Science, Still Florida’s Red Headed Step Child?

Yesterday, The Consortium of Florida Education Foundation,gathered for a regional session to focus on what businesses and industry leaders say they need in future workers and how the education system is changing to meet those needs. The meeting focused on “The new Common Core Curriculum” which will align with national standards designed to deliver a globally competitive workforce. Students will be tested on it not by the FCAT but, starting in 2015, by the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers test, better known as PARCC. Little in the meeting focus on the need for a major transformation in STEM education at all levels (surprise surprise). Nothing was mentioned in regard to adopting the new National Science Standards (NGSS) so we must assume that the current state science standards (recently band added) will “align” with national standards?  With Common Core, the problem of knowing which credits transfer when student come in from out of state will dissipate and Florida will have a better comparison to other states on how well its students perform,” said Mary Jane Tappen, the state Department of Education deputy chancellor for curriculum. But evidently,this is not the case when it comes to science education.

Update.  See my letter in the Lakeland Ledger.

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