{"text_format":"2","workbook":"xls","n_sheets":1,"sheets":["Sheet1"],"not_rendered":{"charts":0,"images":0,"macros":0,"external_links":1,"defined_names":29,"comments":0,"pivot_tables":0},"unopened":[],"bounds":{"document_bytes":16777216,"sheet_cells":100000,"run_cost":"one","rows_first":2000,"rows_last":500,"rows_between":2000,"halvings":0,"cell_chars":16384,"cell_head_chars":4096},"cells_cut":0,"cells_raw":0,"read":"whole","date_system":"1900","formulas":"cached_only"}

{"sheet":"Sheet1","index":0,"n_rows":292,"n_cols":19,"rows_kept":292,"cut":false,"hidden":false,"merged":[],"flags":["formulas_cached_only"]}
["Name:","Stakeholder Group Represented: (Please select an option below.)",null,"Organization: (If no organization, type self or none.)","County:","If you have any comments, please use the box below.","If you have any comments, please use the box below.","This provision allows an exception only for grade 8 students who take an end-of-course (EOC) Mathematics assessment so that they do not have to be double tested on the grade-level Mathematics assessment. Florida law provides this exception for all students that take high school EOCs so that they do not have to take the corresponding grade-level subject area assessment. Do you have specific comments about this section, its implementation, and effects on accountability provisions?","If you have any other comments, please use the box below.","The method for calculating 1% of students using the alternate assessment has changed. Now the calculation is 1% of the total number of all students in the state who are assessed in the subject. Do you have specific comments about this section, its implementation, and effects on accountability provisions?","If you have any other comments, please use the box below.","ESSA requires the state to ensure that its LEAs provide for an annual assessment of the English proficiency of all English Language Learners in their schools. These assessments must align with the state’s English proficiency standards. Do you have specific comments about this section, its implementation, and effects on accountability provisions?","Please provide feedback on the kinds of English language proficiency assessments to be used for English Language Learners. Do you have specific comments about this section, its implementation, and effects on accountability provisions?","If you have any other comments, please use the box below.","There is a new provision in ESSA allowing for LEAs to choose a nationally-recognized assessment instead of the statewide assessment if the State has evaluated the assessment and the assessment meets the criteria established by the State and federal law and is approved by the federal government. Do you have specific comments about this section, its implementation, and effects on accountability provisions?","If you have any other comments, please use the box below.","<p>The law provides for two scenarios for the inclusion of recently arrived English Language Learners in the English Language Arts assessment and in the achievement components of accountability.<br><br>- Exempt English Language Learners from taking the English Language Arts Florida Standards Assessment in the first year and use their scores in achievement in year 2.</p> <p>Or<br><br>- Require English Language Learners to take the English Language Arts Florida Standards Assessment in the first year and include them in learning gains in year 2 and achievement in year 3.<br><br>Florida currently implements a hybrid of these two approaches. Any changes to Florida’s practices would consider stakeholder input. Do you have specific comments about this section, its implementation, and effects on accountability provisions?</p>","Please provide feedback on the English Language Learners subgroup definition in federal law. ESSA, this subgroup can include students exited from the English for Speakers of Other Languages program up to four years after exit. Do you have specific comments about this section, its implementation, and effects on accountability provisions?","If you have any other comments, please use the box below."]
["Open-Ended Response","Response","Other (please specify)","Open-Ended Response","Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response","Open-Ended Response"]
["John J Sullivan","School District Administrators",null,"Broward County Public Schools ","Broward","> Assessments for reading should be grades K-2. Assessments in Language Arts should be in grades 3 and above.","> (vi) Multiple up-to-date measures of student academic achievement that may include measures of student growth and may be partially delivered in the form of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks should be an allowable measure for ELs in all subjects including mathematics, reading, language arts, science and any other subject chosen by the State.  The opportunity for ELs to demonstrate proficiency in subjects using multiple measures should be considered.  (vii)(III) We support assessing ELs in a valid and reliable manner and providing appropriate accommodations on assessments that include, to the extent practicable, assessments in the language and form most likely to yield accurate data on what students know and can do in an academic content area, until such student has achieved English language proficiency as defined.  (ix) We support the use of academic assessment in a language other than English for students who have not attended a school in the U.S. for 3 or more consecutive years, for a period not to exceed an additional 2 years, only if used on a case-by-case basis, if assessment is available and as determined by the LEA. The results of such assessments need to be tied to state standards and accountability measures to ensure the academic needs of such students are addressed by schools and their needs not overlooked for 3-5 years.    > States should be prohibited from requiring LEA's to solely use assessment results in decisions of promotion including high school graduation    >  (III) (vi) should read \"wholly or partially delivered in  the  form  of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks;\"    >  strike from (B) (xiii) \"  to  the extent  practicable,\" ","> Provision should allow for ALL students (regardless of grade level) who take an end-of-course (EOC) assessment and meet proficiency to be exempt from being double tested on ALL corresponding grade-level subject area assessment, not just Advanced Mathematics in Middle School.    > Any student in a grade of eight or lower that is enrolled in a two or more courses in the same content strand shall only be tested using one assessment at the highest grade level or course sequence course that the student is enrolled.",null,null,null,"> We support that the state ensures that LEAs provide for an annual assessment of the English proficiency of all ELLs in their schools and that these assessments be aligned with the State’s English proficiency standards. The state currently administers ACCESS for ELLs 2.0 which is aligned to the State adopted WIDA standards.  The critical issue is for the state to ensure that the English proficiency assessment, and the score required for classification as English proficient, CORRESPONDS to the language proficiency level that is required to successfully participate in the state’s ELA test. This is an issue of “predictive” validity. Every state that implements the WIDA annual assessment has the ability of setting scores to determine criteria for exit from EL classification to correspond to their state’s academic standards and assessments. It would be interesting to know how many native English speakers would meet the exit criteria from an ESOL program if it included using both ELP and ELA assessment results",null,null,"> Strongly support that SEAs allow LEAs to choose a nationally-recognized assessment in place of an LEA assessment.  SEA's should be required to establish a process by which LEA's can submit proposed assessments for consideration and that a decision be made within a reasonable time frame (six months?) for public response on the instruments usage.",null,null,"Option 2: Requiring ELLs to take the ELA assessment the first year and include them in learning gains in year 2 and achievement in year 3, is what we support because this requires schools to provide equitable instruction to all ELLs from day one as they will not be excluded. However, it will allow year one assessment to be a baseline and not count against the schools, then providing learning gains in year 2 and finally in year 3, achievement counts."]
["Khanh-Lien R. Banko","Parents and Families",null,"Alachua County Council of PTAs & 5forCHANGE.org","Alachua","  a.  Nationwide and statewide testing based on “challenging standards” rather than proficiency of subjects has caused all our issues.  Attaching teacher evaluations and funding to assessment outcomes has undermined the classroom dynamics and the relationships vital to the education of all children between teacher, administrator, and community.  b.\tBecause we can not agree on what is “challenging” or broad reaching standards, assessments will never be effective.  "]
["Ester de Jong","Educator Organizations",null,"LULAC & Sunshine State TESOL","Alachua",{"$nulls":6},"Florida is now a WIDA state.  Important to ensure comprehensive implementation with adequate funding for professional development across the state.",null,null,"Identify assessments in language other than English that can be used to document academic achievement",null,"Revisit ELL Task Force on Accountability recommendation and implement. The 73 page report on the Taskforce recommendations is available here  http://www.fldoe.org/accountability/accountability-reporting/eseaw.stml . A summary of key Florida ELL recommendations by Task Force member Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, prioritized for purposes of legislative drafting, is available at Subcommittee on English Language Learners Conference Call - July 30, 2012,  http://data.fldoe.org/winmed/esea/ESE73012.wmv ","Important to look at exited students; however, disaggregation of ELLs and former ELLs is necessary to ensure that lack of progress for ELLs is not masked by the performance of former ELLs."]
["Beverly Slough","Educator Organizations","School Board Member","Self","St. Johns","There must be timely, meaningful, and truly collaborative involvement of Local Education Agencies and all other education stakeholders – including students -- in the effort to draft Florida’s entire ESSA Plan.  This is particularly important with provisions relating to assessments.    ","o The schedule for assessments in science (“not less than one time . . .  in grades 10-12) must be carefully interpreted and applied to accommodate variances in students’ progression (for example, the application of these provisions must accommodate a student who is enrolled in Biology in grade 8 and who takes Biology EOC in grade 8, rather than grade 10).      o Clarification is needed to protect students from duplicative assessments/”double testing” in all subject areas (as is already provided under Florida law -- and reflected in ESSA -- with regard to mathematics).     o Support offering assessments – to the extent possible and practicable -- in an ELL student’s native language.  If assessments are offered in a student’s native language, consideration should be given to when and how the results of ELL student assessments that are taken in English are included and “counted” in disaggregated district-wide results.     o Support and emphasize the federal requirement for using assessments ONLY for valid and reliable purposes.      o Clarification is needed for the phrase “multiple methods of assessment” to allow for local flexibility but to also protect students from over testing.     o Support the use of a statewide summative assessment, but believe districts should have the authority to administer formative tests to assess knowledge and improve instruction that can be EXCLUDED from test time cap requirements (local decision-making).      ","Support all current exemptions for all subjects as outlined in statute.   ",null,"Response:  We have concerns about the shift from 1% in each grade to 1% in each subject, as this will raise the number of students represented and has implications with regard to the 1% cap.   In addition, we have concerns about the impact on the overall state 1% cap if/when individual districts exceed their 1% cap – as is allowed under ESSA – and how the state and federal governments would address that.    ",null,"o Clarification is needed for the definition of the phrase “languages other than English that are present to a significant extent”     o We support the requirement that the state is responsible for developing such assessments.     o We recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue     [NOTE: Response to section (F) inserted with response to section (G) in DOE Survey]       "," No recommended change at this time to (G) except to reference comments provided above for (F)    ",null,"If a district wishes to choose an assessment other than the statewide assessment, the alternative assessment should be used district-wide to provide better consistency in the reporting and use of data – i.e. for use in teacher evaluations, calculation of learning gains, etc.   ",null,"No recommended change","Recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on these issues.   "]
["Rosa Castro Feinberg","Civil Rights Organizations",null,"LULAC Florida","Statewide Representation","2.\tA. IN GENERAL    Section 1111(b)(2)(F) requires a State to identify in its title I State plan the languages other than English that are present to a significant extent in the student population of the State and indicate the languages for which annual academic assessments are not available and are needed.     Section 1111(b)(2)(F) now requires that States make every effort to develop assessments in languages “present to a significant extent in the participating student population.    Florida Recommendation 3. Use multiple outcome measures to ensure a comprehensive picture of ELL progress, such as closing achievement gaps (achievement, promotion, graduation), improving levels, maintaining proficiency, cohort analysis, and permit home language content assessments as appropriate and feasible.  Florida Recommendation 7.  Identify and require research-based assessment accommodations appropriate for ELLs, including a paper and pencil alternative to computer testing.  (xi) enable results to be disaggregated within each State, local educational agency, and school by— (I) each major racial and ethnic group; (II) economically disadvantaged students as compared to students who are not economically disadvantaged; (III) children with disabilities as compared to children without disabilities; (IV) English proficiency status; (V) gender; and (VI) migrant status,  Florida Recommendation 2. Hold schools accountable for growth in English language proficiency by adding English Language Proficiency results to performance calculations, as recommended in the  USDOE waiver review process.  See also proposed regulation 200.30,31,32.  Florida Recommendation 6. Develop ways to include and follow the achievement of migrant students in state-wide and district-based accountability plans.  ",{"$nulls":10},"2. (3) EXCEPTION FOR RECENTLY ARRIVED ENGLISH LEARNERS    LULAC Florida considers the second option (include proficiency on the assessments described in subclause (I) in the third year of the student’s enrollment) preferable because it delays the unfair imposition of high stakes consequences for students who are not yet proficient in the language of a test whose results are therefor of limited utility. However, a two-year exemption is only a partial solution to the problems of fairness and accuracy. The solution is partial in the sense that:  •\tIt increases fairness to ELL students only during their first two years in our schools.  •\t It does not increase accuracy in interpretation of the results of content assessments for these students.  We should not ignore linguistic realities in the way we count test results in the remaining five or more subsequent years that a student is in ESOL status. What's needed is not to lower standards but to adjust expectations to account for language barriers that make it unreasonable to expect ELLs to achieve on the same schedule as native speakers of English.  Students still learning the English language who cannot understand the test questions are unlikely to produce the right answer except by chance. They are unable to explain their work in intelligible fashion in the language they have not yet mastered. The validity and reliability of content test results is highly questionable under these circumstances yet high stakes consequences still apply.    LULAC Florida urges the FDOE to apply the benefit of flexibility in ESEA requirements to implement the following recommendations.  Florida Recommendation 1. Link English Language Proficiency (ELP) status to performance expectations by using weighted measures of performance on the FCAT FSA and other content assessments in performance calculations.  Florida Recommendation 3. Permit home language content assessments for those students for whom it is appropriate.  ","English Learner SubGroup    —With respect to a student previously identified as an English learner and for not more than 4 years after the student ceases to be identified as an English learner, a State may include the results of the student’s assessments under paragraph (2)(B)(v)(I) within the English learner subgroup of the subgroups of students (as defined in subsection (c)(2)(D)) for the purposes of the State-determined accountability system.  Including results of exited students masks the results for students currently identified as English Learners. Therefore, results should be reported separately for current ELLS and for any expanded group of former ELLs.  In addition, LULAC Florida urges the FDOE to implement Florida Recommendation 4.    Florida Recommendation 4. Disaggregate ELL data by grade, ELP Level, mobility rate, school, district, and state. Add an additional category for tracking former ESOL students for as long as they are in Florida schools to get a full picture of their performance and of the effectiveness of ELL services.  "]
["Susan Sanders","Teachers",null,"None","Bay",null,"I recommend that the accommodations for students with disabilities  include the maximum use of accommodations so students will be successful on assessments."]
["Vanessa Hilton","School District Administrators",null,"Pasco County Schools","Pasco",null,"This is generally in line with what is already being implemented in Florida. We would look for any means to reduce the amount of testing required. ELLs should not be required to take standardized assessments in English until at least they have had one full year of education in the US. Assessments should be available to be administered paper/pencil or online.","It is important to support the limitation or elimination of multiple assessments in the same content area. I support keeping Florida's implementation.",null,null,null,"Currently, the model in Florida removes ELL students from important instruction for an extended length of time. This is because some sections require 1-1 administration. Please consider the impact of this on students.  Does this have to be annual? ","These assessments will remove ELL students from classroom instruction and reduce the time they spend with peers and their teacher. Consider an assessment that is not as long, to maximize instructional time, as dependent on school personnel, to minimize the impact in the classroom, and possibly not required annually.","ELL students should not be required to participate in other state assessments the first year in US, nor count for learning gains or achievement for that year. ","This is not really an option if no funding is provided.",null,"Exempt English Language Learners from taking the English Language Arts Florida Standards Assessment in the first year and use their scores in achievement in year 2.  Please consider the social emotional wellbeing of these students against the desire to have accountability data. Testing is stressful, and even more so if you are in a foreign country, which is the case for our ELLs within their first year in the country.","Agree that the ELL subgroup should contain students who are exited from the program up to 4 years."]
["Mary WHite","School District Administrators",null,"Martin County Schools","Martin",{"$nulls":11},"The growth should be longer than 2 years. "]
["Angie Fuller","School Administrators",null,"Durbin Creek Elementary","St. Johns","No comments","How do students who accelerate meet the requirement for students to be assessed once in grades 10-12 in science? Does Biology I EOC satisfy this requirement if a student takes it in 8th or 9th grade?  We support using the current state assessments we have.  We do not support adding additional assessments to meet this requirements.","We support Florida’s current exemptions for double testing. ",null,"We have concerns with the cap of 1% of students taking the FSAA is now capped by subject. This may constitute a problem as multiple grade levels may be taking the same EOC. For example – students in grades 9, 10 and 11 may be taking Biology. Previously the cap was set by grade level and thus represented a lower number of students. The cap should be increased to reflect the understanding this change will bring, or a waiver system will need to be freely utilized so students and schools are not penalized.     Any further information the department can provide on the implications of this change would be appreciated.  ",null,"We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.","We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.",null,"If this is an avenue Florida wants to pursue, we believe at a minimum, the whole district needs to be on one assessment.  There should not be an option for a parent to opt a child in or out of the FSA and into another assessment.  Florida already has a system established for the use of concordant score for nationally recognized assessments that can be utilized.","We have concerns with impact using multiple assessments in the state or within a district could have on data and teacher evaluations.  Can learning gains be calculated for alternative nationally recognized assessments?","Option 2, but would prefer for students not take the assessment in year 1, year 2 scores will not count and in year 3, include both learning gains and achievement. ","We do not recommend including students exited from ESOL program in the ELL subgroup after they exit the program. "]
["Beth Sweeny","School District Administrators",null,"St. Johns County School District","St. Johns","Collaboration between the DOE and stakeholders are will be crucial in drafting Florida's state plan.","How do students who accelerate meet the requirement for students to be assessed once in grades 10-12 in science? Does Biology I EOC satisfy this requirement if a student takes it in 8th or 9th grade?  We support using the current state assessments we have.  We do not support adding additional assessments to meet this requirements.","We support all of Florida's current exemptions for double testing.",null,"We have concerns with the cap of 1% of students taking the FSAA is now capped by subject. This may constitute a problem as multiple grade levels may be taking the same EOC. For example – students in grades 9, 10 and 11 may be taking Biology. Previously the cap was set by grade level and thus represented a lower number of students. The cap should be increased to reflect the understanding this change will bring, or a waiver system will need to be freely utilized so students and schools are not penalized.     Any further information the department can provide on the implications of this change would be appreciated.  ",null,"We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.","We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.",null,"If this is an avenue Florida wants to pursue, we believe at a minimum, the whole district needs to be on one assessment.  There should not be an option for a parent to opt a child in or out of the FSA and into another assessment.  Florida already has a system established for the use of concordant score for nationally recognized assessments that can be utilized.","We have concerns with impact using multiple assessments in the state or within a district could have on data and teacher evaluations.  Can learning gains be calculated for alternative nationally recognized assessments?","Option 2, but would prefer for students not take the assessment in year 1, year 2 scores will not count and in year 3, include both learning gains and achievement. ","We do not recommend including students exited from ESOL program in the ELL subgroup after they exit the program. "]
["Mary Huffstetter","Teachers","Preschool Teachers","St. Lucie Public Schools & Early Learning Coalition of SLC","St. Lucie","It is imperative that the state address PK-2 Assessment in addition to grades 3-12. We need a system where data collected in VPK is portable and moves to our K teachers to lessen the need for K teachers to spend a disproportionate amount of time assessing students at the beginning of the K year. Sufficient funding is needed to provide Professional Development to all our Early Childhood Educators to become proficient at observational assessment. Additionally, rather than spend millions in a system that aligns to our Early Childhood Standards, we would love to see the state develop a database of work samples/examples of mastery of the standards at each grade level to improve Inter-rater Reliability. Additionally, any Kindergarten Screener that is required at the beginning of the year, should be one that can be used throughout the year to guide and inform instruction. One portable, seamless system from  birth through 2nd grade would be ideal to counter the effects of transitions/mobility. ","The inclusion of \"other subjects chosen by the state\" and \"at least one other indicator of school quality' should be taken advantage of. Student engagement has such a high effect size on achievement, it  behooves us to look in that direction. ",{"$nulls":4},"We should measure language proficiency in our PK-2 grades, and not just for our English Language Learners, due to the high correlation between oral language and literacy. ",null,null,"The requirement of a Kindergarten Readiness Screener as an accountability measure for our VPK programs merits careful consideration, as it it currently seen by the majority of our kindergarten teachers, as a compliance task to finish with little value for their classrooms.This is in large part due to the current practice of only allowing access to the tool for the first 30 days of the school year. "]
["Laurie Gaylord","School District Administrators",null,"Martin County School District","Martin",null,"All state plans should have ESE involved during the development phase of the plan so that the following key components will be addressed in the plan:   Universal Design (UDL) which is referred to throughout the bill--How will the state support LEAs in ensuring that there is sufficient training available to general education teachers and ESE teachers in embedding principles of universal design into instruction and assessments;  What will flexibility look like for LEAs and states that have expanded cohort groups for students with disabilities?;  Assessment data for students with disabilities should be based on growth of the student and not grade level proficiency;   Teacher evaluation should be based on the growth model of students and not proficiency;  How will states monitor the progress and performance of the various AMO subgroups and districts accountable for their progress?     Will Florida expand the languages in which the assessments are given?    There should not be multiple assessments.    LEA should have the flexibility to determine how and under what guidelines to implement on a case-by-case basis?    How and where would we receive translated tests?      How will economically disadvantaged students be determined?     What will the sample size be? 30","There should not be double testing",null,"How will states aid LEAs in supporting professional development of all teachers in embedding universal design into instruction and assessments which is crucial to the success of students even those who are not significantly cognitively impaired? ",null,"Does this mean that we will be able to assess students in native languages. WIDA is a lengthy assessment.     Would SAT/ACT have to align with Florida Standards and how consistent will it be among schools? If one school chooses SAT and one chooses FSA? If SAT is chosen, who will notify parent?"]
["Meredith Mears","The Public","Students and Teachers","FLParentsRISE and Opt Out Leon","Leon","Remove ALL High Stakes attached tot he state assessments",{"$nulls":8},"Utilize the IOWA Basics assessment in lieu of the poorly implemented FSA  "]
["Janene Fitzpatrick","School District Administrators",null,"Suwannee County School District","Suwannee","Section 1111(b)(2) relates to academic assessments and is effective August 2, 2016.  Florida’s assessment system is fairly aligned with the new ESSA requirements.  However, ESSA requires that assessments involve multiple measures of student academic achievement.  This could include the use of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks.  How is FLDOE going to implement this provision?","This section requires inclusion of English Learners (ELs) who must be assessed in a valid and reliable manner and provided appropriate accommodations on assessments, including assessments in language and form most likely to yield accurate data.  Florida’s students speak multiple languages.  We should expand the options and accommodations for EL students.  This section also authorizes districts to determine, on a case-by-case basis, the assessments in another language or form that would be more appropriate for EL students.  The district may assess such students in the appropriate language for a period not to exceed 2 additional consecutive years.  The statute and applicable rules need to be reviewed and amended to reflect this option.    This section requires individual student reports.  Florida law currently requires reports.  Does FLDOE need to expand the languages in which the reports are produced?  What is the cost?    Results must be disaggregated into six groups.  One of the groups is economically disadvantaged students.  How will FLDOE define this group and the other groups?  To what extent will the community eligibility provisions (CEP) impact the economically disadvantaged subgroup?    Assessments are to be developed using principles for “universal design for learning.”  Is there a definition and/or description of these principles?    ","This section provides an exception for advanced math in middle school.  In essence, high school students who take the Algebra I EOC in middle school must take, in high school, a more advanced assessment or EOC.  How will this impact Florida students?  Does Florida need to recommend statutory and rule changes to meet this requirement?",null,"This section provides for alternate assessments for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities.  How many students are in this cohort?  How is this cohort of students defined?  Does Florida have an alternate assessment or assessments that meets ESSA requirements?  How may accommodations be expanded to assist students in having success on these assessments and increase participation?  What are the consequences of the state exceeding the 1% cap?  How is “universal design for learning” defined in alternate assessments?","This section requires the state to provide appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities, including students with significant cognitive disabilities.  We recommend that the accommodations for students with disabilities be reviewed to ensure the maximum use of such accommodations so that students may be successful on assessments.  This should also be a part of the development of alternative academic standards discussed above.",null,null,null,"This section provides for locally-selected assessments.  Many superintendents support having the authority to administer a locally-selected assessment for high school.  Nationally-recognized assessments are already used for concordant scores for students who are not successful in taking the FSA.  The FLDOE should establish a process by which a nationally- recognized high school assessment may be used and involve superintendents and district personnel.","This section authorizes the state to limit assessment time.  Florida’s limit is in current law.  However, the FLDOE should consider authorizing a pencil/paper option for statewide assessments until the technology is available to minimize assessment time.  This continues to be an issue particularly in high school. ","Section 1111(b)(3) provides an exception for recently arrived English Learners.  How does this exception impact the current requirements for EL students in Florida?  If EL students in Florida are not required to take FSA until after the second year of enrollment, how will Florida meet the ESSA requirement to include a measure of student growth on the State assessment in the second year of the student’s enrollment? ","English Learner Subgroup:  Currently in Florida, EL students remain in the EL subgroup for two years after they exit the program.  ESSA allows a State to include EL students for not more than 4 years after the student ceases to be identified as an English learner.  Is FLDOE considering the use of this flexibility?"]
["Matt Minnick","Educator Organizations",null,"Teach For America--Florida","Statewide Representation","Teach For America—Florida believes assessments should be reliable and well-designed to measure student performance against state-adopted, rigorous college and career ready standards. Student performance measurement should be done both in terms of proficiency and growth.    With regards to proficiency, we support an honest and meaningful measurement of what true student “proficiency” looks like. Falsely inflated indicators of student proficiency harm the effort to close achievement and opportunity gaps, reduce teacher effectiveness, and set our students up for failure—ultimately resulting in an under-prepared and ill-equipped workforce.     In order to avoid an unhealthy focus on “bubble students” (students who are on the cusp of meeting the proficiency requirement), we support an achievement index approach to annual academic assessments. This approach would result in schools receiving some credit for students hitting basic proficiency benchmarks, while receiving more credit for students hitting more advanced levels of proficiency.     Lastly, we believe it is important to strike a balance between schools and districts smartly using interim benchmark assessments to measure progress (of all sub-groups), while also ensuring that students are not “over-tested.” Schools and districts should develop high-quality, reliable assessments for use in grades beyond 3-8/high school and outside of core subject areas—particularly in early grades. However, interim and additional assessments should not be duplicative or unnecessary.   ",{"$nulls":8},"Teach For America—Florida appreciates the orientation toward local innovation under ESSA.  Should Florida opt to allow for some LEAs to utilize this flexibility, we would ask for the state to deeply consider ensuring that all students—including students with disabilities—have equal access to, and receive equal educational benefit from, the district-selected, state-approved assessment. Additionally, we would ask that the state ensure the district-selected assessment is fully aligned to Florida’s content standards and provides comparable results against the State’s academic achievement standards such that students in different districts across Florida are not being held to different standards, and so that Florida maintains the same high expectations for all students, regardless of zip code. ",null,"Teach For America—Florida is encouraged by the higher profile provided to English Language Learners under ESSA than under previous law—something that is particularly significant for Florida, as we have the third highest ELL student population in the nation, with over 275,000 students in Florida being English Language Learners. Teach For America-Florida has found the strategic and deliberate use of data to be an essential ingredient of effective teaching with all student populations.     We support and encourage the State to actively engage parents, families and communities which are specifically focused on the needs of English Language Learners in the conversation about how to best proceed to meet the needs of ELL students in Florida. These stakeholder voices will be critical to hear and ESSA implementation provides a unique opportunity for that kind of engagement.  ","As ESSA allows former ELL students to be included in the ELL student subgroup for up to four years, we believe that this has the potential to mask the performance of current ELL students, more so than in the past. Thus, we encourage the State to pay close and special attention to this and monitor closely how current ELLs are doing so that any downward performance trends can be quickly and effectively addressed."]
