Bills pushing to deregulate public education

A set of three different bills were unanimously passed in the Florida Senate this week and now are in the hands of the House. All evolve around deregulating public education in different ways.

The bills are part of a legislative package backed by Senate President Kathleen Passidomo that she characterizes as “cutting red tape” and taking burdensome school regulations off the books.

WINK spoke to a few parents and grandparents on both sides of the coin.

Some said they’re all for removing some standardized test requirements, citing the stress kids feel, while others worry about what could happen without them.

In Florida public schools, one test can determine a lot.

“It’s extremely high stakes,” said Andrew Spar, president of the Florida Education Association. “Whether or not they graduate is tied to it, how teachers are paid is tied to it, how teachers are evaluated is tied to it, and how schools are funded and graded is tied to a single test.”

To earn a high school diploma, students currently have to pass the Algebra One End of Course exam, as well as tenth-grade ELA exams.

“People are really pushing standardized testing more so than learning,” said Ella Pritzker, mother and grandmother.

But a new set of bills that just passed unanimously in the senate aims to change that, removing some graduation requirements.

“Pulling back a little bit is probably to the betterment of our students and the focus on the academics rather than on high stakes testing,” Spar said.

And also loosening teaching certification requirements.

“Saying that teachers who have demonstrated their competency and maybe gone to school to be a teacher, having them have to take a test and pass a test is redundant if they’ve already demonstrated their skill set,” Spar said.

And that’s not all. Senate bills 7000, 7002 and 7004 cover much ground in making teachers’ salaries more flexible.

“I think that people that teach her children ought to be paid well,” Pritzker said.

While the Florida Teacher’s Union doesn’t agree with everything, they do see this as a step in the right direction.

“I also think it’s an opportunity that the senate saw as a way to really work to address the massive teacher and staff shortage,” Spar said.

If you’re interested in reading through these bills, click the respective links: 7000, 7002, 7004.