Gov. Bush helped FL students and teachers by eliminating social promotion.
Schools ignored the new law. So, now Gov. Bush is imposing financial
penalties against school districts that continue to promote illiterate students.
Posted on 05/04/2002 1:41:35 PM PDT by summer
Gov. Bush helped FL students and teachers by eliminating social promotion.
Schools ignored the new law. So, now Gov. Bush is imposing financial
penalties against school districts that continue to promote illiterate students.
3rd-graders who can't read won't move on
By Dave Weber | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted May 3, 2002
Thousands of Florida children who can't read will be forced to repeat the third grade beginning next year, after House members voted Thursday to close a loophole in Gov. Jeb Bush's law to end social promotion.
Part of the massive school-code rewrite, the state House joined the Senate in approving the measure that calls for third-graders who can't read to be held back, with only a few exceptions. Bush, who championed an end to social promotion in 1999 only to learn that most school districts ignored the law, is expected to sign the massive bill.
The 1,800-page school-code bill also grants Orange County's School Board authority to roll back property taxes if voters approve a half-cent sales-tax increase for school construction. School Board members hope the property-tax break will encourage homeowners to support the measure on the September ballot and green-light the district's $2.7 billion construction program.
Board members moved quickly Thursday to approve ballot language including the property-tax rollback.
The tougher social-promotion provisions will take effect beginning with the 2002-03 school year.
Bush and lawmakers called for the tougher law after the Orlando Sentinel found that school districts throughout the state were ignoring the old law, which called for fourth-graders who could not read to be retained. Last year, 31 percent of fourth-graders failed the state's reading test, but less than 3 percent were held back. Many schools, despite sagging reading scores on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, did not retain even one fourth-grader.
Supporters of retaining students say the children don't get the help they need when they're moved ahead too quickly, and they fall behind. Last year, 62 percent of Florida's 10th-graders could not read at grade level, the Sentinel reported as part of the paper's ongoing Reading by 9 project.
It is important for children to learn to read by 9 -- the third grade -- so they can read their English, math, history and science books. After third grade, when the curriculum expands, students who can't read rapidly fall behind in school, and many eventually drop out.
John Winn, deputy education secretary, said the law is an attempt to wake up school districts.
"Nobody wants to retain anybody," Winn said. "Retention policies are designed to drive more effective instruction and earlier intervention."
Under the revised law, parents are to be notified in writing if their children are behind in reading in first, second or third grades. The letter has to state what steps the school will take to teach the child to read.
Third-graders who do not score above the lowest level on the reading portion of the FCAT must be retained.
Bush, who was angered to learn that districts were flouting the law requiring them to hold back fourth-graders, met with superintendents to craft the new social-promotion ban.
Spokeswoman Liz Hirst said the governor is satisfied with the compromise.
"It make sense that we are catching reading difficulties early, before our students get too far behind," Hirst said.
Opponents of the current law called it draconian to base a student's promotion only on FCAT scores. Districts used a vague "good cause" exemption to allow thousands of poor readers to be promoted.
The new law would exempt only students with disabilities, some students who don't speak English and students who already have been held back twice. Students who fail the state reading test also can be promoted if they do well on an alternate test or have class work that clearly proves they are able to read despite a poor showing on the test.
Starting this fall, the number of retentions and exemptions in each district also has to be reported to the Department of Education and published in local newspapers.
While Bush's A+ Plan for Education, passed in 1999, did not penalize districts for promoting failed readers, schools that ignore the new law could lose their share of lottery proceeds, as well as other state funding.
The financial impact of the change is not clear, but in 2004 schools will likely have fewer fourth-graders and more third-graders in need of reading help. The state has budgeted $600 million for retention programs aimed at bringing children up to their grade level, and the law requires schools to come up with an alternative class for students who have been retained two years.
The change will mean fewer students are targets for retention, but it will likely mean more children will be held back, a prospect that still bothers some teachers.
"I am not sure that for some of our students with low intelligence, retention is what we should be doing," said Paula Bleakley, a longtime teacher at Dabney Elementary in Leesburg.
Bleakley thinks that students who show a year's worth of progress in a year's time -- regardless of their reading level -- should be promoted.
Dabney Elementary did not retain a single student last year. The school caters to many children from low-income families, and in the past has set its own standard for those with low I.Q.s not low enough to qualify for special programs.
Donna Marzek, who has a son at Treadway Elementary in Leesburg, said too much emphasis has been placed on the FCAT. But she agrees with holding nonreaders back.
"I don't believe in passing students who are not reading on grade level," Marzek said. "We are not doing them any favors."
Orange County held back only 162 fourth-graders last year, although 4,435 failed the FCAT reading test. In fact, 36 of Orange County's 104 elementary schools promoted every fourth-grader.
But Orange County says it is onboard with the new law.
"The discussion that this has generated has been very positive. Everyone now is focusing on reading achievement," said Deborah Manuel, deputy superintendent of Orange County schools.
Ken Bovio, legislative lobbyist for Seminole County schools, expects the number of retentions to rise statewide for a couple of years, then level off as schools concentrate on teaching reading.
Dave Weber can be reached at dweber@orlandosentinel.com or 352-742-5928.
Gov. Jeb Bush encourages FL elementary students to read more.
Aside from phonics, most of the kids who will be held back are victims of somebody not getting them to practice their reading skills enough to become proficient. Most kids do learn to read but lack practice honing their reading skills enough to become good readers. If the teachers really pounced on it and showed the parents how to help their children, they probably wouldn't be having a problem with reading. Most times people do as little as possible to get by, and when the end of the year comes it is easier to pass the problem off to the next grade. I applaud Gov. Bush's solution.
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If they learn to read who will take the place of Democrat Florida voters in Dade county?
Uhmmmm, lessee...WHO pays the $$penalties?...Teachers?...bwahahaha!...we all know they don't get paid enough...The school boards?...Bwahahahaha!!...they get paid by YOU...Lessee, who's gonna pay the $penalties$?...
FMCDH
The government understands if they cant read or write it makes for a good welfare case in the future keeps their agenda alive and thriving for future welfare recipiants!
If you cant keep up with society youll be well kept up by the government and not just for one generation but for many generations !!!!
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