["Frances Irby-Fries","Teachers",null,"self","Volusia","Too many topics on one tests during the year.  Some students would better reflect their understanding on a performance task as the multiple choice answer tests confuse many students due to the excessive use of words.",{"$nulls":9},"I feel the reading and writing ELA state and, or county unit assessments should be paper based as students are still in the developmental learning stage.  I have witnessed students at the fifth grade level that are \"gamers\" pressing keys on the computer very quickly not seeming to even read to comprehend the text or the question.  These said students did much better on the paper based tests."]
["Laura","Students","Grandparents ","Self","Bay","It is extremely developmentally inappropriate to ask and expect young children to be judged for summative proficiency using an unfamiliar instrument ,unfamiliar technology, in a one time opportunity.  Only a teacher and a body of proficiency assessments can begin to give that information for young concrete thinkers.  ","This information does not speak to the inappropriate practice of high stakes testing for very young children    It gives lots of support for EL students but none for the very young that have the SAME disadvantage of lack of school experience.  In Florida some children don't arrive in school until FIRST grade.  Low socionomically disadvantaged students are the most discriminated against as they typically are not exposed to school language not to mention their lack of experiences.","Differentiation for capable students should always be the goal. ",null,"Why assign a number?  1%... Provide for the needs of the students no matter how many there are. ",null,"There exists English language deficits in many of Florida's children not just the ELL students.  Young children in poverty have profound deficits in this area. ",null,null,"Who gets to decide at the state DOE ?   There should be voice from the local level not just submission, request, and an evaluation from those detached to the reality in the local classroom.  ",null,"Great idea but why is this same consideration NOT given to young children.  There must be at least those same two years given for young nonproficient language students entering our public schools.  "]
["Brandon McKelvey","School District Administrators",null,"Orange County Public Schools","Orange","We surveyed parents, students, teachers, administrators and community members. We received over 500 responses and asked that they also provide direct feedback to the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) and the United States Department of Education (USDOE).     ESSA provides new flexibility to states for statewide assessments. A majority of respondents (51%) would like the state to consider innovative options that separate end-of-year statewide assessments into smaller assessments. Only 10% of respondents would not like this, and 39% would like to receive more information. Given this feedback, we recommend that the state consider innovative methods of providing assessments. As a district fully committed to provided digital opportunities for all children, we believe that new methods of assessment hold considerable promise to increase the relevance of assessment while decreasing both assessment time and student stress.      Respondents strongly support the use of national assessments such as the SAT and ACT for high school students rather than the Florida Standards Assessments (FSA). Nearly 73% of respondents would be interested in making this transition with only 7% opposed and 20% needing more information.   ",{"$nulls":8},"As described in the general comments, stakeholders would like the flexibility to use national assessments such as the SAT and ACT along with other innovative assessments approaches. "]
["Erika Donalds","Educator Organizations","Elected School Board Members","Florida Coalition of School Board Members","Statewide Representation","•\tFlorida has a rich history of high expectations for our students and rigorous academic standards. We measure each student’s achievement through the Florida Standards Assessment, a valid and reliable assessment.","•\tWe support Florida and nationally recognized assessments that have demonstrated validity and reliability. Specifically, we support the ACT and SAT and subject tests (including AP) for secondary students, as well as the establishing of concordance scores for a variety of rigorous alternative K-8 assessments such as the Iowa Basic Test. ","•\tWe support Florida’s law that provides an advanced mathematics exception for all students that take the high school End of Course exams.  This is an effective strategy for “fewer, better tests.”",null,"•\tWe support Florida’s current implementation of alternate assessments for students with cognitive disabilities. ",{"$nulls":8},"•\tWe support Florida’s approach which makes decisions about participation in the state assessment for year 1 based on the needs of the individual English Language Learner. "]
["Shannon Minor","Parents and Families",null,"self","Pinellas","It's clear from the mountain of text and this cumbersome survey process that you don't truly want parent feedback, even though we’re the ones who really care about the kids whose futures are at stake. No one besides trained attorneys could make heads or tails of this crap, and you should be ashamed of yourselves for pretending to want feedback and going about getting it in this way.     Testing is out of control. Teachers are not allowed to do their jobs and determine who is ready for promotion or not. Tests are being crammed down our kids' throats without anyone being able to review them. Telling kids they can't talk about the tests with their parents?! Are you kidding me?!? Communication is the heart of any strong parent-child relationship.    Money is being siphoned off to private testing companies when it should be going to attract and retain good teachers, who are more than capable of handling student assessments. There is no privacy; you’re giving these for-profit private firms carte blanche as far as our kids’ sensitive data.     Libraries are closed for WEEKS in the name of testing. LIBRARIES! The foundations of learning!!!    PreK and Kindergarten kids DO NOT need to be tested! What kind of monsters are you?!? They should be learning how to be humans and playing, not forced to sit for hours taking tests that rob them of the joy of learning. It’s like you’re grooming future generations of people who hate school, drop out, and end up in the corrections system – another area unfairly controlled by private corporations who could not care less about the humans in their charge.    At Shore Acres Elementary in St. Petersburg, FL, which is a good school, 22 kids are being forced to repeat third grade, despite good report cards. Because of testing. Because they didn’t pass the FSA, the state test. Think of how these kids now feel about education. Think about the extra costs incurred in putting kids through another entire year of school.     Utah ditched these same tests, but then Florida bought them anyway. Even though they’re not aligned to Florida state standards.    And auditory questions for first graders? That can’t be repeated? WTF are you thinking?!? These are little, LITTLE kids! They can’t process this!    This is what needs to happen if you care AT ALL about public education:  Eliminate high-stakes testing.  Return assessments to teachers.  Make privacy a priority.  End promotion requirements based on test scores; leave the decision up to teachers’ evaluations.  Reduce overall testing days.    Teachers and educators can’t say anything – they’ve been threatened with their jobs, with low grades, with lost funding. People are being forced out of public education. Parents that care can’t bear to watch their kids sit in testing for ten days put them in private or charter schools, or home school them. If you’re gunning for the end of public education, so you don’t have to deal with the costs anymore, then you’re on the right track, friends.    I am a college educated business owner and an SICKENED by what’s going on with ESSA, testing, the way teachers are treated, and school funding. Stop this madness. Make learning fun again. There’s a reason the U.S. is so far behind other nations academically, why we’re not prepared for the jobs of the future: Because people like you are sucking all the joy out of learning and have completely forgotten your duty to educate the citizens of our state and country. Your alliances lie with making money.     SHAME ON ALL OF YOU!!!  "]
["Andrea Messina","School District Administrators","Elected School District Policy Makers","Florida School Boards Association","Leon","There must be timely, meaningful, and truly collaborative involvement of Local Education Agencies and all other education stakeholders – including students -- in the effort to draft Florida’s entire ESSA Plan.  This is particularly important with provisions relating to assessments. ","• The schedule for assessments in science (“not less than one time . . .  in grades 10-12) must be carefully interpreted and applied to accommodate variances in students’ progression (for example, the application of these provisions must accommodate a student who is enrolled in Biology in grade 8 and who takes Biology EOC in grade 8, rather than grade 10).   • Clarification is needed to protect students from duplicative assessments/”double testing” in all subject areas (as is already provided under Florida law -- and reflected in ESSA -- with regard to mathematics).  • We support offering assessments – to the extent possible and practicable -- in an ELL student’s native language.  If assessments are offered in a student’s native language, consideration should be given to when and how the results of ELL student assessments that are taken in English are included and “counted” in disaggregated district-wide results.  • We support and emphasize the federal requirement for using assessments ONLY for valid and reliable purposes.   • Clarification is needed for the phrase “multiple methods of assessment” to allow for local flexibility but to also protect students from over testing.  • We support the use of a statewide summative assessment, but believe districts should have the authority to administer formative tests to assess knowledge and improve instruction that can be EXCLUDED from test time cap requirements (local decision-making).","We support all current exemptions for all subjects as outlined in statute.",null,"We have concerns about the shift from 1% in each grade to 1% in each subject, as this will raise the number of students represented and has implications with regard to the 1% cap.   In addition, we have concerns about the impact on the overall state 1% cap if/when individual districts exceed their 1% cap – as is allowed under ESSA – and how the state and federal governments would address that.","Regarding Section (F) Language Assessments:  • Clarification is needed for the definition of the phrase “languages other than English that are present to a significant extent”  • We support the requirement that the state is responsible for developing such assessments.  • We recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue","No recommended change at this time","We recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue",null,"We believe that, if a district wishes to choose an assessment other than the statewide assessment, the alternative assessment should be used district-wide to provide better consistency in the reporting and use of data – i.e. for use in teacher evaluations, calculation of learning gains, etc.","With regard to Section (J) ADAPTIVE ASSESSMENTS:  • We believe that, in exercising the authority to use computer adaptive assessments, the state has the responsibility to ensure that sufficient and appropriate hardware, software, access, etc. are available in each district and school.  • We encourage the DOE to take note of the potential flexibility provided in this section with regard to assessment of ESE and ELL students.   • We recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on these issues.    With regard to Section (K) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION ON PARENT RIGHTS:  No recommended change at this time but we recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue.    With regard to Section (L) LIMITATION ON ASSESSMENT TIME:  We believe districts should have the authority to administer formative tests to assess knowledge and improve instruction that can be EXCLUDED from test time cap requirements. We recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue.","In general, we recommend the second option, but would prefer that students not take the assessment in year one, assessment results would not count in year two, and both learning gains and achievement would count and be reported in year three.  However, we strongly recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue.","We support a four-year extension of ELL service, but have concerns regarding the viability of tracking students over a four-year period, particularly given the high mobility rates of many of these students.  In addition, if such an extension is implemented, consideration must be given to how that should impact the options outlined above in terms of when and how assessment results for these students are “counted” and reported. Again, we strongly recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue."]
["Shawn Frost","Legislators","School Board Members","Self","Indian River","Florida has a rich history of high expectations for our students and rigorous academic standards. We measure each student’s achievement through the Florida Standards Assessment, a valid and reliable assessment.","I support Florida and nationally recognized assessments that have demonstrated validity and reliability. Specifically, we support the ACT and SAT and subject tests (including AP) for secondary students, as well as the establishing of concordance scores for a variety of rigorous alternative K-8 assessments such as the Iowa Basic Test. ","I support Florida’s law that provides an advanced mathematics exception for all students that take the high school End of Course exams.  This is an effective strategy for “fewer, better tests.”",null,"I support Florida’s current implementation of alternate assessments for students with cognitive disabilities. ",null,"We support Florida’s approach which makes decisions about participation in the state assessment for year 1 based on the needs of the individual English Language Learner. "]
["April M Griffin","School Administrators","School Board Member","Florida School Boards Assoc.","Alachua","It is important for timely, meaningful and truly collaborative involvement of Local Education Agencies and all education stakeholders - Including Students - to work together to draft Florida's entire ESSA Plan.  This is especially relevant to assessments.","The schedule for assessments in science (“not less than one time . . . in grades  10-12) must be carefully interpreted and applied to accommodate variances  in students’ progression (for example, the application of these provisions  must accommodate a student who is enrolled in Biology in grade 8 and who  takes Biology EOC in grade 8, rather than grade 10).  o Clarification is needed to protect students from duplicative  assessments/”double testing” in all subject areas (as is already provided  under Florida law -- and reflected in ESSA -- with regard to mathematics).  o We support offering assessments – to the extent possible and practicable -- in  an ELL student’s native language. If assessments are offered in a student’s  native language, consideration should be given to when and how the results  of ELL student assessments that are taken in English are included and  “counted” in disaggregated district-wide results.  o We support and emphasize the federal requirement for using assessments  ONLY for valid and reliable purposes.  o Clarification is needed for the phrase “multiple methods of assessment” to  allow for local flexibility but to also protect students from over testing.  o We support the use of a statewide summative assessment, but believe districts  should have the authority to administer formative tests to assess knowledge  and improve instruction that can be EXCLUDED from test time cap  requirements (local decision-making).    ","I support all current exemptions for all subjects as outlined in statute.",null,"I have concerns about the shift from 1% in each grade to 1% in each subject.  This will raise the number of students represented and has implications with regard to the 1% cap.  In addition, I have concerns about the impact on the overall state 1% cap if/when individual districts exceed their 1% cap - as is allowed under ESSA- and how the state and federal governments will address this.","Sections E and F are not included on this survey but I will comment anyway.  (E) I have no recommended change at this time.  (F) Clarification is needed for the definition of the phrase “languages other than  English that are present to a significant extent”  I support the requirement that the state is responsible for developing such assessments.  I recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue.","I have no recommendations for change at this time.  Please see my comments listed under the last category.",null,null,"I believe that, if a district wishes to choose an assessment other than  the statewide assessment, the alternative assessment should be used district-wide to  provide better consistency in the reporting and use of data – i.e. for use in teacher  evaluations, calculation of learning gains, etc.","Sections (I), (J), (K), & (L) are not included but I would like to comment on these sections.  (I) I have no recommended change at this time.  (J) I believe that, in exercising the authority to use computer adaptive assessments, the state has the responsibility to ensure that sufficient and appropriate hardware, software, access, etc. are available in each district And school.  I encourage DOE to take note of the potential flexibility provided in this section with regard to assessment of ESE and ELL students.  I recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on these issues.  (K) I recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue.  (L) I believe districts should have the authority to administer formative tests to assess knowledge and improve instruction that can be EXCLUDED from test time cap requirements. I believe that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue","I recommend the second option, but would prefer for students not to take the assessment in year one, assessment results would not count in year two, and both learning gains and achievement would count and be reported in year three.  I Strongly recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue.","I support a four-year extension of ELL service, but have concerns regarding the viability of tracking students over a four-year period, particularly given the high mobility rates of many of these students. In addition, if such an  extension is implemented, consideration must be given to how that should impact the options outlined above in terms of when and how assessment results for these  students are “counted” and reported.   Again, I strongly recommend that input from district stakeholders be sought on this issue.  "]
["Florida Association of School Administrators","School Administrators",null,"Florida Association of School Administrators","Statewide Representation","FASA believes there is a need to have consultation with key stakeholder groups and educational agencies to further develop the state plan beyond online public comment periods.","(1) Given Florida's current Biology 1 EOC requirement and our state's emphasis of acceleration options, there is a need to clarify the timing of exams in science to ensure that students that take the Biology 1 EOC before 10th grade can use this score to fulfill the requirement for the 10-12 grade assessment. (2) We support allowing ELL students to take assessments in their native language when appropriate to allow for accurate data of student knowledge. (3) Allow for district flexibility on mid-year summative assessments instead of mandated state assessments.","As with math, we support all of Florida's current exemptions.",null,"FASA requests clarification in language in going from 1% in each grade to 1% in each subject, as this will raise the number of students represented.","F. Language assessments (there is not a section for this on the DOE form and will be entered in part D.): What constitutes a \"significant extent\" in the context of the language in the bill which states \"Each State plan shall identify the languages other than English that are present to a significant extent in the participating student population of the State and indicate the languages for which annual student academic assessments are not available and are needed.\"? To what extent does the language need to be prevalent in order to be deemed as such? Gathering stakeholder input with regard to this issue is strongly recommended. ",null,null,null,"(1) We believe that the alternative assessment needs to be unified across a district as a whole versus offering multiple options within a district (i.e. SAT, ACT, etc.). (2) Multiple assessments within a district could have significant impact on data and teacher evaluations.",null,"Option two, but would prefer for students not to take the assessment in year one, year two scores will not count and in year three, include both learning gains and achievement.","FASA supports a four-year extension of ELL service, but we have concerns regarding the viability of tracking students over a four-year period as many of these students are highly mobile."]
["Patsy Johnson","Teachers",null,"Self","Bay"]
["Anne-Marie Shaffer","Parents and Families",null,"Freedomschoolers Academy","Flagler","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government.","The Federal government has no authority to direct Florida's schools. Florida is an autonomous member of the federal union. The powers over Florida's schools, education, children, and failures is NOT one of the enumerated powers of the Federal government."]
["Margaret Kirwan","Parents and Families","grandparent","self","Lake","It was hard to watch my kindergarten granddaughter undergo testing each and every week to prepare for common core testing.","The requirements are much too stringent for the children - they can no longer have fun in class. What my kindergartener was forced to learn was what I used to teach at the end of first grade.  And those students turned out to be doctors, lawyers, etc.  Allow more creativity in school!!",{"$nulls":7},"I think this is a good idea as sometimes assessments are not a \"one size fits all\"  type of test."]
["Bethany Learning Academy","School Administrators",null,"Bethany Learning Academy","Orange"]
["Erain Johnson","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Bay","It is stated that the standardized testing is to be used for purposes for which such assess- ments are valid and reliable, consistent with relevant, nationally recognized professional and technical testing standards, objectively measure academic achievement, knowledge, and skills. This is untrue when my child report card for a 3rd grader clearly shows progression in his grade however, looking at the standardized testing results you can see he is clearly not a test taker. Some children just like adults get anxiety when taking difficult timed test that they do not have adequate time and preparation for. It is a unfair to hold a child back who is doing the work and showing progression based on these ridiculous test. "]
["stacey cline","Parents and Families",null,"self","Manatee",null,null,"EOC exams should be the ONLY exam EVERY middle and high school students participate in to test their knowledge."]
["Gay Lewis","School District Administrators",null,"District","Liberty",{"$nulls":4},"This change could have a significant negative impact on small rural districts.  ",{"$nulls":6},"The second option is a more reasonable approach given that the scores would not count year one. However, it is unreasonable to expect ELLs to test in year one. "]
["Megan Hendricks","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Pasco",null,"I do not believe the FSA meets the requirements in this section because it does not provide coherent and timely information about student attainment of standards. The report is extremely difficult for even the most educated parents to read, and the results do not help teachers, parents or students measure achievement. It also does not objectively measure academic achievement, knowledge and skills because it is intentionally designed to confuse student, rather than assess them. The ESSA appears to be giving states a big more flexibility than before in the administration and creation of these tests. I recommend that the DOE take a closer look at the required components and find a way to meet the requirements with as minimal testing and interruption of instruction as possible. ",null,null,"How was 1% determined? Where is the research that shows that only 1% of students have a significant cognitive disability? How can the DOE even take that kind of responsibility without having significant training in child development or medical practice? ",null,"How is the measured, and who is held accountable for this? What are the consequences on a school or a teacher if the assessment results are not high? Schools should not be held accountable for circumstances that begin in the home. There are some homes where the parents don't speak English at all. It doesn't make sense to compare a teacher with a classroom full of English Language Learners to a teacher with a class that has all students with language proficiency, but yet the state is doing just that with its accountability system.",null,null,"I think the FSA is a flawed test that is being used for the wrong purposes. If a nationally-recognized test does a better job of assessing progress than the FSA, then I think it should be used. But even then, it should not be used for the high stakes purposes that the FSA is currently used for. ",null,"Do not make them take the FSA and do not use any of their test results to evaluate teachers or schools. "]
["eileen branham","Parents and Families",null,"self","Alachua","Too much time is wasted on multiple required standardized tests. Last year, my 7th grader spent over 8 hours in school literally staring at a wall after he finished his tests. My elementary school student has spent even more time on standardized tests between multiple assessments throughout the year and then standardized state tests in the Spring.  ONE test is all that is needed. My students education should not be centered around the taking of standardized tests.  Now, elementary students are required to spend another hour in school if they are in a school that has not high enough scores on standardized tests.  UF has previously published a study that indicated the best predictor of a child's performance on these assessments was the zip code in which they lived. Where is the research that shows a child spending increased time in school to train for a standardized test affects their actual literacy or math abilities?",null,"There should absolutely be an exemption for students who have to take an EOC or AP/AICE/IB test for subjects. Enough school time is already wasted on standardized testing. "]
["vh smith","Parents and Families",null,"none","Broward",{"$nulls":4},"make sure that medically fragile ESE students, such as those with trisomy 13/18 or in hospice care do not have to be accessed at all.  DOE has said on numerous occasions that all students should be held accountable, regardless of health concerns--these students and parents need compassion before accountability--please be understanding of this when making education rules",null,"students who have been exited from ESOL still need help--please allow LF students to get testing accommodations---many states, including NY and NC allow this","clarify that 30 days for identification are school days, since Aug/Sept are hurricane months and Jewish holidays when many schools are not in session.  Also all districts should take the same entry assessment--WAPT is free ato districts--DOE should require this--most states use same assessment and it is aligned to our ACCESS for ELL assesessments.  ","students who answer yes on HLS who are deaf, mute or have a serious communication disorder do not have to be in ESOL since qualifying assessment not feasible---but must be served through ESE.","Florida should consider this since the FSA has so many problems",null,"we should do this:Require English Language Learners to take the English Language Arts Florida Standards Assessment in the first year and include them in learning gains in year 2 and achievement in year 3.  However, this should stay the same--- ELLs who DUESS is less than a year should be exempt from FSA ELA if they take ACCESS for ELL R/W","This is an accouantability issue which is fine---However, ELLs MUST receive testing accommodations (extra time, bilingual support) for two years after exit---research shows they need extra time for processing, not language or content (they did meet exit criteria afterall), but they need extra time."]
["Kevin Purvis","School Administrators",null,"School Board of Alachua County","Alachua","Please look at amount of high school testing.  The window is from around the 2nd week of April until the week prior to Memorial.  This doesn't include students taking AP exams that are not tied to state assessments.",{"$nulls":8},"If there is a way to tie ACT/SAT to state assessment measure in lieu of taking all the exams, that would qualify."]
["Dr. Debra Elliott","Educator Organizations","Florida Rural Consortia representing rural districts","Florida rural consortia","Statewide Representation","no comment","Question concerning Biology 1 and whether or not 8 or 9th graders can get credit for this when they are in grades 10-12?","We approve of the exemptions allowed for double testing",null,"There are concerns about the cap of 1% being based on subject rather than grade level","We will need additional information on the implications of this change.","Do not recommend any changes"," please consider a possible weighted factor that takes into account  the English proficiency and/or number of years in programs including those who have exited.. ","Set goals for EL subgroups based on learning gains as opposed to reading proficiency on content state assessmenets.","If a national assessment is pursued by Florida, please do not allow parents opt out alternatives. The whole district needs to b one assessment. ","I heard concerns about multiple assessments in a district or state and the impact on data and teacher evaluations. Is it possible for learning gains to be calculated for alternative national recognized assessments? ","option 2....but would prefer for students to not take the assessment in year 1. Year 2 scores will not count and year 3..include both learning gains and achievement","There are some who do not recommendincluding students exited from ESOL program in the ELL subgoup ff they exit the program."]
["Richard McNeill","Parents and Families",null,"Alachua County Council PTA","Alachua","There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by/for ESSA (grade 3/8). Testing should be a local district option to influence not only assessment of student success, but also to provide instructional directions for educators to improve a child's performance.","Eliminate standardized testing in pre-K through 3rd grade. Allow districts to administer standardized tests to improve instruction that have been validated nationally.",{"$nulls":7},"Absolutely, the district should have control about which nationally validated assessment is used to improve student instruction and provide data on student progress.",null,"Require English Language Learners to take the English Language Arts Florida Standards Assessment in the first year and include them in learning gains in year 2 and achievement in year 3.  "]
["TracyeBrown","School District Administrators",null,"Hillsborough County Public School District","Hillsborough","We suggest that ACT, SAT and PERT concordant and comparative scores should be considered the equivalent of state assessments in the calculation of school grade.",{"$nulls":8},"We suggest that Industry Certifications on the Secondary CAPE Industry Certification Funding List may be used to substitute for other standardized test requirements, such as EOCs or FSA tests, which are not otherwise passed by that student. The industry certification can serve as a benchmark that the student has workforce-ready skills.",null,"We suggest that the SEA consider exempting English Language Learners from taking the English Language Arts Florida Standards Assessment in the first year and use their achievement scores in year two. Thereby assessing in a valid and reliable manner to yield accurate data on what the students know and can do in academic content areas, until the students have achieved English language proficiency. ","d.\tAllow the use of gain scores for students who have been exited from the English for Speakers of Other Languages program up to four years after exit. Consider providing the scores in the subsets of the subgroup: LY, LF and LF+2 to LEA’s."]
["Marie-Claire Leman","Parents and Families",null,"self","Leon",null,"The high-stakes attached to state testing should be eliminated. The assessments must only \"be used for purposes for which such assessments are valid and reliable\". Did the alpine validity study show examine our high-stakes use of test scores? Is it valid and reliable to use the scores for AP placement and access to IB and pre-IB programs?    The Federal Law does not require a mandate for 3rd grade retention, or graduation requirements linked to testing such as 10th grade ELA or Algebra 1.     Under ESSA, there is no requirement for as many EOCs as are mandated by Florida. Simply having the Algebra 1 EOC and the Biology EOC could satisfy, for most students, the math and science requirements for testing in upper grades.    The 9th grade ELA FSA could also be eliminated since ELA must only be tested once in high school and we already require grade 10 ELA FSA.    These requirements do not include mandates that dictate how much an EOC should weigh in the student's final grade. Please consider reducing the weight of 30% to something like 10% or lower.    ","I think a case can be made for reading the federal provision more widely to include any middle schoolers who stake advanced math by analogy to 8th graders. The exception should pertain to students taking advanced math not only to students otherwise enrolled in 8th grade math.     To avoid this problem altogether and to reduce testing throughout the grades, Florida should advocate for use of grade-span testing instead of every year testing.",null,null,null,"There is no requirement that these assessment carry high stakes such as 3rd grade retention. Please remove this mandate for all students.",null,null,"Once the high-stakes tied to test scores are removed, choosing a nationally-normed assessment would be preferable to state assessments developed by private companies which prevent comparisons to other states."]
