALL CHILDREN LEAVE UNPREPARED!!!
I struggle to understand why my children do not have the basics. They ask for help with their homework and I look at the text book and say “It’s right here in the last chapter”, that is when they tell me that the teacher hasn’t covered that yet. I ask the teachers why they are jumping around in the textbooks and not covering the basics-Their reply “We do not make up the curriculum; it is mandated to us by the “NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND” program. WHAT!!!! No wonder kids are graduating -Dumb as a post!!
Looks like Florida is trying to fix 12 years of sins mandated by the federal government.
Hey Pelosi- Drop the whole healthcare business and fix our schools!!!
I think this is crazy as well, these children already have all of this FCAT shoved at them, and it is very stressful for some if not all. Why raise standards? I personally think that the schools need to hire more teachers so that the class sizes are smaller, so that the children can learn more of what needs to be taught in the schools. With larger classes, I feel that it is harder for the children and the teachers to work more on a one on one basis; which makes it harder for the students. Raising standards for these children is only going to cause more stress and more dropouts, Don’t we want our children to learn on their age and grade level? We don’t need our elementary children learning high school stuff, please slow down and teach the kids what they need in the schools and if they don’t make the grades to pass, it’s because they are not understanding what is being taught, we do have slower learners. So I say hire more teachers so that the size of these larger classes can be lowered so that these children can learn… Why pass students to the next grade if they don’t understand what is being taught to them now? Keep them in school and teach them what they need, don’t just pass them to the next grade and then wait until they are all in the 12th grade and then try to shove all of this crap down them that they don’t know and then they can’t graduate… Slow down and take time for these children!!!
To the Doer, well said.
I totally agree with “The Doer”. We have something similar here in Illinois where my children go to school. I graduated from Ernest Ward in 1981…so I feel that I can still contribute to the conversation.
Here in Illinois, the same basic structure is set in place for students to achieve credits to graduate. The problem is you have HS students that are ready for college, but not ready for life. Schools do not teach basics like balancing a check book, living within a budget, or other life skills needed for those who are not only headed to college, but for those students that are headed to the work force. I asked an educator that teaches in St Louis why they do not teach items such as this. Her answer was that students in “Special Education” get this type of education, but do to “NO STUDENT LET BEHIND”, there was a strain on student and teaching resources were many students were being left simply due to the fact there was not enough time in the school year to teach all . Now there is talk of changing the school year from 5 to 4 days a week verses extending the school to year-a-round school.
I guess with out current political representation, (I know we are lacking in Washington DC and Springfield, IL), and I am sure the same lack luster representatives are in Tallahassee…our students do not have models to look towards. Education is the key to success, but people need to want to learn, forcing them down “pre-determined paths” will only create problems in school, more summer schools, larger class room sizes for teachers to try to control.
As a public educator in this county, I want to say that this is the most ridiculous requirement I have read yet. Trying to FORCE low-level readers to pass upper-level science and math courses will only perpetuate the problem even further. The courses will eventually be drummed down , so the students can pass, or a lot of those students will fail, causing the school’s overall score and/or graduation rate to reflect such. A kid who is reading on the 4th grade level (Yes, we certainly have those levels in our high schools throughout the state) should not be attempting physics or chemistry. Instead, let’s actually offer that kid something where he/she can feel successful and can actually learn skills that could benefit him/her in the future and our society as a whole? Courses like business math, basic environmental sciences, technical English, etc. would provide the non-college bound students so much more realistic guidelines. Upper-level collegiate classes are not for every kid in Florida. We need to speak up in our county, as well as our state and demand that we do prepare ALL children for the REAL world, not a school society that is full of “FEEL-GOOD” bureaucracy for students who do not have the capabilities or the desire to continue struggling in courses that look good on paper.
As a mother of a child that has a mild learning disability this terrifies me. I have two children in high school. One struggles and one doesn’t. I am afraid that the more and more they keep raising the requirements there will be more drop outs thus causing more unemployment in our community. I believe the FCAT causes enough struggle for alot of students that are not above average. Let’s not leave these children that struggle with learning behind in the dust!
While I understand the concept here, I think they missed the goal.
All students don’t have the aptitude for the higher maths and sciences; all students don’t go to college. Note that it says nothing of enhancing writing skills, reading skills, history, or civics. What good is this program to a student who can’t competently read, write, knows how society works, or knows how society got here?
All this is going to do is to risk increasing the drop out rate. There should be emphasis on both ends of the spectrum. Support the students who are college bound and those who will be workforce or vocational/technical school bound.
All students should have the basics at a competent level. Of course, this foundation should begin in middle school and be built upon throughout high school.
What good does it do to pass a student to the next grade level if they don’t pass courses, by the way?
I think these lawmakers need to start over.
Find the money! Make these kids of today learn what we had to learn before we could graduate. If they don’t make the grade, keep them in school until they learn it. I remember the bruhaha over the lotto issue…it would support education. Where did that money go?
While I am venting at 1:14 am, who made the brilliant decision to resurface Hwy 97? Scrap that project and resurface Hwy 99 and maybe Arthur Brown Road. The projected start date has come and gone and no asphalt has been laid. Why not just put it off until hurricane season starts and then get started!