The College-Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST) is mandated as part of Florida's system of educational accountability. The CLAST is an achievement test that measures students' attainment of the college-level communication and mathematics skills that have been identified by the faculties of community colleges and state universities. Four subtests…

The College-Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST), mandated as part of Florida's system of educational accountability, is an achievement test that measures students' attainment of the college-level communication and mathematics skills that have been identified by the faculties of community colleges and state universities. The essay subtest examines…

This chapter evaluates Florida legislation establishing school advisory committees and is intended to improve understanding of both the potential and the problems of school advisory committees. It begins by examining advisory committees across the nation. It then turns to an analysis of school advisory committees in Florida. The report on…

This issue of the SERVE magazine discusses using assessment and accountability to improve student learning. Articles include: (1) Can High-Stakes State Testing Be Improved? (Wendy McColskey and Nancy McMunn); (2) Standards of Classroom Practice: Defining a Vision of Quality in the Classroom (Nancy McMunn and Wendy McColskey); (3) Taking a Close…

Online learning holds promise for providing new educational opportunities to a wide range of students across the country. The rapid expansion of K-12 online learning, however, threatens to outpace the development of appropriate state-level policies that serve to fulfill the promise. As the National Association of State Boards of Education warned…

This report examines the outcomes of the John M. McKay Scholarships Program, a statewide voucher program for students with disabilities in Florida that provides students with taxpayer-funded vouchers to be used at private schools or at other public schools. It argues that the McKay voucher program, which started in 1999, is rife with…

Details Florida's accomplishments and challenges as policymakers and educators focus on increasing student achievement through higher student and teacher standards, assessment, and accountability mechanisms. Already recognized for its articulation procedures, Florida continues to improve and expand partnerships and agreements between and among…

Jeb Bush campaigned for Governor on a clear and bracing set of education reforms in 1998. Having won office, he immediately pursued a dual track strategy of education reform: standards and accountability for public schools, choice options for dissatisfied parents. Florida lawmakers followed these reforms with additional measures, including…

The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) documents dimensions of quality in undergraduate education and provides information and assistance to colleges, universities, and other organizations to improve student learning. Its primary activity is annually surveying college students to assess the extent to which they engage in educational…

Since 1988, state governments have been required to collect quarterly from private sector employers gross earnings by Social Security numbers, industry of employment, and county of employment. A study was conducted of 13 states' efforts to use this wage record database as a tool for improving educational accountability and assessing the impact of…

The Pupil Progression Plan detailed in this document was developed in response to Florida's Educational Accountability Act, which requires each school district to establish a comprehensive program for pupil progression, and to fulfill the requirements of school board policy. The first section details general procedures for promotion, grades K-12.…

This publication contains the edited text of the proceedings of the September 1976 Conference on Education for Georgia Legislators. Addresses by 20 experts from Georgia and around the country are presented. The proceedings are intended to help legislators, educators, parents, and others interested in deeper insight into the issues of educational…

Testing programs enacted by the state legislature are changing and improving Florida's educational system in five areas: (1) setting standards for students; (2) making schools more accountable; (3) creating growth through competiton; (4) evaluating educational programs; and (5) assuring the competency of educators. (BS)

This report was conceptualized as a document to offer perspective on mathematics and science reform in the Southeast. The intent was to provide a panoramic view of K-12 mathematics and science education reform in each SERVE state (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina) and, ultimately, a synthesis of…

This study examined the perceptions of Florida principals from failing high poverty/minority schools regarding accountability measures placed upon their schools by state legislation. Data collection included field notes, observations, and interviews regarding principals' impressions of the state's accountability system, how their role was…