["Vicki Goggans","School Administrators",null,"Okeechobee High School","Okeechobee","1)\tPlease consider the following 3 points regarding the assessment system as it relates to ESE students:  a.\tCurrently, there is Good Cause Exemption from Mandatory Retention in the 3rd grade for students retained for two years in Kindergarten through 3rd grade.  Please include Pre-K ESE students to this language. This is related to SS 1008.25 and would require a Legislative change.  b.\tIn FDOE’s ESEA state accountability system there is a provision for a waiver for ESE high school students to graduate with a standard diploma and receive course grades even if they failed FSA and/or EOC tests. The student study team makes the recommendation after reviewing all relevant data that would demonstrate the student has mastered the state standards.   Please consider including in the ESSA state accountability system the same type of waiver for the promotion of ESE 3rd grade students that were not proficient on the FSA.  c.\tSome students have a degenerative medical conditions that can cause regression in cognitive abilities.  These students will not be able to show “progress” in the traditional sense even though they are meeting their educational goals. The IEP Team, with the appropriate medical documentation, should be given the authority to waive the requirement to take the state assessment.  2)\tThe assessment section authorizes the state to limit assessment time. Florida’s limit is in current law. However, FDOE should provide districts the flexibility to utilize a pencil/paper option for statewide assessments until the technology is available to minimize assessment time. This continues to be an issue particularly in high school.  3)\tAggregation of assessment results include the subgroup of economically disadvantaged students. The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) could misrepresent the membership of this subgroup because in some schools the subgroup could be students who qualify for free/reduced lunch, whereas, in other schools, because of CEP, the subgroup could be all students or just directly certified students. Careful consideration after receiving LEA input should be given to how the subgroup will be determined, disaggregated and reported consistently across districts and the state for both assessment and accountability purposes.  ","We strongly encourage the FDOE to provide districts and schools itemized score analyses on state assessments. The data currently provided is not sufficient for allowing “parents, teachers, principals, other school leaders, and administrators” the ability to “interpret and address the specific academic needs of students as indicated by the students’ achievement on assessment items.” We believe this data could greatly improve student outcomes and teacher instruction.   ESSA requires that assessments involve multiple measures of student academic achievement, which could include the use of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks. FDOE should consider the use of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks.  English Learners (ELs) must be assessed in a valid and reliable manner and provided appropriate accommodations on assessments, including assessments in language and form most likely to yield accurate data. Districts are also authorized to determine, on a case-by-case basis, the assessments in another language or form that would be more appropriate for EL students. Florida’s students speak multiple languages. In light of this, Florida should consider producing FSA in multiple languages.   ","Please change to allow the exemption for all middle school students who take an EOC assessment.  Double testing students punishes them for being ahead in their academics.",{"$nulls":6},"The option to use a nationally normed test, for example the PSAT/SAT for 9th-10th grade students (currently SAT is an approved concordant tests), would provide nationally normed data within approximately 30 days utilizing a valid and reliable instrument and would reduce the per student testing time to approximately four hours per student one time per year compared to over a month of schoolwide disruptions due to FSA testing. In addition, administering PSAT to all students supports placement in rigorous Advanced Placement or Dual Enrollment courses for all students.  SAT administration for all students allows every student who chooses to apply to an institution that evaluates acceptance based in part on SAT scores, to have access to that requirement. ",null,"I support increasing the number of years from two to four that the state may include the results of an English Learner’s assessment in the English Learner subgroup after a student ceases to be identified as an English Learner.  "]
["Marjorie Murray","School District Administrators",null,"ECTAC","Seminole","Although this section was intended to pertain only to “In General”, there were topics not included on the survey that we felt should be addressed. We have included those remarks below.  1)\tPlease consider the following 3 points regarding the assessment system as it relates to ESE students:  a.\tCurrently, there is Good Cause Exemption from Mandatory Retention in the 3rd grade for students retained for two years in Kindergarten through 3rd grade.  Please include Pre-K ESE students to this language. This is related to SS 1008.25 and would require a Legislative change.  b.\tIn FDOE’s ESEA state accountability system there is a provision for a waiver for ESE high school students to graduate with a standard diploma and receive course grades even if they failed FSA and/or EOC tests. The student study team makes the recommendation after reviewing all relevant data that would demonstrate the student has mastered the state standards.   Please consider including in the ESSA state accountability system the same type of waiver for the promotion of ESE 3rd grade students that were not proficient on the FSA.  c.\tSome students have a degenerative medical conditions that can cause regression in cognitive abilities.  These students will not be able to show “progress” in the traditional sense even though they are meeting their educational goals. The IEP Team, with the appropriate medical documentation, should be given the authority to waive the requirement to take the state assessment.  2)\tThe assessment section authorizes the state to limit assessment time. Florida’s limit is in current law. However, FDOE should provide districts the flexibility to utilize a pencil/paper option for statewide assessments until the technology is available to minimize assessment time. This continues to be an issue particularly in high school.  3)\tAggregation of assessment results include the subgroup of economically disadvantaged students. The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) could misrepresent the membership of this subgroup because in some schools the subgroup could be students who qualify for free/reduced lunch, whereas, in other schools, because of CEP, the subgroup could be all students or just directly certified students. Careful consideration after receiving LEA input should be given to how the subgroup will be determined, disaggregated and reported consistently across districts and the state for both assessment and accountability purposes.  ","We strongly encourage the FDOE to provide districts and schools itemized score analyses on state assessments. The data currently provided is not sufficient for allowing “parents, teachers, principals, other school leaders, and administrators” the ability to “interpret and address the specific academic needs of students as indicated by the students’ achievement on assessment items.” We believe this data could greatly improve student outcomes and teacher instruction.   ESSA requires that assessments involve multiple measures of student academic achievement, which could include the use of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks. FDOE should consider the use of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks.  English Learners (ELs) must be assessed in a valid and reliable manner and provided appropriate accommodations on assessments, including assessments in language and form most likely to yield accurate data. Districts are also authorized to determine, on a case-by-case basis, the assessments in another language or form that would be more appropriate for EL students. Florida’s students speak multiple languages. In light of this, Florida should consider producing FSA in multiple languages.   ",{"$nulls":7},"The option to use a nationally normed test, for example the PSAT/SAT for 9th-10th grade students (currently SAT is an approved concordant tests), would provide nationally normed data within approximately 30 days utilizing a valid and reliable instrument and would reduce the per student testing time to approximately four hours per student one time per year compared to over a month of schoolwide disruptions due to FSA testing. In addition, administering PSAT to all students supports placement in rigorous Advanced Placement or Dual Enrollment courses for all students.  SAT administration for all students allows every student who chooses to apply to an institution that evaluates acceptance based in part on SAT scores, to have access to that requirement. For these reasons, we strongly support the flexibility to choose a nationally-recognized assessment instead of the statewide assessment.",null,null,"We support increasing the number of years from two to four that the state may include the results of an English Learner’s assessment in the English Learner subgroup after a student ceases to be identified as an English Learner.  "]
["Cheryl Rutenbar","School Administrators",null,"PCSB","Polk","I believes there is a need to have consultation with key stakeholder groups and educational agencies to further develop the state plan beyond online public comment periods.","I support allowing ELL students to take assessments in their native language when appropriate to allow for accurate data of student knowledge. Allow for district flexibility on mid-year summative assessments instead of mandated state assessments.",null,"As with math, we support all of Florida's current exemptions.",null,"FASA requests clarification in language in going from 1% in each grade to 1% in each subject, as this will raise the number of students represented.",{"$nulls":4},"(1) We believe that the alternative assessment needs to be unified across a district as a whole versus offering multiple options within a district (i.e. SAT, ACT, etc.). (2) Multiple assessments within a district could have significant impact on data and teacher evaluations.",null,null,"Option two, but would prefer for students not to take the assessment in year one, year two scores will not count and in year three, include both learning gains and achievement. FASA supports a four-year extension of ELL service, but we have concerns regarding the viability of tracking students over a four-year period as many of these students are highly mobile."]
["Dr. Walt Griffin","School District Administrators",null,"Seminole County Public Schools","Seminole","Although this section was intended to pertain only to “In General”, there were topics not included on the survey that we felt should be addressed. We have included those remarks below.  1)\tPlease consider the following 3 points regarding the assessment system as it relates to ESE students:  a.\tCurrently, there is Good Cause Exemption from Mandatory Retention in the 3rd grade for students retained for two years in Kindergarten through 3rd grade.  Please include Pre-K ESE students to this language. This is related to SS 1008.25 and would require a Legislative change.  b.\tIn FDOE’s ESEA state accountability system there is a provision for a waiver for ESE high school students to graduate with a standard diploma and receive course grades even if they failed FSA and/or EOC tests. The student study team makes the recommendation after reviewing all relevant data that would demonstrate the student has mastered the state standards.   Please consider including in the ESSA state accountability system the same type of waiver for the promotion of ESE 3rd grade students that were not proficient on the FSA.  c.\tSome students have a degenerative medical condition that can cause regression in cognitive abilities.  These students will not be able to show “progress” in the traditional sense even though they are meeting their educational goals. For example, in our school district we have a student whose IQ is currently above the level to be considered cognitively disabled however their brain is regressing every year in its cognitive ability due to their neurological condition.  The IEP Team, with the appropriate medical documentation, should be given the authority to waive the requirement to take the state assessment.    2)\tThe assessment section authorizes the state to limit assessment time. Florida’s limit is in current law. However, FDOE should provide districts the flexibility to utilize a pencil/paper option for statewide assessments until the technology is available to minimize assessment time. This continues to be an issue particularly in high school.  3)\tAggregation of assessment results include the subgroup of economically disadvantaged students. The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) could misrepresent the membership of this subgroup because in some schools the subgroup could be students who qualify for free/reduced lunch, whereas, in other schools, because of CEP, the subgroup could be all students or just directly certified students. Careful consideration after receiving LEA input should be given to the how the subgroup will be determined, disaggregated and reported consistently across districts and the state for both assessment and accountability purposes.  ","Seminole County strongly encourages the FDOE to provide districts and schools itemized score analyses on state assessments. The data currently provided is not sufficient for allowing “parents, teachers, principals, other school leaders, and administrators” the ability to “interpret and address the specific academic needs of students as indicated by the students’ achievement on assessment items.” We believe this data could greatly improve student outcomes and teacher instruction. ",{"$nulls":7},"The option to use a nationally normed test, for example the PSAT/SAT for 9th-10th grade students (currently SAT is an approved concordant tests), would provide nationally normed data within approximately 30 days utilizing a valid and reliable instrument and would reduce the per student testing time to approximately four hours per student one time per year compared to over a month of schoolwide disruptions due to FSA testing. In addition, administering PSAT to all students supports placement in rigorous Advanced Placement or Dual Enrollment courses for all students.  SAT administration for all students allows every student who chooses to apply to an institution that evaluates acceptance based in part on SAT scores, to have access to that requirement.  For these reasons, we strongly support the flexibility to choose a nationally-recognized assessment instead of the statewide assessment.",null,null,"We support increasing the number of years from two to four that the state may include the results of an English Learner’s assessment in the English Learner subgroup after a student ceases to be identified as an English Learner.  "]
["Hunter Clary","Parents and Families",null,"none","St. Johns","No comment.","How do students who accelerate meet the requirement for students to be assessed once in grades 10-12 in science? Does the Biology I EOC currently satisfy this requirement if a student takes it in the 8th or 9th grade? I support using the current state assessments we have. I do not support adding additional assessments to meet this requirement.","I support all of Florida's current exemptions for double testing.",null,"I am concerned with the cap of 1% of students taking the FSA being capped by subject. This may constitute a problem as multiple grade levels may be taking the same EOC. For example- students in 9, 10, and 11 may be taking biology. Previously, the cap was set by grade level and thus represented a lower number of students. The cap should be increased to reflect the understanding this change will bring, or a waiver system will need to be freely utilized so students and schools are not penalized.","Any further information the department can provide to districts on the implications of this change would be appreciated.     Additionally, how will the department define the term \"significant\" as found in the ESSA?","I believe Florida's current assessments meet this requirement and I do not recommend any changes.","I believe Florida's current assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.",null,"If this is an avenue that Florida wants to pursue, I believe, at minimum, the whole district should be on one assessment. There should not be an option for a parent to opt a child into or out of the FSA and into another assessment. Florida already has a system established for the use of concordant score for nationally recognized assessments that can be utilized.","I have concerns about the potential impact on data and teacher evaluations of using multiple assessments in the state or within a district ","Option 2, but I would prefer for students to not take the assessment in year 1, to have year 2 scores not count, and include both learning gains and achievement in year 3.","I do not recommend including students exited from the ESOL program in the ELL subgroup after they exit the program."]
["Shearon Arnott","School District Administrators",null,"self","Florida Virtual School","No comments","As a parent, I'd like to see an option for a nationally recognized test, such as SAT, as an option. There are more testing windows so students have more options with regard to pace. They can be compared across states to bring more information and accountability to Florida. They test on what higher ed expects students to be able to know and do.  ","I am in favor of this.",null,"No comment.",null,"Again, I'd like to see a common assessment (national assessment) as one option so FL students can be compared, evaluated equally if transferring in/out, and FL has accountability.","see above.",null,"Yes! Vetted by the state, not local districts."]
["Michele Fisher","Parents and Families",null,"none","Manatee","The assessments should specifically be linked to our state standards and NOT be from a company with test banks.  Plus the test needs to be validated from outside sources, including field tested before it is brought out the way that the AIR test was.","I think that ESE students with cognitive difficulties should be excused from testing, especially if they are unable to read, write or perform math problems.  In addition, students who have been out due to hospitalizations and other health problems, should be able to be exempt from these tests if they have not learned the skills that will be assessed.  If a child has missed school due to a serious illness or being hospitalized or deemed unable to attend school by a doctor, they should be excused from these tests.  Teachers should not have to teach to the test, but the test should adequately assess skills learned and taught through state of Florida textbooks for the grade level.  To much time is spent preparing the students for the test and not in educating them.  My daughter spent months preparing for the geometry test, while her teacher taught very few of the skills assessed.  She had to learn them on her own, which shouldn't be required for any student.","I think that it should also apply to 7th graders that are taking math courses with an EOC.",null,"Please see my comments in the requirements section."]
["Wendy Carroll","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Broward",{"$nulls":5},"I have 2 children with disabilities in Broward County.  They are both in the general education setting as I feel that an inclusive setting is in their best interest.  Because of this setting, they are not receiving any modifications and are both taking the FSA.  One of my kids gets a \"1\" every year.   I know that he has learned many new concepts and has been exposed to many positive learning experiences.  The FSA will never be able to capture that growth however, due to the nature of his disability.  I would like to see modified curriculum for him in his current gen ed setting (with proper collaboration) as well as an assessment that more accurately captures what he can do based on Universal Design.  Why does there need to be a 1% cap?  I don't get it."]
["Karen Kiehn","Teachers",null,"Martin County School District","Martin","too much to absorb...as a whole..just advised this morning teachers are allowed to input and tomorrow is the deadline...sorry","none","No specific comments. Am happy the students do not have to take 2 assessments","none","1% of the state, variability of the 1% per region due to environmental or economic or health concerns?","none","Does ESSA require that the federal or state provide adequate funding to supply the materials and staff to teach the LEA students? I'm fine with annual assessment if ALL ELA students receive the materials and support they need to best learn and understand English.","I am not sufficiently knowledgeable on the various assessments available for ELL students to comment.","Again, the assessments are technology based, the teaching materials should be technology based and the materials for teaching and learning should be similar to the assessment material and technology.","I think it is a good idea. I don't know anything about which assessments are approved by the State and Federal government.","none","Why are not also excluded from the math, when there is a lot of reading on the math assessments also?","ELL vary greatly in the ability and support to learn and understand the nuances of English. This should be taken into consideration. Some parents are supportive and learning English or are already fluent in English, while others never learn English.","My dad started school in 1st grade only speaking Danish, no support in school, However, both his parents were active in the Danish community and learned English and had support with the community in learning English. He went on to go to Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy and earned a BS in engineering. We also need to help support the ELL communities in teaching the family members English."]
["Kristin Shuttz","Parents and Families",null,"self","Citrus",null,"How is the standard assessment going to be measured against national levels on the same levels when there is not a standard that fits across the nation.","If we find that too many students are taking the EOC and not needing to take the grade level assessment there is going to be a gap in the control group. Plus is the EOC established to give the data needed to understand where student levels are at.",null,"Students can be tested however, when there daily class assessments do not accurately reflect the knowledge to be tested the calculation is not going to be accurate.  With the assessment there is to much deviation that can occur and then to test there is a greater deviation.","The alternate assessments have a lot of great qualities however there is such deviation allowed how can we know a child is able to take the test since the test is just based on an overall child.  For instance my child is going into third grade and just completed Kindergarten work as his way of meeting the assessment he needed.  Your telling me this prepares him for an assessment test that he is to take this year? There is no way. ",null,null,null,"This allows to much separation to come into place between districts creating a greater separation between achieving the goal of a standardized test across our nation. If a state can not agree and implement a test across the entire state this is a problem.  Every child needs to be tested the same to allow for accurate results."]
["Cheryl Miranda","Teachers",null,"MCEA","Martin",null,"All Private and Charter schools receiving any public money should be required to administer the same assessments.",{"$nulls":8},"Again, all Private and Charter schools receiving taxpayer dollars in any form should be held to the same standard."]
["Kenyetta Feacher","School Administrators",null,"Public Schools","Polk",{"$nulls":11},"For consistency,  English Language Learners into learning gains for year 2 and achievement in year 3 should be the only option and not a hybrid approach.  This provides consistent accountability for LEA."]
["Walter Halil","Teachers",null,"Country Isles Elementary","Broward","These tests should be administered to all public and private elementary school and secondary school students in the State. ","Why not align standards to entrance requirements for all public institutions of higher learning in the country? That way students will be prepared to pursue degrees at any postsecondary institution of their choice.",{"$nulls":9},"I feel that placing a student in a situation where they have little to no comprehension of the subject tends to have a negative effect on future achievement often causing the student to \"shut down\" to the educational process. I think it would better serve a recently arrived English learner to exempt them from this assessment in their first year."]
["Kimberly Cook","Teachers",null,"Self","Alachua","From Sue Waltanski and Suzette Lopez via their blog “Accountabaloney”:    •\tThere should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   o\tMinimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  o\tThe state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  o\tState should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  o\tInstitute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  o\t End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  3.\tReturn classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized tests, and should serve as a guide.      "]
["Diana","Teachers",null,"Brevard Public Schools","Brevard","I mentioned it in the previous section - why no mention of history/social studies? ","I like the idea of offer assessments in a student's native language, especially the part where a case-by-case determination is involved for those in the US longer than 3 years. It would be nice if assessments were spread out over the school,year to measure growth within that year as opposed to one school year to the next when students are in different situations. This possibility seemed to be briefly alluded to. ","There are some seventh grade students who take high school level classes. They should be exempt from grade-level assessments as well.",null,"Are you kidding me?!? How can an agency say there can only be 1% of students with severe cognitive disabilities and as such only 1% can be tested using alternative methods. Does this number reflect the percentage of individuals with severe cognitive disabilities in society? I will say, having the percentage calculated state wide does help even things out for schools/districts that may have better programs for such individuals and therefore higher numbers.","I think more accommodations should be allowable for students with any disability on state assessments. Students should be allowed to receive the same accommodations available in the classroom, including having reading/language arts portions read to,students so as to measure their higher order thinking skills, not just the ability to decode a passage.",null,null,null,"Will the state have a prepared list to provide or is it up to the LEAs to start the process from scratch? ",null,"I feel these students should be exempt. It is unkind to require they take a test they cannot read and then not use the scores for their benefit (i.e. something other than school/teacher accountability)."]
["Jason K. Thompson","Teachers",null,"Hardee County Schools","Hardee",{"$nulls":9},"The State of Florida should liberally approve such \"nationally-recognized assessments\" in order to give LEAs more liberty in determining what is best for their students.  Local school districts and families work hard and spend a lot of time and effort evaluating their work and their students.  They know what is best for their own communities and should have as much liberty as possible to determine what assessments to give their students. ",null,"Assessments in English often create additional stress and discouragement for students who are English Learners.  They should be exempt from ELA assessments in the first year because this will help relieve some of the stress and help students stay encouraged about their ability to succeed in school in Florida. "]
["Thomas Bazzel","Teachers",null,"Bay District Schools","Bay",null,null,"Advanced mathematics students whatever grade they be in 6,7, or 8th, who take and EOC mathematics assessment should continue to be excluded from the taking the State Grade Level mathematics assessment.",null,"No",null,"No.",null,null,"Local educational agencies should choose their own assessments, when they determine that statewide assessments are inadequate or flawed.","Local educational agencies should be the sole party determining whether assessments are appropriate for their students, and whether or not they should implement them.","Exempt English Language Learners from taking the ELA assessment."]
["Timothy L. Sloan","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Duval","None","None","No",null,"No",null,"No","No",null,"No",null,"I like the first scenario, exempt from taking the FSA the 1st year. I believe this takes the \"pressure\" off the student & allows for a better understanding of what \"will\" be expected the following SY.","No"]
["Dr. Elaine Liftin","School Administrators","Non-Profit 501. (c) 3","Council for Educational Change","Broward","Florida has a rich history of high expectations for our students and rigorous academic standards. We measure each student's achievement through the Florida Standards Assessment, a valid and reliable assessment.","We support Florida assessments that have demonstrated validity and reliability.","We support Florida's law that provides an advanced mathematics exception for all students that take the high school End of Course exams. This is an effective strategy for \"fewer, better tests.\"",null,"We support Florida's current implementation of alternative assessments for students with cognitive disabilities.",null,"We support Florida's approach which makes decisions about participation in the state assessment for year 1 based on the needs of the individual English Language Learner."]
["Dr. Jacquelyn Flanigan","Community-Based Organizations","Central Office Administrator","Diocese of Orlando-Office of Catholic Schools","Orange","These assessment could be made available to non-public schools.  Parents who pay private school tuition are still taxpayers; their children should have the opportunity to this benefit.",null,null,"It is very difficult for students in non-public schools to gain access to the EOC exams - even those transitioning to a public high school.  ",{"$nulls":5},"With a focus on state standards, it should be considered that if a national test is selected, it appropriately aligns with those state standards. Many national exams do not align consistently with Florida standards."]
["Nancy","Teachers",null,"Self","Bay",{"$nulls":9},"Please        It is important that we allow these decisions to be made at the local level with input from local stakeholders."]
["Sarah K Robbins","Teachers","I am also a parent of a high school student","self","Bay","The students are tested so much that they discount the importance of the tests.  Therefore they do not perform at their true skill levels.  That the teachers are held responsible for this skewed data is reprehensible. Example: Students are given the same high stakes tests even though they are legally tagged as performing below grade level in reading and/or math.  Of course they will score low.  This destroys what little confidence the teacher may have helped the child gain, during the daily tasks of helping these kids make academic gains. The mindset of testing these kids to death is detrimental to their academic gains. Yet, the teacher is blamed for less than ideal results.  The system seems intent on tearing down not only the students, but the teachers that strive to bring them up. We fight the socioeconomic barriers, the learning disabilities, and the system we work for, as we do our very best to prepare our students for academic success as well as preparing them to be productive citizens in our great nation. ",null,"I agree, no double testing.",null,"Statistically communities with a low socioeconomic level are going to have more students with learning disabilities.  It is not in the best interest of the students in these areas to be denied proper alternate assessment access of statewide leveling.",{"$nulls":4},"Local selected assessments are preferred.",null,"ELL students should be exempt from taking ELA Standards Assessment in the first year."]
["Patricia Levesque","The Public","Reform Organization","Foundation for Excellence in Education","Statewide Representation","Florida has long and rich history of high expectations for our students and use of rigorous academic standards. We support the continued measurement of each student's achievement through the FSA, a valid and reliable assessment. ","We support Florida's assessment that have demonstrated validity and reliability.","We wholeheartedly support Florida's law that provides an advanced mathematics exception for ALL students that take the high school EOCs. This is an effective \"fewer better tests\" strategy.",null,"We support Florida's current implementation of alternative assessments for student with cognitive disabilities.",{"$nulls":6},"We support Florida's approach which makes decisions about participation in year 1 of the FSA  based on the individual English language learner's needs. "]
["Julie Eadie","Parents and Families","Teacher","Lynn Haven Elementary School","Bay","The FSA is not meeting this requirement. It is a test that many students with disabilities, who, because of inclusion models, come into their grade level a year or two behind cannot hope to master or attain a passing achievement level on. Again, with the amount of content and the rigor required, there is simply not enough time in the school year to master all of the content in a meaningful way. Students are frustrated. ","This assessment is not a valid, reliable, or objective measure of students' achievement.   Many of the passages on this examination are beyond students' level. The number of passages that a struggling reader has to decode on this exam unfairly put students with learning disabilities at a disadvantage. "]
["Autumn Lunin","Educator Organizations",null,"Florida Intentional Character Partnership ","Pinellas","The Florida Intentional Character Partnership, Inc. strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. ","The Florida Intentional Character Partnership, Inc. strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. ","I like that students do not take both the EOC and the state test is eighth grade.",null,"Not at this time.",null,"Not at this time.","Not at this time.",null,"Seems like a good alternative.",null,"I think option one above is more fair to the student.","This is good."]
