State toughens rating system for high schools

Florida's Board of Education has approved more rigorous measures for evaluating high schools beyond mere test scores, adding such factors as graduation rates and participation in accelerated coursework.

The new formula for annual school grades was approved at the board's meeting in Miami on Tuesday. The changes were required by a bill passed by the Legislature in 2008.

High schools will now receive an overall letter grade based half on student performance and learning gains on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, and half on five new measures: graduation rate; participation in advanced courses; post-secondary readiness; the graduation rate of at-risk students; and growth or decline in those areas.

"The Board's approval of these changes represents a significant step forward for our state as we work to prepare our young people to compete in today's highly competitive global marketplace," Education Commissioner Eric Smith said.

Under the old measure, Florida's more than 400 public high schools were given grades based entirely on their FCAT scores. State Sen. Don Gaetz, who sponsored the amending legislation, argued that wasn't an accurate barometer of a school's performance, because only half the students in a high school take the standardized exam.

"The FCAT, by itself, was an incomplete picture of achievement in high schools," Gaetz said at the board's meeting Tuesday.

Also on Tuesday, the board approved Smith's 2010-2011 budget request, which would increase the total among invested in education by nearly 9 percent.

The request comes as Florida is bracing for another tight budget year. The Legislative Budget Commission is anticipating potential deficits in each of the next three budget years.

"I think there'll be a lot of work on this budget because of the difficult economic conditions we're in," Smith acknowledged.

The total amount invested in education in Florida was $15.9 billion in 2009-2010. The new budget request would increase that amount to $17.3 billion. That includes funding for everything from voluntary pre-kindergarten programs to community colleges.

Board members plan to attach a letter to the request, acknowledging their approval while also stating that more funds are needed to adequately fund education.

According to the annual "Diplomas Count" report by the nonprofit Editorial Projects in Education, Florida's high school graduation rate is among the lowest in the nation, at just 57.5 percent in 2006. The state's calculation is higher, and is tracked by following individual students and including special and General Education Development diplomas.

"I think the budget we're submitting is the best the commissioner could come up with in very challenging circumstances," board member Roberto Martinez said.

Because of that, Martinez said he would support it. But visiting schools around the state - including those attended by his own children - he said it's clear more needs to be done. He pointed to schools where teacher quality is an issue; others where there aren't sufficient text books and technology; and low teacher salaries overall.

"I see first hand that it's a mixed bag," Martinez said.