["Raul","Teachers",null,"Self","Miami-Dade","Overall as a proud public educator, I certainly contend that the state is over assessing students. Their is a lot of pressure in high stakes testing; therefore, the state must revise its' policy with this matter. More focus should be placed on teaching and not assessment.   "]
["Stephanie Doyle Cox","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Pinellas","Elementary students are being over tested. Between district tests, pre-tests, load tests, etc hundreds of hours of TEACHING time is being lost. We had to fight to get our kids a recess break after daily PE and recess were taken away for test prep. This has to stop. Give a test at the beginning of the year and a test at the end of the year. Stop tying school funding and teacher pay to tests!!","Less tests!! More recess, teaching, music, and art. ","I agree",null,"Students with severe cognitive impairments should NOT be required to take high stakes tests. This is abusive. ",null,"We have a huge migrant population in this state who move around a lot. It's not fair to penalize schools who cannot test this population or who have students who are in and out of the school based on farming. ","No assessments for these kids. They have enough on their plates. ",null,"Give districts their authority back to develop their own assessment and retention policies. ",null,"Stop testing these kids","Stop testing these kids","More teaching. More recess, music, and art. Less testing and test prep!!!! My second grader has test anxiety. This is ridiculous!!! "]
["Diane Wishart","Teachers",null,"None","Bay","Students are being tested 2/3 -3/4 of the school year and not all test questions are in the standards that are taught for that level.  A student in Level 1 Low can increase 18 points and shows as no learning gains, but a student in Level 3 shows a gain of 1 point and is considered making gains.  I know what gains my students have made and one assessment that is unlike any other assessment they take is not going to do so.","Not all questions are on the standards taught. Those questions are field questions but a low student that has a question of which they have not been introduced can upset them where the rest of the test could be affected.  "]
["Cindy Kruger","Teachers",null,"Okeechobee County School District","Okeechobee",null,"Current FSA- ELA results are not sufficiently detailed such that to \"  (xii) enable itemized score analyses to be produced  and reported,\" so that teachers \"can interpret and address the specific academic needs  of students as indicated by the students’ achievement  on assessment items;\".  We get broad scores of skill cluster that fail to provide the details on specific skills lacking.  This is a particular struggle for those of us who teach students with disabilities.  We cannot get a clear picture of the strengths and needs of our students based in these results.  ",null,null,"This calculation change may negatively impact those smaller and lower SES districts with higher percentages of students with disabilities. ",{"$nulls":4},"The State needs to recognize and acknowledge that students who pass locally-selected assessments or other alternatives (such as concordant scores on SAT or ACT) should be counted among students passing state assessments, likewise those who are granted waivers based on disabilities.  "]
["Tiffany","Teachers","Small Business Owner ","Polk County Schools","Polk","We have been over assessing our students for far too long. We spend so many hours preparing for testing, testing, or with alternate schedules because other grade levels are testing. Our students deserve a curriculum and teachers that does not revolve around a one-dimensional assessment. These tests cannot sufficiently measure a child's ability to be creative or critically think. ","It is ridiculous to assess all types of schools, all types of learners, the same way and then grade them based on this assessment. The accomodations and differentiation teachers are expected to make for students with specific learning needs should also be made for schools with unique populations of students (transient, title 1, etc...) That is not to say all students cannot learn.. absolutey all can. BUT all students cannot learn and assess the same way. They are all different. Parent support and involvement is key. Charters and Magnet schools have the luxury of requiring parental involvement and data soars.. other schools cannot do this, but still "]
["Beth Cummings","School District Administrators",null,"Polk County Public Schools","Polk","In regards to other subjects that might be tested: using portfolios or performance tasks are proving to be a better indicator of whether students are able to apply the skills and knowledge that they are being taught.  In addition, these types of measurements allow students to make educated decisions and defend their decisions- both skills that employers are looking for.  I believe that these types of measurements would also be applicable in ELA, Math and science.    With computer based testing, most school districts still do not have the infrastructure to support this type of testing.  The limited number of computers causes a huge disruption to teaching and learning as \"testing schedules\" must be made in order for all students to gain access to computers.  There is much lost time in this process which compounds the stress of the students, teachers and administration.  We have to look at this more carefully as a state.  ","One of the perhaps unintended consequences of high stakes testing is the additional testing to determine if students are ready to take the test.  ( Pg 26 item (II) suggest multiple interim testing for ELL students- this is being used for all students).  This is leading us down a path away from the natural way that children learn and is certainly taking the joy and creativity out of learning.  I would like to see the state provide suggestions to districts in how to handle this epidemic in order to limit the incessant testing during the school year.  We are over testing students.    "," I am in agreement with taking measures so students are not double tested.",null,"Is it clear to districts how and when this calculation is made thus providing adequate time to determine locally how this data will be used?",null,"no","no",null,"What specific criteria will be used by the state to determine if an alternative assessment is accepted?  Will this alternative assessment be used to calculate school grade? How? "]
["Valerie Gallina","Teachers","All Florida Schools","Florida Intentional Character Partnership, Inc. (FICP)","Statewide Representation","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections.","The FICP strongly advocates for the creation and expansion of Social and Emotional Character Development (SECD) standards for K-12 based on the Kansas SECD Model. Include implementation of Character.org's Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education framework with a focus on Principle 11's assessment.  The FICP is available to provide specifics concerning the Kansas Model Standards. The implementation frameworks mentioned are inclusive of all levels and abilities. This applies to all sections."]
["KIMBERLY BROWN","Parents and Families",null,"NA","Orange",null,null,"THEY SHOULD NOT BE DOUBLE TESTED AT ALL",null,"Teachers and parents need to have the ability to designate their student and their learning abillity and their qualification for this 1%.  It should not be based on an DOE test but a doctor and parent and teacher assesment.    ",null,"It needs to be established who exactly is an English learner.  Is that native born?  been in the country for 5 months?  Been in the country for 3 years?  A child who is native born can take the test more easily than a child who just came to the country.    ",{"$nulls":4},"Changes need to be made.  The current assessments are not fair to newly arrived English language learners who truly don't speak the language.  Please consider more years of learning before using their scores for assessment."]
["Edie Jarrell","School Administrators",null,"Wards Creek Elementary","St. Johns",null,"We support using the current state assessments we have.  We do not support adding additional assessments to meet this requirements.",null,null,"We have concerns with the cap of 1% of students taking the FSAA is now capped by subject. This may constitute a problem as multiple grade levels may be taking the same EOC. For example – students in grades 9, 10 and 11 may be taking Biology. Previously the cap was set by grade level and thus represented a lower number of students. The cap should be increased to reflect the understanding this change will bring, or a waiver system will need to be freely utilized so students and schools are not penalized.     Any further information the department can provide on the implications of this change would be appreciated.  ",null,null,"We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.",null,null,"We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes."]
["Dr. Sue Harrell","School Administrators",null,"Bay District Schools","Bay",{"$nulls":6},"No","No",null,"While allowing some room here, it does suggest the possibility for a lack of  consistency."]
["Britt Smith","The Public",null,"self","Bay",{"$nulls":9},"There is an excessive amount of testing that takes place.  We need to cut back on the amount and time it takes to test students each year.",null,"ELL students need more time to learn and become proficient with English.  This assumes ELL students come to the US proficient in their own language.  This is not always true and complicates efforts to help them achieve rigorous standards after just 1 year of school in Florida."]
["Lynn O'Connor","School Administrators",null,"Fruit Cove Middle School","St. Johns",null,"How do students who accelerate meet the requirement for students to be assessed once in grades 10-12?  Does biology 1 EOC satisfy this requirement if a student takes it in 8th grade?  I do not support adding additional assessments to meet this requirement.","I support Florida's current exemption for double testing.",null,"Concern with the cap of 1% of students taking the FSAA is now capped by subject.  The cap should be increased to reflect the understanding this change will bring.",null,"Florida's current assessments meet this requirement.","Florida's current assessments meet this requirement.",null,"The whole district needs to be on one assessment. Parents should not be allowed to opt out of the FSA.","Multiple assessments is a great concern.","Option 2 but would prefer for students not take the assessment in year 1, year 2 scores will not count, year 3 include both learning gains and achievement.","I do not recommend including students exited from ESOL program in the ELL subgroup after they exit program."]
["Phyllis Clemons","School Administrators",null,"School District of DeSoto County","DeSoto"]
["MARK MAJESKI","School District Administrators","Private Catholic Schools - District Level Admin.","Diocese of St. Petersburg ","Statewide Representation",{"$nulls":4},"How is 1% justified when we know statically that most schools have anywhere from 2% - 10% and higher, of their total population classified. The definition of profound needs to be expanded.",{"$nulls":4},"Non-public schools have been using nationally- recognized assessments for years. The state should consider partnering with non-public schools to defray costs and participate true comparisons of academic growth for total populations. "]
["Wendi Lowrey","Parents and Families",null,"none","Orange",null,null,"Whatever reduces testing. ",null,"!% is a mirror of a number that does not represent the best interest of students. Using !% only serves to pat the politician on the back regarding \"expectations for all students is my goal.\" All students has no value to the mother, father, teacher or student who knows their child and what that child needs personally.",null,"Just stop. Give students time. Testing in a language without mastery of the language is cruel and discouraging.",null,null,"Absolutely. Stop the over standardization of public education. However, this should not then be placed on the backs of teachers to come up with county wide or school wide assessments. Trust teachers to assess their own students.",null,"End the preoccupation with numbers and assessment. As a member of the public, knowing that these students are subjected to this is horrific. "]
["Gildamary Espada","Parents and Families",null,"None","Palm Beach"]
["Saba Baptiste ","Community-Based Organizations",null,"Self","Hillsborough","In general. The state holds the right to imposed a designed assessment. However,  will the students and teachers receive instructional materials in order to achieve mastery in classrooms?","With the understanding each students have various learning modalities, that is also true for teachers. What accountability tool will be put in place  with penalizing students that indicates students are not reciving the necessary instruction effectiveness? And will this accountability tool be used in the early grades(early warning signs), such as 1st grade?","Implementation and effects on accountability provisions are always a concern. Ensuring all the 8th graders have received high level of instructions and early warning signs are addressed effectively long before the middle school years.",null,"Accountabilty has always been a major concern.","Accountabilty has always been a major concern.","As of last year, the school district started using WIDA. To early to know     If the assessment will improve students outcomes.","There is a not to investigate nationally or international regarding the  most effective ELL assessment. However, this district recently transition to WIDA ELL assessment. ",null,"There should me some oversight of the content , and pervasiveness. And  measure mastery at a high level and high level of instruction. Community and parents should received this information, as collaboration  process.",null,"This is about linguistics readiness or proficiency. There must be away to effectively check student readiness without over testing. According to many research studies, full language acquisition could take 3 to7 years. ","More clarification is needed because will individuals receive language acquisition services? Or if students are 16 or older be referred to the paid model in adult education?"]
["Bridgette  Hargadine","School Administrators",null,"St. Lucie School Board","St. Lucie",null,null,"I am glad to see this section here. ",{"$nulls":6},"I think this section is important for school districts to have as an option ",null,"I think it should be option 2.  It takes time to bring newly arrived students to proficiency.","I don't think you should continue to be labeled after you have exited the ESOL Program. "]
["Brandy Griswell","Teachers",null,"Brevard Federation of TEachers","Brevard","Results of FSA are not timely enough and there are not enough materials available to help teachers align content."]
["Destiny Woods","Parents and Families",null,"self","Leon"]
["Jessica Richardson","School Administrators",null,"Elementary School","St. Johns","No comments","How do students who accelerate meet the requirement for students to be assessed once in grades 10-12 in science? Does Biology I EOC satisfy this requirement if a student takes it in 8th or 9th grade?  We support using the current state assessments we have.  We do not support adding additional assessments to meet this requirements.    ","We support Florida’s current exemptions for double testing.     ",null,"We have concerns with the cap of 1% of students taking the FSAA is now capped by subject. This may constitute a problem as multiple grade levels may be taking the same EOC. For example – students in grades 9, 10 and 11 may be taking Biology. Previously the cap was set by grade level and thus represented a lower number of students. The cap should be increased to reflect the understanding this change will bring, or a waiver system will need to be freely utilized so students and schools are not penalized.     ","Any further information the department can provide on the implications of this change would be appreciated.    ","We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.","We believe Florida’s current’s assessments meet this requirement and do not recommend any changes.",null,"If this is an avenue Florida wants to pursue, we believe at a minimum, the whole district needs to be on one assessment.  There should not be an option for a parent to opt a child in or out of the FSA and into another assessment.  Florida already has a system established for the use of concordant score for nationally recognized assessments that can be utilized.","We have concerns with impact using multiple assessments in the state or within a district could have on data and teacher evaluations.  Can learning gains be calculated for alternative nationally recognized assessments?","Option 2, but would prefer for students not take the assessment in year 1, year 2 scores will not count and in year 3, include both learning gains and achievement. ","We do not recommend including students exited from ESOL program in the ELL subgroup after they exit the program.     "]
["Craig Gustafson","Parents and Families",null,"PTSA","Duval",null,"Any requirement needs to be funded","If a State EOC test is administered, then a county EOC assesment should not be required",{"$nulls":8},"That school score not be affected by these exceptions as to lower a score"]
["David Godfrey","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Orange","Tests should be constructed by the teachers who have taught said subject at least for five years.",null,"Every student should be taking the test or no student should take it. The EOC should be eliminated.",{"$nulls":6},"Economic and civics should be included in the mandated testing."]
["Mari Khoury","Community-Based Organizations",null,"Hollywood Education Advisory Board","Broward"]
["Christi Milan","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Manatee","Stop this standardized testing.  Integrate the required material in the classroom.  The teachers will then administer tests, mid term exam, and lastly a final exam.  No blind high stakes testing. ",null,"Stop taking high stakes testing in all subjects.  Let teachers do the teaching.",{"$nulls":6},"It is a HUGE problem when students are turning to a college entrance exam instead of EOCs.  Examples are the PERT and ACT test.  Many don't know this alternative,  but those who do say the ACT and PERT are easier than the EOC.  That's a problem for 9th graders. ",null,"Don't ask them to take the test year one.","Allow anything that helps these children pass the test."]
["Kim Mann","Parents and Families",null,"none","Brevard",null,null,"I do not think a student should be double tested in any subject, and both my students marked they felt \"stressed out\" on their current physicals forms. When questioning them on this( thinking what real stress can a 7th and 10th grader have), they both said... not in the summer but definitely during school end and EOC exams!  I am not a fan of any state prepared EOC exams that determines whether a student advances. Talking with teachers from my children's school, I have found that teachers do their best trying to determine what their students will be tested on when taking an EOC but even the teachers don't know for sure! That is much undo stress on young children when a teacher states..I will do my best in determining and preparing you for your EOC but Im not even sure of all that will be asked of you!  They of course know exactly what will be on their said grade level Math assessment because they prepare the test, know what they have been teaching all year long and what they expect their student to know. They do not however know exactly where the state's emphasis on testing will be in each said subject. I have heard this from every teacher that administers an EOC! It's a guessing game and they hope to get lucky by preparing their students on what the state decides to test on.  For example: Students should be told at end of the year testing that they could be tested on anything from chapters 10-18 so they better know it. They should NOT be told..You need to know everything from chapter's 10-18 and the state may decide to throw in some problems from things you learned earlier in the year but unfortunately Im not sure what so I can't really tell you how to study for your EOC? No student can be totally prepared for an EOC exam like they can an exam prepared by their own teacher. How frustrating (and yes...stressful for sure!), to not know exactly what will be expected of you. Let these teachers who have been educated in their field do their job. Let them teach and test their kids without the state coming behind them with another test making theirs feel not up to par. If the state feels teachers can't assess students properly with their testing methods then maybe teachers teaching certificate requirements should be increased where they have more instruction on administering tests and evaluating students progress for said grade and subject. NO more double testing!!  No more EOC's!!","I believe students definitely have more stress than they did 20-30 yrs ago. Double testing is not going to really bother students who don't care or want to be in school anyway. They won't study for the first exam, let alone the EOC. The students this hurts are the academically driven students who want to be in school and do well. These students are already going above and beyond when it comes to studying for a test and now they have to do it again with an uncertainty about all that may be on the test? This is the type of student that if they get a 100 on their final exam and anything less on the EOC they feel defeated. Let's stop giving these hard working students who already study hours on end...unneeded stress. Every Student Succeeds Act(ESSA)?  Yes every student \"can\" succeed..but success is a choice not a given. You have to put in time and effort to succeed. Students who don't really like school may be able to see the benefit of cracking a book for a final but then another exam with unknowns like an EOC as well? I don't think so because they already studied for that course and didn't want to the first time. Now the overachievers and possibly the average student (at end of the year), study and stress like crazy because they don't know if they are even studying all they need to be. These students strive on being prepared and going in to a test feeling pretty  confident they studied hard and know their material but not always the case when an EOC is administered. I prefer No child left behind because there is truth in that...no one should be left behind. But I don't think there is truth in Every student Succeeds... because not all students will succeed, often due to their own choices though. Initial failure can often lead to the greatest success if one chooses to learn from it. How about Every Student Supported? As a state we can support our students by doing everything we can to help them succeed... if they so choose. They can be  confident that the state has educated their teachers to the highest standards and trusts them to do their jobs, assessing students accurately to help advance them toward their future goals!  ","Not sure Im understanding correctly. If this means the state can only allow 1% of students in a school to be assessed with an alternate assessment and if there are more that alternate assessment can't be administered? Some years there may be more students needing alternate assessments than others but I believe all should have the same opportunity, even if the percentage may increase at times.",null,"I think that assessments do need to be made. If the language isn't understood the school material won't be either. We need to do everything to help make sure they are learning the language as it will only help them be more successful in their subjects.",null,null,"A nationally recognized assessment would be the most beneficial. Giving each state the ability to assess in areas where others may not could lead to frustration if one moves regularly and new assessments need to keep being given.",null,"Let the English Language Learner continue to choose what work bests for them. So maybe keep the hybrid of these two approaches or let them choose. Most know their commitment and dedication to something and how quickly they can learn. Let them decide if at all possible"]
["James York","Parents and Families",null,"None","Washington","I feel like I could write a book about this, but GET RID OF COMMON CORE and anything like it. I have two step kids that are basically geniuses, but couldn't grasp many of theses concepts. I remember when the boy was in 7th grade, I believe, they were teaching him how to guess the answers for FCAT instead of teaching the material. More power needs to go to the teachers. With realistic goals of achievement. Some kids just don't get it. We are too worried about what bathroom a kid uses in the school system, that is the parents and genetics job. The three R's all a school needs to be concerned about. Quite honestly, the law compelling kids to go to school needs repealing. He who wants to learn will go, those who want to earn will go also."]
["Dana Tracy","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier",{"$nulls":11},"•\tLanguage Says: For one year, exclude the student from taking the reading/English language arts test and from counting results of either or both the math and English language arts tests; OR For the first year of the student’s enrollment in a U.S. school, report on but exclude from the accountability system the results on these tests; for the second year of enrollment, include a measure of student growth on both tests; and for the third year of enrollment, include proficiency on both tests in the accountability system.   •\tIf we choose to exclude English learners from first year testing, would students be required to take the state exam their second year?  It states that in the third year of enrollment, proficiency on both tests will be included in the accountability system.  What is the definition of both tests?  Math and Reading or two year of one subject area?  \t"]
["Richard Duggan","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier",{"$nulls":4},"• Addition of, “Alternate academic achievement standards for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities.”   • This aligns with Florida’s Access Diploma option for students with intellectual disabilities.","• Re-affirms that only students with intellectual disabilities will be eligible for a course work/diploma based on modified standards.  "]
["Beth Coryell","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier",null,null,"•Alg. 1 EOC in middle schools – students taking Alg EOC in middle school will be required to take another math EOC sometime in grades 9 – 12.    How will FL address this - require a specific math EOC to be taken in grades 9 – 12?",null,"•\tDistrict must collect, disaggregate, and report student achievement data at each achievement level and produce individual student interpretive, descriptive, and diagnostic reports.  Do we need to address how we report achievement levels 4 & 5 in order to inform parents/students on the academic needs of students who are high performers?","•Universal Design for Learning – How will state define this?",null,null,null,"• Locally-Selected Assessments – Will FL move to using nationally-recognized assessments (e.g., ACT) instead of FSA?"]
["Margaret Aune","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier",null,null,"•Support the continued exception in Florida law that middle school students taking a high school EOC not be required to take the corresponding grade-level subject area assessment.  This is in alignment with acceleration opportunities at the middle school level. ",{"$nulls":4},"•Support the use of growth or learning gains for students identified as ELL and using a graduated system of weighting dependent on WIDA levels or other independent assessment.",null,"•Support the consideration of college and career readiness indicators in conjunction with state assessment data.  More information can be found regarding this approach through the AASA Redefining Ready! Initiative.",null,"•Of the two scenarios presented by FDOE, support the consideration of:  “Require English Language Learners to take the English Language Arts Florida Standards Assessment in the first year and include them in learning gains in year 2 and achievement in year 3”.  ","•Support the subgroup including students exited from the ELL program up to four years after exit, this would be an important consideration for students and districts."]
["Tonya Baker","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier","•\tNew assessment flexibility and the focus on higher-order thinking skills that can be partially delivered in other forms (portfolios, projects, and performance tasks) is a positive step forward."]
["Kim Ragusa","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier","•\tIs the NAEP assessment a requirement for every district or only those that choose to participate?  •\tIs it a possibility that the districts will be selected to participate by the state?    •\tHow will the NAEP scores/data be reported to the community?  •\tWhich assessment in high school fulfills the “at least once in grades 9 through 12?”  Could it be Algebra 1, Geometry or Algebra 2?",null,"•\tThis trend would tend to skew the results of grade level assessments at the middle school as the high achieving learners would take another state approved assessment","•\tCan one assume that this portion of the law applies to 6th and 7th graders taking advanced level classes as well and would they also not take their grade level assessment?  "]
["Mary Marshall","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier","Science  •\tStatewide testing will continue and must be given 3 times between grades 3 and 12  (5,8,BIO)  •\tMaintain standards aligned with higher education entrance requirements  •\tAllows federal grant dollars to be used to provide professional development in STEM related subjects  •\tIntegrates art into STEM subject programs"]
["Claire Richter","Teachers",null,"Brevard County Schools","Brevard",{"$nulls":4},"I think placing an arbitrary % of students who may use alternate assessments is problematic.  Do we make students take regular assessments regardless of their ability because the maximum has been met?"]
["Jennifer Kincaid","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier","Evidence-Based Models   •\tWill Florida support a state-review/clearinghouse of evidence-based models like the Florida Center for Reading Research (FCRR) completed in the past?  Recommend creation of a state review of these models to assist districts.    Challenging state academic standards  •\tMaintain Florida Standards as aligned with preparation for credit-bearing coursework in public higher education  •\tMaintain access points as alternate achievement standards for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities  ",{"$nulls":10},"English Language Proficiency Standards  •\tMaintain currently adopted English Language proficiency standards  •\tDoes item III, S. 1177-25 on page 25 allow assessment of student progress in the student’s home language?  Would this be extended to FSA?  •\tWhat is the requirement for participation in state testing based on the language in S. 1177-26:  provide for assessments (using tests in English) of reading or language arts of any student who has attended school in the United States (not including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico) for 3 or more consecutive school years, except that if the local educational agency determines, on a case-by-case individual basis, that academic assessments in another language or form would likely yield more accurate and reliable information on what such student knows and can do, the local educational agency may make a determination to assess such student in the appropriate language other than English for a period that does not exceed 2 additional consecutive years, provided that such student has not yet reached a level of English language proficiency sufficient to yield valid and reliable information on what such student knows and can do on tests (written in  English) of reading or language arts    ","Additional language from S. 1177-33:  With respect to a student previously identified as an English learner and for not more than 4 years after the student ceases to be identified as an English learner, a State may include the results of the student’s assessments under paragraph (2)(B)(v)(I) within the English learner subgroup of the subgroups of students (as defined in subsection (c)(2)(D)) for the purposes of the State-determined accountability system"]
["Joyce Austin","School District Administrators",null,"Collier County Public Schools","Collier","Flexibility for School district to meet IDEA requirements for SWD’s vs clearly defined expectations for district to implement with fidelity…concerning  •\tContinue to be aligned with the required FLDOE compliance expectations in the areas of:  •\tHQT change to meet certification/licensure requirement  •\tAlternate Assessment  •\tInstructional Accommodations for public & charter schools   •\tAccess to the general ed. Classroom & curriculum  "]
["Gwendolyn Pertell","Parents and Families",null,"none","Lake",{"$nulls":9},"I would like to see the high school FSA and math assessments scrapped and replaced with SAT/ACT. Keep the Biology EOC as the science assessment."]
["Stephanie Bertig","Parents and Families",null,"JWMHS, WCHS","Pasco","The rule that students must sit idle once their test is completed MUST be revisited.    There are bright students that are completing their assessments with 45 minutes are more remaining during the testing period.  These students are forced to sit in their seats quietly and are told they are not even allowed to read a book or draw.  I feel this is cruel and painful.  These students should be allowed to read a book - even if it is one provided by the school.  The idea that the other students would \"rush through the test\" to get to read the book is ludicrous.    I feel we are punishing some of our students to benefit the others.  My own daughter has dread for the tests, not because of the material or test, but because she knows she will be forced to sit in this form of \"solitary confinement.\"    This is a problem that needs to be addressed immediately.  As a parent and teacher, I would be happy to work on a committee to help come to a resolution of this problem."]
["Sarah Sowersby","Teachers",null,"Seminole Educators Association ","Seminole"]
["Francine Vassell","The Public",null,"None","Orange",null,"The assessments need to be based on real life situations. When applying reading skills for example, let the student read an insurance claim and ask questions as to what it is asking.    Mathematics: Let the student write a mock check, or evaluate the electric to see how much they owe the company.  "]
["Jeana Valenty","Teachers",null,"Nina Harris School","Pinellas","I found the Florida State Standards Assessment provided standards that were accessible to my students even if they weren't introduced to them in prior-instruction. The majority of critiques were with formatting that I provided on the state-survey such as having all cut-outs being the same size. I believe to increase success on state-wide assessments, practice tests or other curriculum/test formats such as optional portfolios (paper-based) could be provided so students have access to questions presented instead of having it once-a-year on FSAA. Specifically, these include having additional practice materials/tests that could be scored online, but also administered on paper so students have earlier or increased access to materials throughout the year. As a result, these materials could allow all students to feel better, more confident, and score higher levels - perhaps even become proficient (level 3-4). ","Standards provided on the exam were fair and free of bias. I believe the assessment needed to include access/practice with more topics so that the state can gain a larger view of student learning and achievement.",null,null,"I believe to be in the 1% of students with significant cognitive disabilities, these individuals should be confirmed by an established educational norm-referenced test and/or other evaluations determined by educational diagnostician, which could in turn, be a possible fidelity determinant for alternate assessment. I believe they should receive a state-wide alternate assessment but still be provided a standard diploma, since they are general education students first. I think students who fall within that percentage need documentation from an outside source that is not the school to qualify for alternate assessments. "]
["Marjorie","Parents and Families",null,"self","Pasco","I understand the importance of having a standardized assessment to determine students' achievement in comparison to the standards.  However, I think that the assessments should be administered later in the school year. How can you hold students accountable for meeting the entire school year's standards after less than 8 months of the total 10 months' worth of instruction?  I would also like to see the elimination of the high-stakes aspect of these assessments.","1.  Students from all schools should be required to take these assessments, including those from charter and private schools.  2.  I think that the assessments should be made available to the public after they have been administered.  The questions should not be considered secret.   3.  I like the idea of administering multiple exams in the school year - perhaps one in December and one in May.  This will allow the students to show growth, and it will provide the opportunity for teachers to actually use the data to guide instruction.  Currently, teachers do not receive relevant assessment results until after the school year has ended.  If students were to take a shorter assessment between Thanksgiving and Christmas, this would allow time for grading of the assessment, and teacher can receive the data by mid-January.  This would help teachers better align curricula to the standards and it would ease some of the tension of taking one long, stressful test.","No.  ",null,"Honestly, I think a study should be performed in order to verify that it is truly only 1% of the students state-wide who meet the criteria of having significant cognitive disabilities.  ",null,"I agree with the annual assessments, however, I think that ELL students who need the additional support should truly receive it.  I have witnessed circumstances in which ELL students did not receive the additional assistance that was entitled.","I think that we should be aware of students in lower grades who may speak a language other than English but be unable to read or write in that language.",null,"I must say, that as a teacher for Pasco County Schools, the district-made assessments (15/16 SY) were poorly written and did not necessarily require students to truly understand the content of the standards.  Some questions relied heavily on reading comprehension rather than comprehension of content-area standards.  I don't think that the districts should be allowed to create their own assessments.  It will remove the ability to compare data across school districts."]
["James W. Withers","Teachers",null,"none","Volusia","It is my humble opinion that we should eliminate FSA testing completely.  If this is not possible, then questions that require multiple select answers should be eliminated. This multiple select requirement is simply too difficult for elementary students, especially those who are at the third grade level. They are not developmentally ready to tackle such higher order thinking skills.  What this type of questioning seems to  do is to not add rigor, but rather trickery.  The lengthy questions, use of vocabulary that is above the third grade level, according to the Fry formula for readability, serves the purpose of confusion .  The better way to answer the question put forth would be to use the multiple choice format that allows for one correct answer choice.  We should ask ourselves, \"Do we want to diagnose what the students know, or do we want to trick them in the process of assessment?\"   I am not permitted to read the actual test.  My comments are based upon the practice tests which have been provided by the Fla. Dept. of Education.  Another concern that I have is the requirement to use computers to answer questions.  Too often the computers will freeze during the test which requires the student to shut off and reboot the computer.  Not only does this effect the student's time limit; but also what guarantee do we have that the student's responses to previous questions have not been erased in the process? Students should be provided paper and pencil tests, especially for Math.  This would allow for calculations to be completed, responses to be gridded without the use of a computer.  We should allow paper and pencil tests to continue at the third grade level. This is because the students are just learning computer skills and are not adequately skilled in that area.","The requirement to use computer based assessments is a cause for  concern.  Too often the computers will freeze during testing.  This causes the student to shut off and re-boot.  Not only does this effect the student's time limit; but also what guarantee do we have that the student's response to the previous questions have not been erased in the process?  Perhaps we should add points to the student's final score because of problems caused by computer glitches in order to assess fairly.","End of Course exams should not be the final requisite for a student's successfully passing a course. This should be the norm not only for middle school students, but also for high school students as well. If a student has maintained a grade of C or better in the course, then it should not be necessary to pass an EOC exam as well because the student has demonstrated success with he course already.",{"$nulls":6},"I think that this is the best news yet.  Achievement tests such as the Stanford are welcome. This should replace the current test immediately. ","We need to quit raising the standard for promotion.  It is hard to hit a \"moving target\" when the criteria keep changing. We need a standardized assessment that has been norm referenced, not one that keeps changing.","It takes about 5 years to become proficient in a language. I think we are testing too fast .","I think that even though the students have been exited form  the ESOL program that they should still be allowed accommodations to be used during testing, including allowing them to use a heritage dictionary, and extra time.  We should not require them to ask for it. It should be provided automatically."]
["Rosa Ugalde","Students","English Language Learner Students","Florida Association of Bilingual/ESOL Supervisors (FABES)","Statewide Representation",null,"(vi) Multiple up-to-date measures of student academic achievement that may include measures of student growth and may be partially delivered in the form of portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks should be an allowable measure for ELs in all subjects including mathematics, reading, language arts, science and any other subject chosen by the State.  FABES recommends that the opportunity for ELs to demonstrate proficiency in subjects using multiple measures should be considered.      (vii)(III)  FABES supports assessing ELs in a valid and reliable manner and providing appropriate accommodations on assessments that include, to the extent practicable, assessments in the language and form most likely to yield accurate data on what students know and can do in an academic content area, until such student has achieved English language proficiency as defined.    (ix) FABES supports the use of academic assessment in a language other than English for students who have not attended a school in the US for 3 or more consecutive years, for a period not to exceed an additional 2 years, only if used on a case-by-case basis, if assessment is available and as determined by the LEA.  The results of such assessments need to be tied to state standards and accountability measures to ensure the academic needs of such students are addressed by schools and their needs not overlooked for 3-5 years.  ","Provision should allow for ALL students (regardless of grade level) who take an end-of-course (EOC) assessment and meet proficiency to be exempt from being double tested on ALL corresponding grade-level subject area assessment, not just Advanced Mathematics in Middle School.",null,null,null,"FABES supports that the state ensures that LEAs provide for an annual assessment of the English proficiency of all ELLs in their schools and that these assessments be aligned with the State’s English proficiency standards.      The critical issue is for the state to ensure that the English proficiency assessment, and the score required for classification as English proficient, CORRESPONDS to the language proficiency level that is required to successfully participate in the state’s ELA test.  This is an issue of “predictive” validity.  Every state that implements the WIDA annual assessment has the ability of setting scores to determine criteria for exit from EL classification to correspond to their state’s academic standards and assessments.  It would be interesting to know how many native English speakers would meet the exit criteria from an ESOL program if it included using both ELP and ELA assessment results.     It must be also noted that there is no consensus amount the FABES Board and mixed feelings were expressed on:  a)\tUsing only English language proficiency assessment to determine exit or,  b)\tUse ELP and ELA assessment to determine exit.      One group is of the opinion that ELs should be allowed to exit the ESOL program when they demonstrate being “proficient” on the State’s approved ELP annual assessment and should not be required to demonstrate proficiency in an ELA assessment.  If we are assessing the student’s “English language proficiency”, and the assessment is aligned to the State’s ELP standards, then why must ELs demonstrate proficiency in ELA, which is a “content” assessment, in order to meet exit criteria from an ESOL program? In districts with large numbers of ELs, this may create a bottle-neck of ELP proficient long-term ELLs, that would otherwise be exposed to ELA content instruction in a mainstream setting, provided the same academic setting, social and linguistic opportunities, as their non-EL peers.    Another group felt that although their students met the ELP criteria for exit, they were not necessarily ready to perform at the same level as a non-ELL. The fact that demographics may be different throughout districts, that FSA standards are more rigorous, that ELLs who do need extra support on the FL standards would not have it available, and that although the ELL committee does have the power to reclassify them back into an ESOL program, this would be wasting valuable instructional time for ELLs.      We do agree that ESOL classes should mirror the regular ELA classroom and the only difference should be the use of specific evidence based strategies that work for ELLs.",{"$nulls":4},"The overwhelming majority of the FABES BOARD Support OPTION 2, although it was not unanimous.  Option 2: Requiring ELLs to take the ELA assessment the first year and include them in learning gains in year 2 and achievement in year 3, received majority support because this requires schools to provide equitable instruction to all ELLs from day one as they will not be excluded.  However, it will allow year one assessment to be a baseline and not count against the schools, then providing learning gains in year 2 and finally in year 3, achievement counts."]
["Kim Delgrosso","Teachers",null,"self","Broward",{"$nulls":11},"I feel students should be exempt from the assessment in their first year and then take the assessment in their second year, unless you are looking to get a baseline on their learning...."]
["Sheri Lane","Teachers",null,"self","Pasco","I have been teaching for ten years, and have never been required to give more District and State assessments than the 2015/2016 school year. The Quarterly Checks required by my District were terrible. Not only were they very time consuming but they were poorly developed and poorly implemented. They were developed by teachers and District employees that have no experience in developing assessments. Questions were random and not field tested for legitimacy. Answer keys were inaccurate, The computer platform did not work properly causing students, at times, to not be able to select the correct answer or just give up. All of the above resulted in my students being subjected to excessive hours of testing and I was not confident in the data generated. Appropriate curricula need to be provided and assessments developed by trained professionals need to be part of these resources."]
["Angela Reed","School District Administrators","Curriculum Specialist","Flagler Schools","Flagler",{"$nulls":9},"I agree with this provision."]
["Sherri Oglesby","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Duval",null,"The Algebra II EOC 2016 results should not be used to measure 30% of the final grade,  neither should it be a requirement for a scholar designation. There are many straight A,  Honors students that are being completely discouraged by this extremely flawed test that over 75% of Florida Algebra II students \"failed\".  Please throw out this test. My straight A, Honor Society received a 510, Level 2, 1 point away from \"passing\" and now has a final grade of B in Algebra II on her report card because of this disaster of a test,  while she has straight A's for all four 9 week periods.  THIS Algebra II  EOC was known to be a huge problem LAST year. I don't understand why it would be given to STUDENTS again this year after it was found to be flawed and the results had to be thrown out last year.  Not to mention it must be taken on a computer?  How can you allow this to be a requirement for a scholar designation and to count as 30% of the grade for an entire year?  I was a DCPS SAI Tutor years ago and I am very upset to know how many amazing honor students will be completely discouraged AGAIN.  Please, please make this right. Thank you. "]
["Danny","Parents and Families",null,"none","Pasco","I think you are over emphasizing the importance of testing.  The children are being over tested!  Stop this nonsense.","Again, the testing is ridiculous!  Stop it now","One test and stop placing so much emphasis on the end result.  Kids, parents and teachers all are suffering, because of these tests.  It needs to stop.",{"$nulls":6},"I think districts should have the right to choose and I feel they should have the right to opt out of testing.  However, if they have to test then charter schools should be held to the same standards as public schools.",null,"They need to learn the language if they are here legally.  Until they are proficient in the english language they should not have to be tested."]
["S.Keim","Parents and Families",null,"self","Polk","The idea of academic assessments might sound like a good idea on paper, but in all actuality it does not work.  The same assessment given to all students in a certain grade-level/subject/course will not produce accurate scores because the quality of the teacher is not the same.  Some teachers in this county are absolutely horrible!  We have to do more teaching/correcting at home to accommodate for what these teachers AREN'T doing in the classroom.  Until the teachers are held accountable and to a higher standard, the expectation of students to pass a standard academic assessment is not appropriate.","Students should only be required to take ONE yearly assessment on each course/class.  All of the extra testing is not effective.  One yearly assessment and 3 progress monitoring sessions (reading & math only) is plenty and gives us enough data to intervene if needed.",null,null,"There should be no calculating for this.  Count each child the same amount and stop tying money to school grades.  Our kids' education is suffering for this."]
["Nympha Girard","English Language Learners Advocates",null,"School System ","Broward",{"$nulls":11},"ELL students should be exempted until they have completed 2 years in a school system immersion program which acclimates them to proper reading writing and language skills of the culture which they are being immersed.",null,"ELL students should be in a minimum 2 year immersion program before state and local systems seek to test them on state accountability assessments."]
["Kristina Malburg","Teachers",null,"none","Bay",null,null,"No",null,"You should have an explanation in how it used to be calculated compared to now in order to fairly answer this question.  In addition, I do not understand why there has to be a cap put on the number of students eligible to take this assessment.",{"$nulls":4},"In favor!",null,"I think the ELLs should take it the first year and include them in learning gains in year 2 and 3 in order to better show whether they are growing and to hold accountability.","If they have exited the program then why would they still be included in the subgroup?  Either they are in both, or neither."]
["Keri Stewart ","Teachers",null,"None","Seminole",null,null,"There should be a recognition and according adjustment made to account for the negative effect this will have on school math results. This effectively removes all the top math students' scores from the FSA test results for the school and will in return bring down the school results. It creates a false Impression that the performance has dropped. ",{"$nulls":6},"Great idea.  Always in favor of giving more authority beck to LEA where education belongs. ",null,"Requiring ELLs to take a high stakes, high standards testing language they do not or barely speak is ridiculous, esp for secondary students. Many immigrant students were poorly educated in their home country/native language. Taking  the ELA FSA before they master the English language is unfair to the student but also unfairly impacts the school grade for schools with a high ELL population. If students are required to take the test after only a year in country to emphasize the importance of all citizens learning English, a good goal, accommodations should be made in how these scores impact school scores. ",null,"ELL students should show a mastery of the English language (eg, in advanced level of ELL class) before taking the math FSA. The math FSA does not just test math skill (numbers) but requires a high reading level in English to comprehend the questions before doing the computation. "]
["Leiland Theriot","Teachers",null,"McIntosh Middle School","Sarasota"]
["Linwood","Community-Based Organizations","Orlando Youth Trust","Parramore Kids Zone","Orange","I wish there was continued support for youth to have access to agricultual programs in the schools ","no requirements but desire to learn","College and universities"]
["Elizabeth Chitko","Parents and Families",null,"self","Brevard",null,null,"Students who have already been instructed in the advanced math courses regardless of whether it has been in the public school (i.e.private) should be allowed to take the end of course assessment to allow them to place out of the class",{"$nulls":5},"On order for Spanish speaking students to be proficient in the English language provisions must be made so that they can learn the language and have help they need but within boundaries. Teacher's who teach the general classes should not be required to go back and take  Spanish in order to accommodate Spanish speaking students. An inordinate burden should not be placed on the teachers, educational system or other students to cater to the needs of one language speaking group. To incorporate and respect the needs of these students without diminishing the needs of all the students should be the task at hand.",null,"The Iowa basic test is a better test for viewing a students individual skills, comparing them to their classmates, and comparing them to students nationally. This provides teachers with greater and wider data  needed to address the individual students as well as classes needs. ","Their has to be some assessment but it cannot count as much as for their second year. I would think it would be valuable to have some kind of assessment in the first year from which to work in order to provide data on what they know and don't know. "]
["Betty Morando","Teachers",null,"Orange River Elementary","Lee"]
["Elizabeth Gerulli ","Parents and Families",null,"Self ","Orange",{"$nulls":9},"I have no issue with standardized assessments if they are used for informational purposes only to find areas that need improvement, and are not linked to teacher pay, school grades, or student promotion.     Whether it is a locally selected exam or the state assessment, it needs to be verified, and teachers and parents should have access to their student's exams to see what they got wrong. Otherwise how will they know what needs to be worked on?     What I do have a problem with is the mandatory retention linked with the 3rd grade state assessment. When the number of students who don't pass is as high as it is, that should be a huge red flag that either the test is not age appropriate, or it is poorly written and intends to trick our students.     Parents have a right to make decisions regarding what we feel is in the best interest for our child's education, and when we decide to not participate in standardized tests because of the high stakes involved, that should not be held against our students,  especially those with passing report card grades. It is utter insanity that proficient students are being retained because they didn't take the FSA.  We are being told report card grades and 180 days of hard work in the classroom don't matter. Some counties promote on that, and for that I am grateful, but I am not fortunate to live in one of those counties.      The 3rd grade should not be this stressful on students and parents who are told all year that they have to pass this very important test at the end of the year in order to be promoted to 4th grade.     This madness has to end.","I have no issue with standardized assessments if they are used for informational purposes only to find areas that need improvement, and are not linked to teacher pay, school grades, or student promotion.     Whether it is a locally selected exam or the state assessment, it needs to be verified, and teachers and parents should have access to their student's exams to see what they got wrong. Otherwise how will they know what needs to be worked on?     What I do have a problem with is the mandatory retention linked with the 3rd grade state assessment. When the number of students who don't pass is as high as it is, that should be a huge red flag that either the test is not age appropriate, or it is poorly written and intends to trick our students.     Parents have a right to make decisions regarding what we feel is in the best interest for our child's education, and when we decide to not participate in standardized tests because of the high stakes involved, that should not be held against our students,  especially those with passing report card grades. It is utter insanity that proficient students are being retained because they didn't take the FSA.  We are being told report card grades and 180 days of hard work in the classroom don't matter. Some counties promote on that, and for that I am grateful, but I am not fortunate to live in one of those counties.      The 3rd grade should not be this stressful on students and parents who are told all year that they have to pass this very important test at the end of the year in order to be promoted to 4th grade.     This madness has to end."]
["Carrie Ford","Specialized Instructional Support Personnel","Registered Nurse","Duval County Public School","Duval","I work with diabetic students with in the public school system.  These students require a Registered Nurse (RN) with them for their entire school day.  They require accommodations for testing and physical activity.  They face challenges of bullying, poor test performance, comorbidities and frequent absences.    The RN is responsible for assessing and educating the student’s health status for the entire school community, acting as the bridge between the educational environment and the healthcare system, coordinating in-school health care and advocating for appropriate and effective health interventions in the educational  setting. Through these efforts, these students have an increased time on learning.  As you are aware, adverse health conditions disproportionately impact students from  low socioeconomic backgrounds and can hinder their ability to learn.  With an increased time on learning provided to the diabetic students, the under served students could have similar improvements with a RN is every school. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a minimum of one RN is every school (see attached information). Please also note the last two attachments regarding information on RN's in the school setting.  RN's are apart of the the student support team and should be recognized as such in the State of FL.      By assisting students to manage their chronic health condition, our efforts directly impact return to  class rates, absenteeism, academic achievement and translate into cost savings for families, educational  settings and healthcare systems. Florida school nurses are health leaders, contributing to students’  academic success, and life long health.    Thank you, Carrie      Attachments:   AAP COUNCIL ON SCHOOL HEALTH. Role of the School Nurse in Providing School Health Services. Pediatrics. 2016;137(6):e20160852    Nurses in the Educational Setting:  http://www.msno.org/wpcontent/uploads/2012/05/Nurses-in-the-Educational-Setting.pdf    School Nurses Save Money:  https://www.neusha.org/student/programs/attachments/CostBenefitStudy.pdf    "]
["Tina","Parents and Families","Parent, Teacher, SB Member","martin schools","Martin","Minimize ALL assessments. Allow alternative means for evaluation of students for placement purposes with EQUAL weight to that of the state assessments.",{"$nulls":5},"ELL students require more than two years to acquire language proficiency","ELL students should be measured on growth not proficiency for the purpose of school grades/evaluations",null,"At the same time prohibit duplicating testing unless a student needs to take an alternative assessment to pass minimum standards. This is a step in the right direction but may just create an additional assessment to take.",null,"Neither of these choices is perfect but the second choice is more reasonable. Ideally-exempt them in year one, measure in year two for baseline and monitor learning gains in year 3. The timeline if far too small. It should also be different based on the age/grade of the student and the level of English proficiency upon starting year 1. A non English speaking 6th grader will need far more support and time than a non English speaking first grader."]
["Myra Middleton-Valentine","The Public",null,"Self","Flagler",{"$nulls":9},"It is not clear how the state will use the locally selected assessment for school grades and additional funding."]
["Kimberly Dyer","Parents and Families",null,"none","Pinellas","The frequency of assessments is excessive and is interfering with teachers opportunity to teach and interferes with a students opportunity to develop genuine interest in curriculum. "]
["Donna","Teachers",null,"Pinellas County Schools","Pinellas",{"$nulls":5},"The Florida Alternate Assessment is not appropriate for those students who have the most severe and profound intellectual disabilities.  It is not a valid or meaningful instrument to assess the learning of these students.  The students at my school have the most significant challenges in multiple areas including severe cognitive disabilities, significant deficits in adaptive and social skills and severe physical impairments. Many of them require 1:1 assistance to participate in learning activities.  The skills that are tested on the alternate achievement are too complex and difficult for this small minority of students.  We need to provide these students with a meaningful and relevant curriculum that will teach them skills that are needed for them to function in society with as much independence as possible.  A relevant assessment aligned to this instruction would better measure the learning of students with the most profound disabilities."]
["Cara","Parents and Families",null,"self","Seminole","Accountability created by teachers because they are teachers.  Not accountability with the high stakes as they are currently.  A 3rd grader should not get As and Bs all school year and then be threatened with retention for one test.  That makes no sense on so many levels.  We believe in accountability that makes sense.  ","There must be a better way.  Stop focusing on this one test.  Let the teachers teach and test their students.  They know the students best and what they need for their academic and personal growth.","Yes, exempt them.  But the whole thing is absolutely ridiculous!",null,"Yes, an alternate assessment should be available but, again, forcing these one size fits no one tests on everyone doesn't improve our students or schools",{"$nulls":4},"Absolutely.  There are much better assessments out there than the FSA.  Less high stakes testing and test preparation and more true learning.  "]
["Chris Hinkle","Parents and Families",null,"self","Brevard","Too many tests for the students.  And what for?  To calculate schools grades and evaluate teachers?  Again - too many tests - get rid of them.","Too many tests - Too many days are wasted on testing.  These are days that teachers are not teaching and students are not learning.","How about no tests?  ",null,"same as above.",null,"same as above",null,null,"No more tests!"]
["Don Gifford","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard",null,"Should be used to assess how effective the school has been in teaching the state's education curriculum.  A student's course grade should be used to assess how well the student has learned the information taught by the school.  Gaps between the state assessment and the course grades should be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the school in teaching the state curriculum."]
["Angela S Chandler","Teachers",null,"Polk County School Board","Polk",{"$nulls":4},"Students who are unable to read should have mathematics tests read to them. I have had 6th grade students who are completely unable to read but are actually quite proficient in math. Please make this accomodation. "]
["Rober","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard",{"$nulls":7},"High school students should use the SAT or the ACT as the final assessment for Math, English, and Science. If these tests are used for college entrance, then they should also be indicative of mastery in those subject areas. If not, then the ACT and SAT have no business being used for college entrance unless the public has been bamboozled for years by big testing companies.  ",null,"High school students should use the SAT or the ACT as the final assessment for Math, English, and Science. If these tests are used for college entrance, then they should also be indicative of mastery in those subject areas. If not, then the ACT and SAT have no business being used for college entrance unless the public has been bamboozled for years by big testing companies.  "]
["Gerald Bieringer","Parents and Families",null,"none","Brevard","\"—Each State plan shall demonstrate  that the State educational agency,\"  Demonstrate to who????","\"coherent and timely information  about student attainment of such standards and  whether the student is performing at the student’s  grade level;\"  Who determines what the grade level performance should be? If it's not a state organization of teachers from that grade level, or if such an organization doesn't review and sign off on it, it's useless as screen doors on a submarine.","Are there other subject courses with corresponding EOC exams that should be included in this??","Eliminate Common Core and any of its derivatives.",null,null,"Does the state have standards? One Third of the state population speaks Spanish. We need to formally adopt English as the State if not the National Language. My children\"s native language was Korean. They have both done well in elementary and middle school learning English. They had some excellent teachers. Many apparently aren't that lucky.","It was done well in 2012 and 2013. Use that as a model","Delete Common Core","In general I am against any assessment that is nationally-recognized. This should only be used as a last resort and abandoned for a state or county level assessment ASAP","\"te approval of nationally-recognized high school  academic assessments that are available for local selection  under clause (i), a State educational agency shall  establish technical criteria to determine if any such assessment  meets the requirements of clause (v).  (iii) STATE APPROVAL.—If a State....\"    A state should not have the right to do this at it's descretion to it's residents, teachers, and local administrators. Only if a super majority request it and they should make recommendations of which to select. And the State must be required to pick from their suggested list...","I like the approach that was used in Brevard county in 2012 and 2013.  Delete Common Core","Where is the definition from Federal Law identified?? This is incredibly hard to wade through."]
["Sue Faulk","Teachers",null,"Self","Marion","Why leave out Social Studies/Civics?","\"Coherent and timely\" are key to success. Teachers need accurate information throughout the school year on students progress towards reaching these high standards. Schools must get final scores to prepare for the upcoming years instruction.  That said, too much testing is too much testing. That's why periodic assessments must be brief, accurate and provide diagnostics that can be implemented.   Priority of services MUST be given to chronically low performing schools including but not limited to: low pupil to teacher ratio, increase paraprofessional support in classrooms, meaningful family support, only highly qualified teachers who receive additional salary. Otherwise it's unfair to compare results from schools with widely different clientele.  "]
["Mary Goelz","Teachers",null,"None","Brevard",{"$nulls":8},"These students are falling into the cracks, We implemented a No Child Left Behind but they indeed have been left behind. They sometimes have a problem with speaking or reading our English language and since they can not pass the FCAT or FSA reading portion of the state exams these students are not allowed to graduate. We should implement some type of waiver like we have for IEP students that if they show learning gains or use a program such as Reading Plus or Achieve3000 they can use this to graduate."]
["Amy ballard","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard",{"$nulls":13},"Assessments should be used to evaluate the improvement of each individual student so to uncover any deficiencies or areas of concern that can be addressed through supplemental instruction. Using the assessments as the primary way to grade our teachers' abilities and grade the overall school is a disservice to our students and provides limited, if any, benefit to our students. The FSA is this type of test."]
["Lynsie Guest ","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Martin","There should be limits as to how often the state can change the rubric and assessments. How are the teachers to prepare the students and how are the students to prepare if the standards are constantly changing. ","The law states that there will be multiple assessments, which I agree to see a students advancement through the year, not just one, high pressured exam score to determine a students worth ",{"$nulls":9},"Require English language learners to take the ELA FSA in the first year, include gains second year, achievement in year 3","ELL students should not count against a school, but should only enhance the score when gains are achieved."]
["Melody Lankford","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Volusia","My 3rd grader was subjected to 30+ hours of testing last year. I think that number is ridiculous and should be no more than 2 school days.","My 3rd grader was subjected to 30+ hours of testing last year. I think that number is ridiculous and should be no more than 2 school days.",{"$nulls":7},"My 3rd grader was subjected to 30+ hours of testing last year. I think that number is ridiculous and should be no more than 2 school days.","My 3rd grader was subjected to 30+ hours of testing last year. I think that number is ridiculous and should be no more than 2 school days.",null,null,"My 3rd grader was subjected to 30+ hours of testing last year. I think that number is ridiculous and should be no more than 2 school days."]
["Christina","The Public",null,"self","Bay","Teachers should be trained & kept up to date with technology. Every  school should have a app available through iphones, andriods etc. to keep parents up to date with attendance, grades, school functions etc. All open houses or conferences should make sure all parents are aware of any technology resource available. Children are not usually at the same house every night due to separate households, parents are not able to keep up & this day in age technology has the capability to give all parents the ability to be involved & allow children a more productive homework time & family time. "]
["Cheree Lewandowski","Students",null,"None","Brevard",{"$nulls":13},"The Florida Accountability System should be completely overhauled."]
["April Adler","Parents and Families",null,"none","Brevard",null,null,"Agreed. They should not have to be double tested."]
["Megan eubanks","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard","I think the accessments should be in the district alone. The evaluations should be based upon the teachers.  They have spent all year with the students, and they know each students.  I do not think one test should define the children progress. ","There should be no stakes for these children.   They do not need this test. It should not even be a requirement.","I think they should only take the exams if necessary. The end of the year exams are more reliable than the state test. ",null,"There are not enough proper accommodations for students with disabilities. The state test should be invalid. ",null,"The state test is merely a test.  Each teacher teachers a certain way and the children learn. The state test are geared to one specific way of learning. They are not valid. ","They should not. We need to do away with state testing. ",null,"I believe in my district.  I believe in my teachers for my children and their ability to teach.  I don't think we need a high stakes test to test these children. ",null,"I think the districts guidelines should be followed."]
["Jennifer ","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard","If ANY assessments are not transparent and grade level appropriate, which they currently are not, than their validity in measuring our children and their teachers is the greatest form of fraudulent data collection ever! My child's assessment was incomplete due to the seal sticking pages together. When discovered, she was unable to finish, according to the rules. TOTAL waste of time and resources. My child scored a 1! No accurate assessment for her! An overhaul of the entire system is a gross understatement!"]
["Michelle Morgante","Teachers",null,"Key West High School","Monroe",null,"B (ii) - the word \"coherent\" should read, \"coherent to parents and students\" or \"coherent to ALL stakeholders.\"  B (ii) - the word \"timely\" should specify that results be returned in 60 days or 90 days or a DEFINED period.  B (v)(I)(bb) once in grades 9 - 12 \"but not required for credit in those courses (ie. like the current Alg 1 requirement).  B (v)(III) In the case of any other subject, be at the discretion of the \"DISTRICT;\"  "]
["Joani","Teachers",null,"Self","Brevard","No more high stakes testing.","No more high stakes testing."]
["Martha Pessaro","Native American Tribes",null,"Native Heritage Gathering, Inc","Brevard","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November","Inclusion of history of original peoples. Support and recognition of Native American Heritage Month November"]
["Brian Gaunt","Specialized Instructional Support Personnel","USF - FLPBIS and FL PS/RtI Projects through FLDOE","University of South Florida - FLPBIS Project","Hillsborough","the term \"high quality\" is very vague.  It would be better if we required highly validated and reliable assessments that are demonstrated (with data) to have sound psychometric properties to justify their use in decision making.","\"coherent and timely\" from whose perspective?  Parents, teachers, school admins?  Are these assessments going to solely be summative measures that don't get reported until summer time, which allows for no formative instructional decision-making to prevent failure, or will we have formative assessment options for making such instructional decisions?  ",{"$nulls":4},"How will this data be used for instructional decision-making, availability and delivery of intervention services, and or used for determining a students learning needs?  I worry when the state adds more assessment for which the results only get used for reporting outside the classroom settings rather than used for instructional quality improvement.  Also, what is the state's plan to ensure sufficient numbers of highly trained persons to complete these assessments in a timely manner and with minimal impact on instructional times during school hours?",null,null,"I have concerns with this greatly.  Simply speaking, there is high risk of having apples-oranges comparison of student performance across different state LEAs.  What increases in oversight and research evaluation will be needed ($$) to ensure for the same grade level that a \"passing score\" on one test is equivalent to a \"passing score\" on another test; AND both tests are measuring the same skills for that grade aligned with college/career readiness prep?"]
["Linda Filoon","Teachers",null,"Self","Palm Beach","I am pleased that you are considering testing non-English speaking students in their native language. This should apply to all tests and all languages. ",{"$nulls":10},"I think the students should be exempted the first year and have their gains measured in the 2nd or 3rd years. I've watched our non-English speaking ESOL students  be subjected to standardized tests including the SAT and the students appeared frustrated and troubled. "]
["Virginia Horton","Paraprofessionals",null,"OCPS","Orange",{"$nulls":4},"Implementation needs improved oversite of administration. A students communicative intent in the selection of answers is subjective and at times students have not been provided the opportunity to acquire a specific mode or communication. ","Too many students that should be taking the standard assessment are moved to an alternate assessment based on behavior and opportunity to receive  instruction as a result of absenteeism or multiple suspensions."]
["Laura Pacter","Parents and Families",null,"self","Collier","As a parent of three children who were required to take tests in order to pass the Third Grade, I feel we should wait until Sixth Grade in order to determine if a child should be held back due to a test score. The pressure placed on Third Graders is excruciating for me as a parent who  had two Third Graders go through the testing. Both of my children could not sleep the night before testing, and both children complained of test anxiety, and they worried about not passing to the point they would not eat dinner due to an upset stomach. To me, assessment is important, but at what point to we pressure our students too much in Third Grade? To me, I feel this testing with the cloud of not passing Third grade based on a TEST Grade, is very sad to me, and it is detrimental to our students' well-being, and peace of mind.","The word \"timely\" is not fitting in this paragraph. If the work assessed is over the course of one year, then how \"timely\" is an entire year of evaluative measurement in one test at the END of the school year? It is not timely at all. A timely measurement is given in one week..such as a spelling test on a Friday. Timely does not fit this paragraph. Maybe cumulatively would be a better bet? Coherently, and cumulatively. Timely does not work.","To reduce testing for students is a sound way of improving this assessment administration.","n/a","If a child has a specific cognitive disability, then these specific disabilities should be mentioned. This is very vague commentary.","n/a"]
["cristy brown","Educator Organizations",null,"martin county school board","Martin","The reading assessment reading level is not  developmentally not appropriate for child readiness.  The level is much higher than most students can read independently; therefore causing comprehension problems and low scores on the assessment.  Assessments should be at the grade level developmental level.","The assessments are not a valid reflection of the student's growth.  The ELA assessment is clearly written above the students' developmental readiness.  If the students can't read the texts/questions, how do we expect them to comprehend and do well?"]
["Stacey Lovelock","Parents and Families",null,"self","Brevard",null,null,"I agree with this provision as it make sense not to double test students already taking an advanced EOC as a measure."]
["Kimberly LeChien","Teachers","Parent/Family member","none","Brevard"]
["Lakeska Kelsey","Teachers","parent of ESE student"," self","Palm Beach","I don't think the state should be able to add any additional assessments without approval from its stakeholders, public school officials,teachers and parents.","It is my belief, that students attending a private school using public school funds in any form such as vouchers, and McKay Scholarships should be administered the same assessments to track their progress on rigorous standards. The assessments should be administered with school district personnel present to prevent cheating.","How will middle schools, school grading be calculated?","None","It is grossly unfair to use students' scores that have been determined to have significant cognitive disabilities against other students from ALL over the state. Students in this category makes progress at different rates depending upon how severe their disability is. Ridiculous! Why give them this diagnosis if they are still going to be tested and compared? You know students in affluent homes will make stronger progress than those that aren't.","Assessing Florida's students has become arduous and stressful for families. Yet, you ship public school funds by way of vouchers to private schools and they are not being held to the same standards. It is as if your goal is to discredit public schools. This past year, we were informed that the assessments were changed. Most people feel it was done to make public schools fail. Also, Pam Stewart has NO experience as a PUBLIC school administrator, yet she's making decisions for public schools. I'm sure she would be thrilled to have public schools fail. It would further their agenda of diverting public school funds to private schools.  ","ELL students require more than two years to fully understand the English language. If these students did not attend school regularly in their home country, they require much support in both languages. Testing them only erodes their self esteem and zest for learning.","ELL students should be assessed on their understanding of English. If their scores show a deficit, the student should be given an additional two years to catch up before being administered the FSA. Giving the students dictionaries in their language is no help at all.","ELL students should be given state assessments when they have demonstrated a good command of and understanding of the English language.","The LEA should be supplied with a list of federally approved tests that would meet Florida's criteria. If a different test is selected, it should be graded by the creators of it.",null,"I don't like either. Neither of these exceptions are taking into account the ELL students level of education in their home country. It also doesn't allow the students to become adequate in their understanding of the English language. This will definitely be a way to punish students and schools.","None","ELL students should be given more time to understand and use English before they are tested. Two years isn't enough. A minimum of the three years should be considered."]
["Jeremy Goff","Teachers",null,"Self","Okeechobee","There is too much testing and too much emphasis put on testing. Students shouldn't lose so  much educational time to testing every year. They could be assessed every other year per subject instead of every year. School grading and school recognition money should not be tied to test scores.","All assessments for secondary should be computer based.",{"$nulls":4},"It is not fair to assess students who have been labeled as behind in their language on grade level and expect them to be proficient.","The ELL students should be tested with the reading tests of the grade equivalence of their language acquisition."]
["Cathy Burton","Teachers",null,"self","Pinellas",{"$nulls":4},"A closer look needs to be completed with regards to what students are being exempted and those that are not. There are life skills that need to be taught and assessed rather than irrelevant topics.",{"$nulls":4},"If schools and states are being compared it must be done with the same instrument. It is not valid if done otherwise."]
["Lori Lovetere","Parents and Families","Teacher","Pasco County Schools","Pasco","FSA's have not been fully or properly vetted.  Period.",{"$nulls":5},"At this time, there is NO different test for ELL students.  They may take the CELLA, but they are also required to take the exact same FSA Writes and FSA Reading (unless they've been in the country less than a year) as EVERY other child.",{"$nulls":4},"Exempt year one, and give an alternate year 2 and so on until it is determined that are sufficiently proficient with the English Language to take the same FSA's as the general population."]
["Rebecca Carlson","Teachers",null,"Christa McAuliffe Elementary","Brevard",{"$nulls":4},"Why is it limited to 1%? Shouldn't it be determined based on the schools' population?"]
["Cynthia Pelosi","Parents and Families","Teachers","Badass Teachers Association","Sarasota","**Coherent and timely reporting of assessment results--not happening  **Keep changing the rules and the results needed --how does this apply to special education students--\"students with a disability  who are provided accommodations under an Act  other than the Individuals with Disabilities Education  Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), necessary to  measure the academic achievement of such children  relative to the challenging State academic  standards or alternate academic achievement  standards described in paragraph (1)(E)\"--State can't pick and choose which accommodations are appropriate or allowable on the state assessments--ie. computer vs. paper based assessments---assessments should be driven by the IEP not the other way around.**Enable score reports that generate information that can be used by teachers and parents to decide needs of specific students--score reports are USELESS at this time--(II) PROHIBITION ON LOCAL CAP.--cannot predetermine the percentage of students with a disability label --how can you determine how many students have a disability when you have specific counties/schools that are supportive of those students specifically. ","(II) the appropriate accommodations---should be determined by the IEP team and the accommodations should be driven by the IEP not the assessment"]
["N/A","Teachers",null,"Public school","Martin","State test should happen in fifth only to help place into middle school. In with grade to help place into High school. Then in high school kids should take SAT or ACT to exit high school. Kids should also have the chance to re-take the test (like you would the SAT) to try and get a better score. It should never be a one shot deal and that's it. Retention should only happen if teacher, administration, and intervention team feel it would benefit. Retention should never be placed on a single test. If kids know that the test they are taking is to help them place into better classes in middle school then they will be more motivated to do well. Also I think there should be a way parents or teachers or administrators apply for a test to be resorted with good cause that possibly the machine that scored the test mid scored and request that human eyes score the test. Also if you are going to make kids as young as third grade take the test there should be not tricky grids or funny ways that the test expects them to answer.","In theory this sounds ok but in reality the results are not back in a timely manner. The state assessments are secretive and claim to be aligned to the standards but may have questions that do not. We are asked to blindly trust the test with no ","I am in favor of not doubling test. ",{"$nulls":6},"Agreed"]
["Angela Gonzalez","Teachers",null,"Palm Beach","Palm Beach",null,null,"I agree!",{"$nulls":4},"WIDA",null,"I like it!",null,"I likde the second option"]
["carol cooper","Parents and Families",null,"self","Orange","You make no mention of charter schools, but my tax money is supporting many of them. So, they must be supported by public money? I am assuming that the corporate charter schools are not receiving public money, but you've made no distinction.","Some elementary teachers should be able to receive STEM money for excelling in math, science etc. They're a few teachers in most schools that go beyond what the state is asking of them.",{"$nulls":8},"Most people feel that it is wrong for teachers paycheck to be tied to students that might not feel like taking a test. Parents have been against the testing but this attitude has taken a toll on teachers trying to keep their low paying job. "]
["kourtney oliver","Community-Based Organizations","public health","Department of Health ","Alachua"]
["Rich Larson","Parents and Families","Professional","self","Brevard","Too many, wrong to tie scores in to school money or teacher pay.  Politics at its worst.","Too many, wrong to tie scores in to school money or teacher pay.  Politics at its worst.",{"$nulls":4},"Yes - have Intensive English learner classrooms instead of putting non english speakers with all other students.  That is cruel, inefficient, and misuses valuable resources.  ",null,null,"This should be choice, ESPECIALLY if the state govt insists on tying school money and teacher pay to assessment results.",null,"Stupiud - penalizes school grades and teachers who get non-english speakers shoved into their classes with little or no support"]
["Kristen Mercurio","Teachers",null,"LCSD","Lee","Not all students can meet these standards and it is absurd to base teachers' salaries on passing/failing/ meeting standards. Students in our state are constantly moving to other counties, leaving the country, or moving to/from other states. Even within our own district, we are not all covering the same material because the standards are so broad and there are LARGE gaps in students' learning and understanding of standards. ",null,null,null,"There needs to be assessments for the students fall between General Ed and Profoundly disabled. "]
["Dr. Shirin Gibson","School Administrators",null,"B.D. Gullett ES","Manatee","My concerns:   -the readability levels of text in Grades 3-5 on the ELA portion.  -the multi-select questions for grades 3-5 and the  various ways a 3rd grader is questioned at years 8-9...is it truly developmentally appropriate? for ELA and Math?",{"$nulls":5},"Why did Manatee replace CELLA? "]
["Carrie Gerace","Teachers",null,"Brevard Public Schools","Brevard","Effective 8/2/16?  We are submitting our opinions to a document that the State will need to be in compliance with shortly after you read our comments?  So, tell me how will the state demonstrate that they have consulted with local educational agencies for this purpose?  Who did you meet with?  When did you meet?  Were teachers included in the development of these academic assessments?    If the state of Florida is going to report that we have implemented a high-quality assessment with the FSA, then I beg to differ.  As an elementary educator, I believe that we have many flaws that need to be addressed in the adoption of Common Core/FSA standards as well as the use of the FSA assessments produced by American Institutes for Research (AIR).  My first complaint about the FSA assessments is the requirement for elementary students to take the assessment on the computer.  Elementary Students are at a disadvantage working on the computer for the following observed reasons: 1) students do not take the testing on the computer as a serious responsibility due to the fact that so much of their independent time is spent on games and social networking that provide immediate feedback and stimulation.  Testing on the computer is a chore for them and they just want to be done as fast as possible.  I have also observed that students will not review their test in this format (due to the fact that they are ready to be finished) where in the past I always observed more than 50% of the students looking back and reviewing on a paper based test. 2) It is developmentally inappropriate to expect Elementary students to be required to provide written responses on a computer keyboard.  Traditionally, keyboarding is a skill that is taught in high school.  Young people today are very savvy with their phones or their tablets but that cannot be equated to sitting at a keyboard and efficiently typing a sentence or a paragraph.  It can take a 9 or 10 year old 3 times longer to type a sentence than they could easily write.  I think the expectation that students should be able to provide quality responses on the computer when they are only beginning typists is unreasonable.  I also think that it is an unreasonable expectation that teachers can “work this in” to the current school day.  The elementary teacher does not have an extra minute to spare and legislators and administrators who sit behind their desks and make these decisions need to visit a classroom and observe how difficult these tasks can be in a classroom of 22 who are sharing computers with the classroom next door.  3) Teachers are not allowed to look at the tests and we do not receive specific data to connect what we taught with the standards to what appeared on the test.  We only receive a number, not details.  Therefore, from year to year, how is a teacher supposed to make adjustments in teaching methods to be a better teacher?  In the past when we had the FCAT, there was strand-level results provided with the assessment information that assisted the teacher in identifying areas of weakness and concern.  This current level of “secrecy” related to the FSA assessments, does not contribute to confidence in what is appearing on the assessments since we never get to see it.  How can we know if we hit the mark? 4) Even though my last statement was highlighting the fact that we don’t get to view much of anything related to FSA assessments, what we do see in the practice tests and on the FAIR tests that are given at each school, is reading text that is developmentally inappropriate.  I am very concerned about the number of passages that fall under the genre of fable or tall tale because elementary students are generally not able to infer the meanings in these passages. Also the emphasis on non-fiction passages - well there is no easy way to say this except that it is BORING!  If you expect students to perform well on a test, you need to make it interesting for them to remain engaged.  When the passage that they are reading is dull the student will preserver to get through it, probably not reading carefully for meaning and then quickly move on to the questions.  When they are not engaged with the passage, they are less inclined to be engaged with the questions, searching for the correct answers back in the text.  These are the type of exercises we work on regularly with paper-based tests, but on the computer, students just rush through.  So to return to my point, I am not confident that the test creators are working with materials that are developmentally appropriate for the grade levels.   I think we should challenge students but not make assessments so difficult that they feel defeated.  "]
["Kim Gilbert","Teachers",null,"none","Pinellas",{"$nulls":4},"For more than 30 years I have been a teacher of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities.  These students have profound limitations which affect their ability to communicate, participate, think, reason and function without full physical assistance and guidance.  These students are not the 1% - they are the 1% of the 1%.  Many times their quality of life and efforts to ensure they are comfortable, healthy and medically stable are of supreme importance.  To have these students included in the calculating of who to assess, even with an alternate assessment, is completely inappropriate."]
["Mace","Teachers",null,"None","Alachua",{"$nulls":10},"There is just too much testing."]
["Mary","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Polk","In my opinion, these EOC tests for reading and math are not reliable and does not give an accurate assessment of students abilities.  If they are passing the required courses and tests given throughout the year that should be acceptable. Both of my children have been taking these tests and end up in the intensive reading and math classes which are not helping.  They are not helping. These classes just bring down their GPA.  Both of my kids had a 3.0 GPA and because of these classes it is now under that and they get cheated with taking other electives that they are interested in.  It's a joke to think that this is working!  You will waive the scores/tests if my child doesn't speak English or has a disability but there should be another waiver for kids that are following through the cracks.  Good kids, taking the required classes and making above average grades.  They deserve a diploma!  I have a son that is going to be a senior next year and after first semester if things don't change and I can't foresee a diploma through the Polk County School System - then I will have no choice than to homeschool the second semester.  This is heartbreaking that my son can't graduate with his senior class that he has been with for 4 years!","These assessments are not working. They need to be stopped.  It's costing the counting more money and time, then if they would just focus on day to day teaching.  Both of my kids are in Winter Haven High School (9th & 11th) - they did not do one project or read one novel last year.  "]
["Kids Therapy Services Inc.","School Administrators",null,"Kids Therapy Services Inc.","Miami-Dade"]
["Linda Rogowski","Teachers",null,"Self","Pinellas","There are far too many high-stakes assessments, they are poorly conceived and implemented, and they interfere with real teaching and learning. Parents, students, and educators recognize this: why can't our politicians? "]
["Kim Von Burg","Parents and Families",null,"self","Hillsborough",null,"(v)(l) minimum of 2 times for 9-12",{"$nulls":7},"If it's nationally recognized the local school district should be able to approve it without requiring state approval. Conflict of interest when state DOE members have affiliations with the companies that create the tests"]
["Tenaj Davis","Educator Organizations","Florida Dance Education Organization","Florida Dance Education Organization","Miami-Dade","include assessments and evaluation systems for student achievement in dance, theatre, music & visual arts.","include assessments and evaluation systems for student achievement in dance, theatre, music & visual arts."]
["Patti Vickers","School District Administrators",null,"School District of Osceola County, FL","Osceola",null,"I believe that this comment is how testing should be conducted in the state of Florida: be administered through multiple statewide  interim assessments during the course of the  academic year that result in a single summative  score that provides valid, reliable, and transparent  information on student achievement or growth. We should NOT be relying on an end of year exam/high stakes test at the end of the year, or even, worse, at 3/4 of the year, since we cannot possibly ",{"$nulls":9},"I believe that we should exempt ELL for the first year, include them in learning gains in year 2 and in achievement in year 3.","This information is supported by research that indicates it takes at least four years, frequently more, for ELL to acquire academic English and, therefore, including them for up to four years after exit is best practice."]
["Patti  Vickers","School District Administrators",null,"School District of Osceola County, FL","Osceola",null,"be administered through multiple statewide  interim assessments during the course of the  academic year that result in a single summative  score that provides valid, reliable, and transparent  information on student achievement or growth. Evaluating students throughout the school year will gain us a better measure of their actual growth instead of waiting until 3/4 of the year has passed and hoping that all standards that are to be assessed have been taught. And, worst of all, students and teachers feel that the school year is over once the high stakes testing is done and therefore, little to no learning happens after FSA.",{"$nulls":5},"If we use tests such as CELLA to identify students as ELL, then why do we not use the same test to determine their increased English language proficiency over time? This to me is a better measure of their acquisition of the English language.",null,"I don't think it's a good idea to have different assessments used in different LEAs as our student population in the state of Florida is highly mobile. This would potentially penalize students whose parents move them in the middle of a school year or from year to year.",null,"I believe they should be exempted in year one, included in learning gains in year 2 and in achievement in year 3.","We must include those exited for up to four years as the research shows that it takes that long if not longer for English Language Learners to acquire academic English skills."]
["Richard Malcolm","Teachers",null,"none","Florida School for the Deaf and Blind","I believe Consumer Mathematics should be part of the Math Curriculum. It's important for all students who need to prepare themselves for the real-life situations such as budgeting, taxes, credit cards, interest rates, insurance, etc. I still find it very hard to believe that Consumer Math is eliminated from the curriculum. It should be restored as soon as possible. ","Since there are too many statewide assessment tests, I suggest that Algebra 2 EOC test be optional for students who take Algebra 2 as an elective course. In other words, Algebra 2 EOC test is one too many. Geometry and Algebra 1 EOC tests should suffice for those who want to earn a standard diploma. "]
["Abba Locke","Teachers",null,"Coral Springs middle school","Broward",{"$nulls":4},"A school's success cannot be measured by a standardized test. ",{"$nulls":4},"A school's success cannot be measured by a standardized test. "]
["Rich Lilley","Parents and Families",null,"SELF","Brevard","1. THE RESULTS FROM TESTING SHOULD NOT AFFECT THE GRADE OF A STUDENT IN THE SUBJECT AREA.  2. THE RESULTS FROM THE TESTING SHALL ONLY BE USED TO ASSES THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE TEACHING PROGRAM, AND NOT BE USED TO DETERMINE TEACHER SALARIES OF OTHER FINANCIAL REWARDS TO SCHOOLS (I.E. \"A\" SCHOOLS GET DIFFERENT BENEFITS THAN \"B\" SCHOOLS.   3. THE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS TO ALL TEST QUESTIONS SHOULD BE PUBLISHED TO ALLOW INDEPENDENT PUBLIC REVIEW OF THE MATERIALS AND ANSWERS. EXAMPLE QUESTIONS FOR EOC TESTS WERE PUBLISHED IN FLORIDA PAPERS AND THE CORRECT ANSWERS WERE WRONG. THIS WILL PREVENT STUDENT ASSESSMENTS FROM SHOWING INCORRECT DATA AND RESULTS ON THE TESTS.   4. PARENTS SHOULD BE ABLE TO EXCLUDE THEIR CHILD FROM TESTING IF THE RESULTING TESTS IMPOSE TOO MUCH STRESS OR ANXIETY ON THE CHILD.   5. IT IS A KNOWN FACT THAT CHILDREN HAVE ISSUES FOCUSING FOR MORE THAN 30-40 MINUTES. ALL TESTS SHOULD BE LIMITED TO NO MORE THAN 30 MINUTES IN A DAY AND NO MORE THAN 2 TESTS PER WEEK.   6. THE STUDENT SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO RECEIVE EITHER A WRITTEN OR COMPUTER BASED TEST BASED UPON THEIR PREFERENCE. MANY STUDENTS GET HEADACHES WHILE TAKING COMPUTER TESTS, WHICH AFFECTS THEIR SCORES/RESULTS. ","1. THE RESULTS FROM TESTING SHOULD NOT AFFECT THE GRADE OF A STUDENT IN THE SUBJECT AREA.  2. THE RESULTS FROM THE TESTING SHALL ONLY BE USED TO ASSES THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE TEACHING PROGRAM, AND NOT BE USED TO DETERMINE TEACHER SALARIES OF OTHER FINANCIAL REWARDS TO SCHOOLS (I.E. \"A\" SCHOOLS GET DIFFERENT BENEFITS THAN \"B\" SCHOOLS.   3. THE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS TO ALL TEST QUESTIONS SHOULD BE PUBLISHED TO ALLOW INDEPENDENT PUBLIC REVIEW OF THE MATERIALS AND ANSWERS. EXAMPLE QUESTIONS FOR EOC TESTS WERE PUBLISHED IN FLORIDA PAPERS AND THE CORRECT ANSWERS WERE WRONG. THIS WILL PREVENT STUDENT ASSESSMENTS FROM SHOWING INCORRECT DATA AND RESULTS ON THE TESTS.   4. PARENTS SHOULD BE ABLE TO EXCLUDE THEIR CHILD FROM TESTING IF THE RESULTING TESTS IMPOSE TOO MUCH STRESS OR ANXIETY ON THE CHILD.   5. IT IS A KNOWN FACT THAT CHILDREN HAVE ISSUES FOCUSING FOR MORE THAN 30-40 MINUTES. ALL TESTS SHOULD BE LIMITED TO NO MORE THAN 30 MINUTES IN A DAY AND NO MORE THAN 2 TESTS PER WEEK.   6. THE STUDENT SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO RECEIVE EITHER A WRITTEN OR COMPUTER BASED TEST BASED UPON THEIR PREFERENCE. MANY STUDENTS GET HEADACHES WHILE TAKING COMPUTER TESTS, WHICH AFFECTS THEIR SCORES/RESULTS. ","THE RESULTS FROM TESTING SHOULD NOT AFFECT THE GRADE OF A STUDENT IN THE SUBJECT AREA. THE GRADE SHOULD BE BASED ON TEACHER ASSESSMENT. ",null,"TESTING STUDENTS WITH SEVERE COGNITIVE DISABILITIES IS A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY. IF THEY ARE SEVERELY DISABLED, THEY SHOULD NOT BE REQUIRED TO TAKE EXTENDED TESTS. ",{"$nulls":4},"LOCAL SCHOOL SYSTEMS SHOLD HAVE THE RIGHT TO SELECT THE TEST THAT BEST ASSESSES THEIR STUDENTS ABILITIES. ",null,"UNLESS A STUDENT HAS BEEN IN THE UNITED STATES FOR AT LEAST 5 YEARS, THEIR ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY WILL BE IMPAIRED. THEY SHOULD NOT BE TESTED. "]
["Laura Rouveyrol","Parents and Families",null,"none","Brevard",null,"There should be some type of end of course assessment. I do not think that they should be such high stakes for the students. I also don't think that the exams should be so long that it becomes a case of endurance for students. I also believe that the exams should assess the standards. For example, a science test should assess science standards and not be a test of reading or reading endurance. "]
["Wes Carlisle ","Teachers",null,"Bay District Schools ","Bay","With state testing and EOC exams, students are pulled from class for a month and a half in April and May. The missed class time affects instruction, as well as being able to teach and cover all standards for the school year. The running joke with History teachers is nothing happened after 1945 because there is not enough time to cover the remaining material. This tends to be true in all courses. I don't know if it's possible to condense the testing windows, or schedule the EOC exams later in May to truly be at the end of the course.",{"$nulls":10},"The second choice allows for a baseline score to base learning gains. Most newly arrived ELL students I have taught are disfluent, and they can't demonstrate proficiency. A measure of learning gains better reflects progress, as well as compare where the student is compared to proficient scores."]
["Diana Latta","Teachers",null,"public school","Putnam"]
["Mamie Curry","Teachers",null,"JHPA","Escambia",{"$nulls":11},"Prefer exempting ELL in the first year."]
["Nubia","Students with Disabilities Advocates",null,"none","Miami-Dade","provide coherent and timely information  about student attainment of such standards and  whether the student is performing at the student’s  grade level",null,null,null,"How does the State determine that the total number of students assessed in a subject using the alternate assessments cannot exceed 1 percent of the total number of all?","Public schools need to provide clear information about what and how procedures and methods (portfolios, tasks, etc.) are being implemented to our students, through the school year.",null,"How recently arrived kids with cognitive disabilities can obtain resources to learn English and to adapt to this country?",null,"How a locally-selected assessment is review and approved, with which evaluation tools and based on what criteria?",null,"My background is from a Hispanic culture and I know a lot of parents whom don't know about those information, those measures and the Florida's language education reality."]
["Debra Allen","Parents and Families","Retired Curriculum Support Specialist MDCPS","self","Martin","Teachers are best suited to implement the following requirement: \"involve multiple up-to-date  measures of  student academic achievement\" One day of high stakes testing should not be the only judge of a students academic ability. I hope this receives the emphasis that it deserves.","High quality assessments are essential to determine academic knowledge. This data should be used to provide a blueprint for what is best for the student. The end should not be the test. The test should be the beginning to design and modify instruction for students' needs.","All schools play the points game with accountability.     The question schools ask is - what will get the school the most points. The question SHOULD be - what is best for students. Until this becomes the overriding question driving our education policy, nothing will change. It will continue to be a \"shell game.\"","I remember many years ago reading a report by FLDOE stating that the FCAT and the SAT9 results were comparable thereby proving the reliability of the FCAT. I thought - why doesn't it prove the reliability of the SAT 9? ","After reading in the paper about requiring testing of students who have profound ailments, disabilities, and illnesses, I was embarrassed to say I was an educator. Shame on all of us.","The question should be - what is best for the student? ","MDCPS does a good job with its English Language Learners. As expected, most students perform poorly on assessments because language acquisition doesn't follow a set path. Testing should be done, so teachers will know where to start and to create appropriate and meaningful lessons for these students.","If a student does not read or write in English. This students should not be given a test. No useful information will be attained.",null,"Creating state tests for high school students that have no meaning for their post high school career is a waste of time and money. The current SAT and ACT tests are nationally normed and administered assessments. There is no need for any other assessments. ","Assessment if high schools consume about 6 weeks of instruction. Teachers have students going in and out of their class on a constant basis for the last 6 weeks of  school. Students can't learn if they are not in class.","Exempt ELL for two years. Then use learning gains for the 3rd year.","Younger students learn English faster than older students. Administrators and teachers should have input of which students to include within the provided criteria. ","Do what's best for the INDIVIDUAL student. "]
["Dana Godek","School District Administrators",null,"School District of Palm Beach County","Palm Beach",null,null,"The SEA may provide for an exception for advanced math in middle school, so high students who take the EOCs in middle school can take a more advanced assessment; if one exists. Honor the EOC regardless of it being taken in middle school.",null,"The SEA will provide for alternate assessments for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities and will define this cohort (1%). Continue to utilize an exemption process as we have significant growth in this segment. Increase our flexibility in defining the cohort or provide meaningful input.",null,null,null,"The SEA must define proficiency within the a given timeline. This is the old AMAO2. There is new exit criteria and a baseline must be established. Meaningful representation is requested to define proficiency and the timeline.","Will this selection include exemption from FSA and will LEAs incur the costs for the administration of these assessments?"]
["Mariellen Carroll","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Bay","I think entirely too much time and stress is wasted on FSA testing.  One test should not be used to decide whether someone should pass or fail a whole grade.  More authority should be given to teacher's ability to determine how well their students are doing.  Also,  how are teachers given a bonus on a SAT score from when they were in college.  Very inappropriate way of giving a bonus.  All schools should get same amount of assistance and some more regardless of where school is located.  How are some schools getting A grades and some getting F in the same district.  Something is not right with this picture and we need to help all of our children and our teachers to do well in Florida.  "]
["Patricia McKinney","Teachers","Parents and Families","self","Bay","Students identified as having special needs should not be required to take grade-level assessments. These students have already been identified as having a disability that negatively impacts their ability to learn grade-level material. Instead, they should be assessed for personal academic growth."]
["Tamara Hatcher","The Public","Odyssey Prepatory Academy","self","Brevard","none","none","none",null,"none",null,"none","none",null,"none",null,"none","none","none"]
["Allison McGrath","Parents and Families",null,"None","Lake",null,null,"Are EOC exams even appropriate for 8th graders?  Why even give a choice?  Students should be tested at the end of each 9 weeks on the material they've learned and schools should provide a  study guide.",null,"Only a teacher working with the most disabled is qualified to assess a students progress and it likely won't be measurable by any test written by somebody who doesn't have intimate knowledge of that particular student.  No teacher should be held accountable for how a student performs on an assessment EVER!  ",{"$nulls":4},"This idea is ridiculous because it's challenging enough to compare groups of students on one test,  let alone a myriad of other tests.  How about using a tried and true test like the NRT or the CTBS?      Any student who has had a psycho -educational profile with documented GAI or IQ should be exempt from all of these assessments because they don't matter to anybody.      The only tests that really matter are the SAT and the ACT.  Stop wasting so much time and money on this ridiculous testing.           ",null,"Don't test them.",null,"The state is too preoccupied with testing. It shows ZERO confidence in the job our teachers are doing and the hard work our students are churning out day after day.  You are  undermining the trust and respect for our teachers.  They know who is doing well and who isn't,  who should pass and who shouldn't.  Trust them to do their jobs and stop wasting everybody's time and money on testing."]
["Kristel Robertson","The Public","Public school support staff member","Brevard Public Schools","Brevard"]
["Missy Neal","Teachers",null,"BPS","Brevard","NOT IN EVERY GRADE 3-8.  Too much testing!  Testing shall not exceed one half hour for 2 days for reading, nor one half hour for 2 days in math.  Why does a child need to do 65 math problems to prove they can do the grade level math?  H.O.T.S. should be appropriately worded for the grade level in which a child is being assessed.  Eight and nine year olds should not be given questions adults cannot answer.",null,null,null,"Why on earth is there a percent allowed?  The number of students that are profoundly disabled is the number.  Creating a percentage means kids are not properly identified in the classroom simply so they can take a mandatory test that is not developmentally appropriate to their cognitive abilities.  This should be changed.  The MTSS team should have the ability to identify these students without being regulated by this number.  How unfair to those students that cannot read the FSA, due to an intellectual disability.",{"$nulls":6},"Again, are we assessing for the sole purpose of testing or are we attempting to assess a student's learning.  There is a huge range of ability in learning a new language.  It varies greatly depending on the age of the child when they enter an ELL program.  Native speakers have a chance to learn to read in English from K-3 before being assessed.  Districts should be able to assess the student's acquisition of language prior to determining the student's ability to reliably take any state assessment.","Students should continue to have accommodations based on their acquisition of language."]
["Susan Bowles","Teachers",null,"none","Alachua","There is too much testing.  There is so much instructional time lost because of testing, this generation of children is being robbed.  The state of Florida should stand up and say that periodic testing is more appropriate so the children can have 180 days of learning for most grades.  Test in 3rd, 8th and 11th.  The kids who do poorly in 3rd, generally do poorly in 4th.  Give them time to learn.  And make the tests shorter.  Stand up for the children!!!","TOO MUCH TESTING!!!   Testing, testing, testing...  Someone is benefitting from this BUT IT IS NOT THE CHILDREN.  Take the money poured into testing and use it for MEANINGFUL professional development.  (This does not include how to read data!!!!  It means learning more about the developmental characteristics of the grade level and how children's academic needs can best be addressed taking into consideration their gender, socio-economic status and even their ethnicity.  The more we understand children, the better our instruction will be.  Professional development should also be about student engagement, creativity, fun and meta-cognition.","Data is the god that is worshipped in Tallahassee.  For Pete's sake, trust your teachers and allow them to evaluate student learning.  Teachers assess their students constantly.  If this is not going on, the administration needs to provide support so the teacher is able to assess.  Progress monitoring should not be micro-managed by the state.",null,"With regard to the 1% - Brilliant!  Because we know that that is alway the exact percentage of children with disabilities.  STOP LOOKING AT DAT AND START LOOKING AT CHILDREN AS UNIQUE AND PRECIOUS INDIVIDUALS!","I do not know how you people live with yourselves.  You should be the most noble and trustworthy of public workers because you hold the children of Florida in your hands.  You are squeezing them for data when you should be looking at ways to nurture them and help them become the best they can be.","No, I am getting frustrated and exhausted because I hate what has become of a treasured profession.",null,null,"Gainesville - Stop micro-managing.  Give control back to the counties.  Allow them more freedom in curriculum and progress monitoring.",null,"This seems somewhat reasonable from the statements above.  Did not open link."]
["Gina Miller","Teachers","The Public (parent)","self","Sarasota","Current standardized tests compare \"apples to oranges\" as the test from one year to the next in a given subject is different.  One way to mitigate this issue is to evaluate student APTITUDE in conjunction with the achievement tests given for subject area knowledge.  In this way, it would be possible to assess each student where they are as opposed to against others of different abilities.  This particular format would provide greater insight into how much impact teachers actually have in the classroom.  As each student is evaluated against their own aptitude level, rather than against other students with different abilities, it would be possible to measure each students' growth in a subject and in effect the impact of a years' teaching.","All students are not on grade level.  When comparing student test scores to a band of scores, you are limiting the data that can be gained about the student.  In essence, if you label a student as below standard in a subject because they are unable to compete with other students in their grade level then you miss the growth that they MAY actually have made compared to their own ability level.  If a student is only able to meet a level that is not considered passing, but achieves higher than predicted per aptitude testing, then that student has achieved for that school year.  The data taken from predetermined cut scores does not provide a clear picture of what the student has achieved."]
["Jamie ","Students",null,"self","Bay","Since the state has the right to implement these assessments, the state needs to decrease the amount of assessments the students are given each year. ","It is paramount to abuse on both the student population and the teachers of those students to base an entire year's worth of learning and progress on one test that is taken during a 90 minute period in a 180 day school year. It pressure heaped on both populations is counterproductive and effectively kills the love and spirit of true learning in the classroom. Students are teachers are MUCH more than one test score and it is PAST time for government officials with no knowledge of education or educational pedagogy to get out of the classroom!",null,"It is paramount to abuse on both the student population and the teachers of those students to base an entire year's worth of learning and progress on one test that is taken during a 90 minute period in a 180 day school year. It pressure heaped on both populations is counterproductive and effectively kills the love and spirit of true learning in the classroom. Students are teachers are MUCH more than one test score and it is PAST time for government officials with no knowledge of education or educational pedagogy to get out of the classroom!",null,"It is paramount to abuse on both the student population and the teachers of those students to base an entire year's worth of learning and progress on one test that is taken during a 90 minute period in a 180 day school year. It pressure heaped on both populations is counterproductive and effectively kills the love and spirit of true learning in the classroom. Students are teachers are MUCH more than one test score and it is PAST time for government officials with no knowledge of education or educational pedagogy to get out of the classroom!",null,null,"It is paramount to abuse on both the student population and the teachers of those students to base an entire year's worth of learning and progress on one test that is taken during a 90 minute period in a 180 day school year. It pressure heaped on both populations is counterproductive and effectively kills the love and spirit of true learning in the classroom. Students are teachers are MUCH more than one test score and it is PAST time for government officials with no knowledge of education or educational pedagogy to get out of the classroom!",null,"It is paramount to abuse on both the student population and the teachers of those students to base an entire year's worth of learning and progress on one test that is taken during a 90 minute period in a 180 day school year. It pressure heaped on both populations is counterproductive and effectively kills the love and spirit of true learning in the classroom. Students are teachers are MUCH more than one test score and it is PAST time for government officials with no knowledge of education or educational pedagogy to get out of the classroom!",null,null,"It is paramount to abuse on both the student population and the teachers of those students to base an entire year's worth of learning and progress on one test that is taken during a 90 minute period in a 180 day school year. It pressure heaped on both populations is counterproductive and effectively kills the love and spirit of true learning in the classroom. Students are teachers are MUCH more than one test score and it is PAST time for government officials with no knowledge of education or educational pedagogy to get out of the classroom!"]
["Pam DeLapp","Students with Disabilities Advocates","Teacher of ESE students","self","Bay","I agree with the assessments and their purpose.  However, the general plan doesn't work for special needs students.  One assessment is not fair to assess a student's ability.  Teachers can't give one grade for a grading period and say that is enough evidence to pass/fail a student.","Administering the state assessments to special needs students needs to be revisited.  Cognitive or language impairments that have been identified should allow for an alternative assessment or a portfolio situation.  Alternatvie assessments on the books now are for the very lowest IQ students and most students in the gap have a 70-90 IQ but learning is difficult.  Regular assessments are too difficult and the alternative assessments are too easy.  Organic disabilities are not addressed properly in the current situation.","no comment",null,"Alternative assessments for MOST significant - what does that mean?  What about the children who need to be valued in society as a citizen that is not most significant?  What about the child who learns slowly or can't understand language due to processing issues?  The IQ tests show they are above 50.  So they can take the regular assessments!  Goverment officials are misinformed about this section.  They believe any student who has been made elligible for an IEP can take the alternative assessment.  NOT TRUE!  Plus districts fight suggest for alternative assessments because they DON'T want to go over the 1% rule.  That's not fair the the disabled student who is too smart to be MOST significant, but too low performing to be ON grade level.  ","We need to think about ability not disability.  The state needs to think about the exceptional student and the educators who are asked to teach regular standards to impaired brains.","They need to learn English and test in English.  That will save us tons of money testing in native languages.",null,null,"Interesting - as I helped open a forward thinking school with the idea of schools within a school allowing students to be batched by need not age, we wanted to \"get off the FSA train\" and prove the new thinking could work for the students.  I wonder if the districts will consider this option as it will cost them more money to administer and they will be afraid the money will be caught in a loophole due to assessment criteria.","Can we go back to putting the children first?  I understand a need for checking progress, but is this the most efficient way.  ","Language impaired students are the same.  What will we do about them?"]
["Elizabeth Cote","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?","I understand there is a lot of money creating support of standardized assessments. Unfortunately, this effort has proven to be quite destructive. How can we prevent standardized assessments from continuing to damage our children?"]
["Terry Carnley","Teachers",null,"Bell High School","Gilchrist","I am speaking specifically to the geometry EOC test that was administered this spring.  We had a gentleman, who was the administrator of the Faim project for the state of Florida, I believe his name was Rashad come to our county office to help us prepare for the testing to come.  At that time, I specifically asked him to explain why the reference sheet that the students would be given for the test were so inadequate. (Is it not more important to know which formula to use and how it is applied as opposed to did they memorize a set of formulas that they will soon forget but can look up on their phones anytime they need them?)  His reply was that any formula not on the reference sheet would be encased in the body of the question.  This was not the case.  Also the Faim project with all of the practice problems for the test, was inaccessible to the teachers of  Gilchrist County.  We were told it was because our county office didn't ask for it to be released to us???  If it is publicly funded, why would we need anyone's approval?  In short all teacher's should have access to test practice material and all students should have an adequate formula sheet from which they make good decisions"]
["Jennifer Pace","Educator Organizations",null,"Professional Educators Network of Florida","Duval","I know that great efforts are made to create EOC for a lot of courses. What keeps the FLDOE from pre-and post-testing students in individual courses? To me, this is a more accurate measure than using a past test as an indicator on how well a student will do. Furthermore, if a teacher is allowed the freedom to make his or her pre-test or the school as a whole then the teacher knows that the questions will actually reflect what will be taught in the course. Teachers SHOULD have choice in how they teach thier classes. Now, they need to obviously cover all the content. But a test that a teacher does not write limits him/her to really go in depth in areas where the teacher/student are passionate about. Furthermore, IF you go in depth in one area over the other, you should have more questions that reflect that. So, the test should be a reflection of what has been taught. The way things are now forces teachers to teach to the test. When I taught I ALWAYS wrote a new test every year....using my last years test as a template. I did this because from year to year I might cover one area more in depth than another and I wanted to have the freedom to teach. Then, I would write the test based on what is taught. To do this, assumes that we have quality teachers, which Florida does. ESSA is designed to give more local control. Having mandatory EOCs that a teacher has not written him/herself takes too much control from the teacher. "]
["Mari-Lynn Hoffman","Teachers",null,"self","Collier","Philosophically,  I feel that every lesson I teach, provide time for practice, and student assimilation needs to be assessed.  I do it both formally and informally every day of the week.  No good teacher would just keep the lesson going without assessing if they've grasped the concepts/skills along the way.","For budgetary purposes……yes there's too much money spent on testing, when year after year, what I do supports the results of the standardized testing.  If I want to move a student out of my intensive  ELA class because I see that it's thwarting their progress,…..100% of the time, the end of year testing supports my judgement.","That's fine.","I think more students would be in advanced math courses in Middle School if grades  3-5 included Borenson's Hands On Equations in their math instruction.  If, for nothing less than to take away the FOA (fear of Algebra).  The general public would look on that a lot more favorably than \"building a tower\" learn division.  Keep the tower, it's sound, but include something that will prep. the kiddos for Algebra early on.","A student will brain damage,  alternative assessments really translates to someone else doing the work.  Care and steps toward independent living would make more sense.","My niece was born 2 months early and always had trouble with academics.  Her work experience with the hotel industry has led to her being very successful. She'd be the first to tell you that someone always gave her the answers, and she was appreciative and sweet about thanking them.","My father's family immigrated to the USA and learned English fast.  Sure, they failed tests and grade levels, but their work ethic was culturally established and they were encouraged/pushed to keep going.  No one did anything alternatively for them, and they wouldn't have wanted them to.","I look at those results cumulatively, and can gauge the progress at learning English better that way.  I don't consider the student a failure, but it does give me the information I need and helps me determine how much language I need to provide for that student, and how heavily I'm going to ask, \"Do you understand what I mean?\"",null,"Locals are not professional test makers.  I'd prefer norm referenced or vetted manufactured materials from the education market that teachers select.",null,"That's fine."]
["Paul Merritt","Parents and Families",null,"self","Brevard",null,null,"Concur with this exception and others under consideration that eliminate redundant testing.",{"$nulls":6},"In general, I support nationally-recognized assessments. I believe that they better allow our students to compete on a national level. We should have good, well researched academic, vice political reasons for deviating from nationally-recognized assessments. "]
["Leanne Bissett","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard"]
["Laura Cronin","Parents and Families",null,"self","Polk",null,"Section (ii) says that the tests should be aligned with the state standards. I have heard many question how well FSA is aligned to the state standards. It also says that it should provide timely information about students' performance. Currently we do not receive the scores back until the students are out of school. Not very timely.   Section (iii) says that the tests should be used for purposes for which such assessments are valid and reliable. One of the main uses right now for these tests is for teacher evaluation, which is not a valid and reliable use of these tests. Basing a teacher's evaluation on one test taken on one day is simply not an accurate reflection of their teaching. There are too many outside influences that factor into children's performance. Now if you gave a test at the beginning of the year and gave the same test at the end of the year and looked at the students that the teacher had for the entire year to see if they showed growth, that would be a little more accurate reflection."]
["Jon E. Soskis","The Public",null,"self","Gadsden","First, I am a 66 year old Caucasian Gadsden County school district volunteer who is constantly pushing for higher standards, particularly seeing to it that eventually a shift occurs whereby any work of any kind by any student on any day that is below 70% gets redone on the spot. This note to you is about the average Gadsden County student and the discrimination they suffer at the hands of the State. The Gadsden public schools include about 70% African Americans and 30% Hispanic students. Caucasian student numbers are negligible (4 in a middle school with over 700 students). Why do I apply the word discrimination? The schools consist largely of students whose performances reflect their history and their family's history...200 years of being held back, beginning with not being allowed to learn to read. Students that enter  Gadsden schools suffer from fewer words being spoken to them, uneducated parents and other family members, overwhelmed mothers who do not understand the importance of stressing education as \"the equalizer\", missing fathers,  nutrition based on poverty and/or ignorance, and all of the emotional problems stemming from these issues that preclude adequate focus and academic achievement. Every teacher is faced with the challenge of trying to make up for 200 years of societal neglect...even today shamefully including educational neglect by the State of Florida Department of Education. Where's the neglect? THESE students need the highest trained and highest paid teachers available in the United States. Too many fresh, optimistic teachers begin their careers in Gadsden County because that is where offers of a job and job training exist, then, due to overwhelming numbers of ILL-PREPARED STUDENTS and disrespectful pay, they gather what training they can and often within months move to affluent Leon County where the pipeline is filled with well prepared students, the facilities are in good condition, and the pay is significantly better. Teacher flight lags only behind the \"white flight\" of the last number of years. Keep in mind the educational history of African Americans compared to that of Caucasians who are responsible for suppressing the African American population...including suppressing today through the discrimination of  educational neglect. This is a sinking ship, and the State MUST infuse MASSIVE FUNDING ALONG WITH OVERSIGHT if the discriminatory practice of neglect of African Americans and Hispanics is to become a false charge."]
["Kimberly Thomas","Students",null,"none","Calhoun","It is very discouraging how much emphasis and stress we have put on our children to perform for these state tests and assessments. I have a child that never had Tourette's syndrome until her 7th grade year and her neurologist and family feel it was brought on full force due to the pressure and stress she was put under due to these tests. All year long she never ticks, jumps, shouts or anything. When testing comes around our family sometimes has to give her a sedative to calm her mind and body down enough for her to stop ticking. When did we stop allowing our children to be kids and instead have pushe dthem so hard they have to perform or fail. My family has seriously considered home schooling due to these stressors."]
["Erin Harrigan","Teachers",null,"Rockledge High School","Brevard",{"$nulls":13},"The US History EOC is appropriate for the content teachers are expected to cover. The skill knowledge and application of knowledge are appropriately assessed on the present EOC format. However, early time of the EOCs is inapporpriate. Students should not have to attend class following the taking of the EOC. Content has to be finished by then, there is zero purpose in student attendance in classes past the EOC administration."]
["Courtney McMahan","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard",null,null,"Why wouldn't you also exclude 7th graders taking HS Algebra I who took the HS Algebra EOC??  Any student, regardless of grade level who is required to take an EOC should not also have to take the grade level assesment if this is an additional test- such as 7th graders taking Algrebra I.  Exempting only 8th graders makes no sense.  ","No student should be expected to take a grade level test for a class they didn't take and an EOC in the class they did take.  The test for all students should match the material the student covered in school that year.  Grade level of student should not matter.  Test them on the class they took and ONLY on that class.","fl",null,"fl",null,null,"melbourne"]
["Laura Murrell","School Administrators",null,"self","Bay","none","*Periodicity of assessments.  With assessments being electronic, why don't we measure what a student truly learns in a year?  I believe children should be tested the 1st week of school and the last week of school using a program that can score the assessments quickly and give parents and school personnel almost instant feedback.  My child's district uses NWEA, MAPS and they are able to provide me with immediate feedback on my child's weaknesses and strengths.    My child has no desire to go to school after the FSA testing cycle is completed.  In his and her mind and in their teacher's mind, school is over.  Testing needs to take place way later in the school year.  Plus I feel teachers are cramming what should be a full year of instruction down my child's mouth in 2 and 1/2 quarters.  Totally unfair to my children.    ","none",null,"none",null,"Assess at the beginning of the year and again at the end of the year (when school is super close to ending).","NWEA Maps","none","national is better",null,"I think the way Florida does assesses ELL students is good."]
["Jake Schweich","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Brevard",null,"How will the assessments be used in regard to individual student progress?"]
["Wendy","Students",null,"self","Brevard","the tests should be administered at the end of the school year after the students have had an entire year to learn the content."]
["TOBI LINDSEY","Teachers",null,"Hutchison Beach Elem","Bay","As an educator, I need to know more about the test not to teach to the test but to know the expectations. Are students asked specific questions using one strategy or to answer with any? It takes valuable time to teach all the possible ways just in case IF the whole class understands one or two ways.",null,null,null,"This is important and could include a variety of student issues. Please be careful with the limits.",{"$nulls":5},"Sounds good.","Again, this affects a teachers career. The second sounds better."]
["Elizabeth Leung","Parents and Families",null,"none","Palm Beach",null,"Stop calling them assessments. It is a test that my 4th grader was taught from the time she came back from winter break. Her year is as follows: \"assessments\" of whether she is were she should be for the start of the year, then fairly normal teaching until winter break. After winter break, the teachers start teaching to the test. Once the test is over the teachers go back to the subjects that were ignored the rest of the year: science, geography, etc.","I'm confused not yet having a child in middle school. If this is to keep 8th graders from being tested twice, why wouldn't it simply read that they are exempt IF they have already taken and passed another approved test?",{"$nulls":6},"This is the smartest section out of the whole text, but how is it paid for? Will the state pay to allow counties to use a test that is not NGSSS? ","Great that it is allowed, but who will fund the cost of a different test, materials, graders, etc.?"]
["Fern","Teachers","Homeschool","Self","Bay",null,"I think as many other states, testing should be allowed to opt out using a religious exception. "]
["Rani Rhodes","Teachers",null,"Bell Elementary School","Gilchrist","Our school departmentalizes, I am responsible for all of the science curriculum for 5th grade. I am responsible for (what the state thinks and decides on) 25 standards but in reality I am responsible for more than 60 standards due to the test testing 3rd and 4th grade standards. It really is not feasible to move the science test a month earlier. Please reconsider the time frame of the standardized Science test.  Thank you."]
["Heather Germano","Parents and Families",null,"self","Brevard","My idea is State of Florida can adopt to administer a Federal-branded assessment ONLY AFTER a sampling of various school officials, from a broad sampling of counties, first actually SEE = PREVIEW the test first!",null,"I think taking Math EOCs is good.  This additional test day ensures that students learned the Math skills and were not \"just taught for a test\"","Additionally, all middle-school aged kids have \"good & bad\" days, so having 2 testing opportunities seems more reasonable.",{"$nulls":5},"I favor a nationally-recognized assessment - ensuring all students in various states have a uniform learning experience."]
["kim walker","Parents and Families",null,"self","Lake",{"$nulls":9},"I believe this should be implemented with the use of a test such as MAP and used as a progress monitoring tool only. PSAT, PLAN, SAT, ACT and PERT only. "]
["Lisa Camacho Szeto","Teachers","Classroom Teacher Association , NEA Delegate","OCPS","Orange","If the students pass the first year of arrival, the school should count that students' score and offer bonus points to the overall grade and teacher VAM.","Students should be able to use online dictionaries/technology while testing to ensure each student has a dictionary.  Perhaps some questions should limit dictionary usage, but other parts should allow it to encourage the students to demonstrate their knowledge.","Online dictionaries should be available as many word problems encounter poor manual dictionary choices.","Teachers should submit names as to those that are not ready to take the test.  If we know they are not ready, why do we subject them to hours of testing that does not meet any learning goal.  An alternate placement with language learning interactions should be available for these days.","Some students have emotional affects which impede their ability to perform in large settings.  Students should have the opportunity to test in a desired environment with a small group versus large group where they can ask interactive questions regarding the material so they can perform.  Personally, schools should open on Saturdays or evening for mass testing as it takes too many days from the instructional calendar.","Alternative portfolios or assessments should be allowed.","How can we align with proficiency standards when the students are not grouped according to abilities and are not provided step by step curriculum for language learning?  There is an order to language learning.  If the student arrives on step 10, but has missed steps 1-9 they rarely catch up unless they came with great studying and learning habits.  We need to consider placement better.  Spend three days assessing their skills in their native language and English language before just placing them in a class.","There are certain tests through pearson, TESOL, center for applied linguistics and the WIDA consortium that can be assessed for placement.  I am not an expert in the assessment methods as of yet; however, Dr. Strebel from Stetson University is.","Please have a round table discussion with the incoming students.  They will tell you, their concern is not for learning Romeo and Juliet; but they have a desire to learn the formal language first and then they can participate in the academics.  It is hard when a high school student arrives and they can't be taught the language because we are too busy teaching the content matter to reach the standard.","This year, from what I hear, there was a question about personal space on the FSA.  Personal space for an American has many contexts.  Obviously, the new arrivals did not have knowledge of all the personal spaces that exists.  Until we give a less ambiguous exam that focuses on full understanding measurement results will be skewed.  They should have an option.","Fiction books have been taken out of the high school reading classes as we are just using non-fiction to teach.  Can we please use fiction books as well as it helps teach language idioms, phrasing, expression, and hooks students into many of the standards needed for language learning.","Students that are not quickly learning the language because they are behind in their native language skills should be put in a year one language learning course.  Students should not just be judged on their ability to speak, but on their ability to capture information and critically contribute to the learning process.  It appears not all new arrivals can do this.  For example, I had three arrivals from Brazil this year at multiple levels of language learning; however, they were able to pass the English FSA because of their intelligence and ability to apply knowledge.  They surpassed American students and new arrivals too.  If the students had no exposure to English previously, they should be given a English language learning class.  At the more advanced levels they should be offered a written language class.  Even those that passed the FSA need more assistance with the written language and are not ready to compete in college.  We need a tiered approach to language learning with teacher input for student placement.","Students have learned to speak; yet, they will all tell you they still need help with writing properly, understanding grammar and higher level vocabulary.  There should be an opt-in class for those feeling they need and desire extra support so they don't wind up in remedial classes in college.","We know funding for these students is important.  Recently all teachers are required to have ESOL training and certification.  However, just having this basic certification does not make the educator an expert in working with these students.  Only those who specialize and have degrees in Bilingual Education and Language teacher methodologies are exposed to years of linguistic development and  language structure.  Bilingualism is attainable, but look at who the students are and the instructors."]
["Genoa Burgess","Parents and Families","Paraprofessional ","Self","Bay","My child has a 504plan, how does children with 504 plans fit under the ESSA identifying four subgroups of student with a plan. Also, what assistance does children with an MTSS plan have with succeeding in Reading and Language Arts when it comes to the ESSA.","n/a",null,"n/a","yes",null,"NO","NO",null,"Yes",null,"yes","No"]
["Susan Crawford","Teachers",null,"none","Leon",null,"There are too many assessments required.  Test windows are too long, taking away from academic contact hours."]
["Loral Monn","Teachers","Public","self","Bay",null,"This is the only section I understood, how often a student will be assessed in a given time period and what subject areas.  Again, reading and language arts say or, so does that mean that the students only need to show proficiency in reading or writing, not both?  Also, the state will only be assessing math, reading or language arts, and science - no other subject areas unless the state deems in necessary?  This is unclear.",{"$nulls":11},"This entire section is incomprehensible. I just read through it and I don't really understand what any of it is talking about other than testing English Language Learners."]
["Cheryl Marrs","Teachers",null,"School District","Leon",{"$nulls":9},"I like this"]
["Athlean ClarkeSmith","Parents and Families",null,"none","Broward","Bear in mind that said student has to take ELA to grade 10 and Math to grade 12 unless exempt from courses that requires an EOC exam. Will said student only take other mMath courses?","Consider the academic success of students and gauge that towards the type of assessment that will show some success",null,null,"What is the implication for school grade?  That was a part of school grade, will it still be?",null,"Not sure how this is done","This ELA assessment should not be used against these students"]
["Colleen Schmidt","Teachers","parent","Partin Settlement Elementary","Osceola","I am an art educator and I am very frustrated with the EOY and EOC requirements for elementary art education.  First of all I teach at a large school and I have over 860 students. I see classes on a 7 or 8 rotation for 45 minutes and I only see my students about 20 times for the whole school year. Student ability in art can not accurately be assessed by a standardized test, it becomes more of a reading test for most students.  My best artists who apply the standards that I teach best are not always the best readers or test takers. They should be assessed only on performance in creating art, using a rubric.  My other issue with this is, we should only be testing 5th graders not K-4.  The numbers of tests these students have to take is too much.  They are over-tested and stressed having tests in everything from reading to PE.  Plus I spent the last month and a half of school reviewing and testing while their unfinished art projects sat on a shelf.  It would be much more valuable if they had been allowed to finish their final projects and then I could have assessed them using a rubric.  I wonder how we have lost sight of what is truly best for our students. How does this over -testing craze help or benefit them?  I have thought long about this and the answer is, it does not benefit them.  It is more about evaluating teachers than doing what is best for student learning.  Should we be held accountable? Yes, absolutely but standardized tests do not always truly measure student ability in all subject areas.  As a parent, I know my child is way over-tested.  He is a gifted student and feels his learning time is wasted on multiple tests through out the year. And he is right. Please back down on some of these test  requirements they are not improving education for our kids."]
["Richard LeBlanc","Parents and Families",null,"self","Orange",{"$nulls":6},"\"(F) ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY STANDARDS.—  Each State plan shall demonstrate that the State has  adopted English language proficiency\".  I would recommend that the State adopt English as the official language of the State and discontinue offering multi-language communications.  Proficiency in a language is best achieved when a family/village is forced to utilize it.",{"$nulls":4},"\"(F) ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY STANDARDS.—  Each State plan shall demonstrate that the State has  adopted English language proficiency\".  I would recommend that the State adopt English as the official language of the State and discontinue offering multi-language communications.  Proficiency in a language is best achieved when a family/village is forced to utilize it."]
["Kelly Lovett","Teachers","parent","Bay Haven Charter Academy","Bay","One of the major issues in public education that concerns me today is the fact that our students are being over-tested.  Here in Bay County, having worked in Bay District Schools (Millville and Rosenwald Middle) and at Bay Haven Charter Academy, we teachers test students in MAP three times a year (and in math, reading, and science for fifth grade alone!); we DIBEL; we JOHNS; we FSA; we progress monitor in RtI; we give End of Course Exams…I could go on and on.  The problem, personally, is that I lose SO much instructional time due to these assessments that I don’t even have time to analyze or process the data before it’s time to test again!  Assessment encroaching causes me, as a professional educator, to question a lot of things:  •\tIf assessment should be driving my instruction, am I really spending the time to use the data as it was intended to be used?  •\tHow are these assessments benefiting my students?  Do they even benefit them at all?  •\tWhat should I really be assessing?  •\tHow do I need to assess?  •\tAre the standards I am asked to teach being mastered?  How do I know for sure?  •\tIs this all about the quality of assessments or quantity of assessments?  This issue is extremely personal with me because at Bay Haven and North Bay Haven, in past years, we conducted a study of our own.  Our administrators asked the staff from both schools to calculate the amount of time spent getting ready for assessments and then the time it took to actually give them (not including a teacher’s own curriculum assessments).  The results were a bit staggering.  For example, the year we surveyed, in fifth grade, we calculated that it took staff about six hours a year to enter student information into DEA and print the reports; it took about nine days of actual testing time throughout the year (nine hours for math/science teachers and 4 ½ hours for reading teachers); add to that the two days of make-up testing (about two hours used during our planning time to have students make up the Think Link they missed), and you will see a lot of instructional time lost to assessment.  Here’s another mind-boggling statistic:  Our Bay Haven administrators and their staff spent a total of 52 hours preparing for the first Think Link test alone; they had a total of 339 man hours actually testing students, which led to a total of 391 hours for just ONE window of Think Link testing from Monday, September 5th through Friday, September 30th of this year!  How can these staff members and administrators be expected to give ME the support I need when they’re spending 391 hours of time over just ONE of three Discovery Education Assessments for the school year?  And that’s just one assessment piece.  Think of all of the other assessments we were required to give to students during that school year.  In her report to administration concerning the amount of assessment encroachment going on, one North Bay Haven high school math teacher’s frustration is quite obvious as she hit the nail on the head:    “There are only 61 days of instruction before that [EOC] test…Subtract that from the four days of DEA and FCAT, and two days for Semester 1 finals and I have 55 days to teach 1200 pages of material.  Strange concept, but back in the day, we put aside one day to review and one day to test each chapter—which would take away another 24 days since there are 12 chapters that need to be covered.  So now I’m trying to teach an entire curriculum in 31 days!  After I somehow perform this amazing feat, my students will take an END of Course Exam when they actually have another 29 days of class left AND this test will count 30% of their grade…So why in creation do we call this the END of Course Exam?”  \tAnd this data was from YEARS ago.  It's just gotten a lot worse, in my opinion.  What are we doing?  Do we even know?  In my opinion, the data is completely unmanageable.  It’s out of our control.  It’s almost as if we don’t know what to do with all of this “important” data we’ve collected.  \tThat’s just the surface of the issue.  It runs much deeper.  I can tell you that teachers are scared.  Many of us are anxious about this data…we worry about how it makes us look as “effective” or “highly effective” teachers.  And we should worry—it’s now tied to our pay!  This, in my opinion, creates divisiveness between teachers.  Instead of being a community of sharers, we’re trying to out-do our teammates.  We are trying to be better than our colleagues because we know we’re being compared based on a lot of data being collected—about things we haven’t even gotten to teach!    We really must come to grips with our over-assessing of students.  I implore you to take the opportunity to do something about it NOW.  It's just not worth it--not to teachers, parents, and most of all, to our students. "]
["Kerry M.Chapdelaine","Specialized Instructional Support Personnel",null,"Learning Resource Specialist, Instructional Coach & Digital Curriculum Coach","Orange","Because all State Standards-Based assessments for the core content areas are particularly secure, there is no way for teachers, administrators, or district staff to ensure they are, in fact, valid and reliable assessments.","This requirement has led to district-created \"Common Final Exams\" ( nee \"End-of-Course\" Assessments) for all high school content areas that do not already have a state assessment requirement.  These assessments, although well intended, are an embarrassment!  They were created over two summers (2014 and 2015) by teachers who teach in non-state assessment content areas. They are riddled with spelling and grammatical errors, there are test items with no answer choices, answer choices with no test questions and are certainly not standardized by any stretch of the imagination.  It is my understanding that proficient standardized test-item writers hold doctoral degrees in the field and I feel certain no ocps instructional or administrative staff hold such a degree or have the experience required to create a statistically valid and reliable assessment.  Florida's standardized assessment requirement has led to an appalling number of assessments for high school students at every grade level (9 thru 12).  The emphasis and number of assessments has created an environment in which students and teachers, in addition to being completely overwhelmed, equate their professional and personal self-worth with performance. The paradigm under which we have been operating since the passing of NCLB has produced a generation of students who are ill-prepared for the world of work.      From a Florida Educator's perspective, Bush's NCLB Legislation is missing a \"W\" .  Florida's response to this legislation was the FCAT, a culturally biased assessment  that left  very few \"white children\" behind while ensuring that our black & hispanic children remain in poverty well beyond high school.   To add insult to injury, FDOE attributes the correlation between poor minority-student performance and the glaringly wide achievement gap to bad teaching, not a bad test.  Continuing to create and mandate these assessments will continue to foster intensely adversarial relationships between administrators & teachers, teachers & students, and perhaps worst of all, between non-white students and white instructional / administrative staff.   "]
["Debbie Wadsworth","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Clay","I have 2 concerns. 1.  I am very concerned that the EOC's count 30% of the full year course grade. Each semester only counts 35% of the grade. That means that 4 months of school only counts 5% more of a 2 - 2 1/2 hour test. How is that logical?   2.  I am also concerned that the state gave each county the freedom at their discretion to assign a grade value to each level. Clay county decided a HORRIBLE way to value their levels. They assigned a 5=95%A, 4=85%B, 3=75%C and so on. please tell me how a Level 4, which indicates above grade level performance is equivalent to a mid level B?  My daughter took Algebra 2 this past school year in Clay County and earned a 91%A for first semester and 90%A for the 2nd Semester. She earned a Level 4 on her EOC. THE WAY clay Counry calculates her full year grade came out to an 89%B. Her only B.  So, please tell me how it is fair to the students that earn the exact same Level on the EOC and the exact same grades, but will get a higher final full year scores based on how their counties calculate the EOC levels?  Clay county students will have a disasvantage (lower GPA) competing against other county students for scholarships and college entrances. Please do something about making it to make it a fair and equal ground. "]
["T","Parents and Families",null,"None","Broward","Students are over-tested! The politicians creating these policies were probably not subjected to test after test...so why shoul our kids be??","We expect teachers to differentiate their instruction, yet test all kids the same way. Doesn't make sense!",{"$nulls":9},"ELLs should not be included in gains. Of the student receives support as an RLL, s/he should be exempt from testing.","Students who have been exited from the program should count."]
["Pamela Parry","School Administrators",null,"Fleming Island High School","Clay","Students do NOT need to be tested every year. There should be benchmarks at certain levels but in no way should hold a student back from moving on in their education. Students today have developed such severe testing anxiety because they fail one test and feel that is the measure of who they are as a person. Testing really only needs to occur in 3rd, 8th, and 11th grade.","If Colleges and Universities accept SAT/ACT, why not use that as the global assessment for all students.",{"$nulls":7},"Use the SAT or ACT. ",null,"ELL students should not have to meet the same rigorous standards as native english speakers"]
["DEBRA GLOVER","English Language Learners Advocates",null,"SELF","Flagler","STUDENTS ARE ALLOWED 3 HOURS TO COMPLETE A 60 QUESTION TEST. WHY? SCHOOL IS ALLOWING MOST OF THE DAY FOR TESTING. WASTE OF LEARNING TIME.  (DOES NOT INCLUDE THOSE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES OR IEPS!",{"$nulls":5},"THE TESTS ARE BIASED .QUESTIONS DO NOT RELATE TO FOREIGN STUDENT EXPERIENCES","LISTENING PORTIONS OF TEST ; SAME AS ABOVE.",null,null,null,"CHOOSE THE LATTER AND THEN IMPLEMENT . DO NOT HAVE SEPARATE SCHOOL DISTRICTS DOING DIFFERENT ELL STANDARDS.  "]
["Jeanette Dice","Teachers",null,"self","Palm Beach",null,null,"Students should certainly not be subject to multiple tests within the same subject.  This is a critical and necessary change.",null,null,null,"ELLs should be tested, initially, only for proficiency level as a starting score.  ELLs should not be counted in school scores until the students have been enrolled in an American school for at least twelve full months.  Some students enter in fourth quarter and are then counted the following year, but it should be twelve full months.  It takes at least one full year in America to read and write proficiently.","Assessments could include PERT, SRI, SAT and/or ACT.",null,"This is most essential to success in our state as each District has different needs based upon the population and Districts should be able to use SAT/ACT/AP/AICE exams.",null,"As a former ELL teacher who has a Masters in TESOL, I know that this is most critical in accurate assessment.  Students need two years to attain reading and writing proficiency.  Students can acquire the Listening and Speaking skills sooner, but Reading and Writing take more time.  No country tests ELLs prior to one full academic year of language instruction."]
["Robert Wilson","The Public",null,"none","Duval","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.","Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child’s data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based."]
["Gayle Pass Buford","Teachers",null,"Orange County Public Schools","Orange",{"$nulls":11},"Students generally need longer than a full year to hope to be successful on these types of assessments.  I would advocate exempting them until they have been in the United States for a full year, then using learning gains in year 3 and achievement in year 4.    ","Yes, as above, many students need longer than is allowed to achieve proficiency, especially in the upper grades."]
["Carole Lash","Teachers","Venice High School","Venice High School","Sarasota",null,null,"Some student take high school math such as Algebra 1 in 7th grade. The law should not specify the grade rather that if the student takes a course with an EOC that test should be used.",null,"Why is a percentage used? To qualify as having significant cognitive disabilities should be based on the students diagnosis not the number or percentage of students in the state with cognitive disabilities."]
["Vickie Jones","Teachers",null,"none","Columbia","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a","n/a"]
["Jennifer Alvis","Teachers",null,"self","Bay","It would be cost effective to reduce the number of tests at the high school level to require one exit exam.  This exam should be the ACT.  It is a more reliable test and provides a better measure of student ability.  ","Again, the ACT would meet the requirements at the high school level.  Perhaps moving to the Iowa Achievement Test would be appropriate for elementary and middle school.  ","Please move away from EOCs and move towards ACT as a tool of measure.  Students should not have to endure double testing.  ",null,null,null,"Move to requiring the writing portion of the ACT.  Students would then only be responsible for passing one test for high school completion.  ",null,null,"I think that this is a great idea and all schools should be able to chose between the PERT,ACT or SAT to meet this requirement on a state level.  "]
["Karen Gaylor","Teachers",null,"None","Duval","The state should hold all subject areas to the same reading standards as set forth by the FLDOE.  ","We differentiate in our classroom instruction to meet the needs of all students; it is only fair to these students that assessments are differentiated as well to meet their needs.","As long as the end-of-course assessment is held to the same rigor as the state assessment.","N/A","N/A","N/A","Again, if we differentiate classroom instruction to meet the needs of our students,  it is only fair that assessments need to b differentiated to meet their needs.","Assessments would depend on the level of proficiency of the students.  Vocabulary within the assessment would need to be selected based on their level of understanding the English Language.  One of my middle school students  struggled throughout the year in reading.  I concentrated on as many vocabulary skills as possible to help them along with working on phonemic awareness and fluency.  The area of vocabulary was a strong concentration.  Despite all of the individual work that was done, the student still struggled due to his lanaguage ability.",null,"This is a much-needed assessment and should designed to meet the needs of all LEA students.",null,"Students should be given five years to be then included in learning gains.","Students should be exempted during the first few years until English has been mastered.  "]
["Monica White","Parents and Families",null,"none","Jackson","The local schools should have more involvement with teaching and making sure each child has the ability to understand the standards at the beginning and throughout the school year. There should be exceptions for students who are developmentally disabled  so he or she will not have to take an assessment.. ",{"$nulls":5},"Professional development training on specific subjects shall be mandatory across the school for parents and teachers.   ",null,null,"If education is suppose to be individualized, I believe the state, as well as, the school should offer an assessment that evaluates a  child's performance that is accomodating to a child who has test anxiety.  The local administration  should be able to show a child's progress throughout the school year, instead of only relying on the end of the year assessment. ( some kids do not perform well under pressure)"]
["Sue Woltanski","Parents and Families",null,"self","Monroe","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","the 30% of the grade requirement is excessive for all the EOC classes and for bright middle school students who have a bad day during the EOC it can be devastating.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","In General, I find this website nearly impossible for the ordinary person to use, so I am going to place my concerns in each box and let you figure out where each comment should be place.  First, I want to remind the FLDOE of “the original intent of ESEA, which was to facilitate equitable, thriving, and successful public education for all schools via distribution of funding free of strings attached other than need and a comprehensive and viable game plan for success.\"    I demand a complete accountability overhaul: eliminate high stakes attached to state testing, minimize state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA, return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.    Eliminate high stakes attached to state testing. It is the stakes attached to the tests that have, more than anything else, corrupted the education system.  End the mandatory 3rd grade promotion requirement as well as the graduation requirement to pass the Algebra 1 EOC and 10th grade FSA-ELA . These are not required by federal law or regulations. Many states already have eliminated their test dependent graduation requirements.  Dramatically reduce or eliminate the weight of the state EOC exams on the students final grade, from 30% to 10% or less.  Stop the use of VAM and test scores to evaluate teachers. ESSA eliminated any federal mandate for test-based teacher evaluation.  Test scores should make up no more than 51% of the total points in the A-F School Grade formula  (the minimum percentage allowed under ESSA).  Ensure that School Grades are used to identify schools in need of assistance (including additional funding) and not to punish schools identified as “low performers.” ESSA does require states to rank all schools and act to improve the lowest performing, but it no longer specifies the types of interventions required.  There should be no state standardized tests beyond those mandated by ESSA (reading and math in grades 3-8 and once in high school, science once in elementary, middle and high school).   Minimize required state standardized tests to those mandated by ESSA. In Florida the Biology EOC and Algebra 1 EOC, along with the 10th grade FSA ELA could satisfy the high school requirements. The 9th grade FSA-ELA and all other state mandated EOCs could be eliminated.  The state should advocate for pilot programs allowing grade span testing or sampling in place of current ESSA mandates.  State should forbid standardized local interim, benchmark, predictive, formative, or other such tests, including those embedded in commercial on-line curricula. Eliminate all test data reporting requirements beyond the ESSA mandated assessments.  Institute a ban on standardized testing in pre-K through grade 3.  End the secrecy around state mandated assessments. Allow educators and parents to view and review state assessments.  Return classroom assessments to teachers, utilizing primarily locally-based, teacher-controlled assessments, such as projects and portfolios. The New York Performance Standards Consortium has demonstrated better outcomes with fewer standardized test, and should serve as a guide.  Protect student data and make student data privacy a top priority.  Eliminate digital classroom mandates, allowing districts to incorporate technology as a tool rather than a curriculum replacement.  Allow parents the option to safeguard their child's data by allowing families to opt out of digital instruction.  The computer based, state mandated Civics exams allows the possibility of collection and sharing of sensitive data of a political nature.  In order to ensure the safety of such sensitive information, this exam, especially, should be paper based.  ","Locally created assessments made by teachers will assure students are tested on what they are taught, rather than taught what is on the test.",null,null,"Asking English Language learner to take these tests are a baseline before they are proficient in english is abusive and counterproductive"]
["Cindy High","Parents and Families",null,"self","Bay","I would like for children with disabilities (like mine), to be assessed differently compared to other children who are able to achieve the normal educational goals and testing standards.","I believe there should be alternate assessments for children with severe cognitive disabilities.  This will ensure that my child will be successful.",null,null,"I feel that there should be no limit on how many children can participate in the alternative assessment as long as they qualify under the the category of significant cognitive disability.",{"$nulls":4},"I think that this would be a good thing."]
["Kathryn Andriola","Teachers","Concerned voter, parent, grandparent","Public:  Stanton Weirsdale Elementary","Marion",{"$nulls":9},"I do not think we need to spend money on other assessments if we have one in place already that meets the requirement.  ","The same assessments should be used across the state.","Agree with the second scenario."]
["Debbie Fite","Teachers",null,"TALC","Lee","\"Timely\" is the key. With the advent of computer assisted testing, results should be availabe within six weeks. However, I will say that this year's results did come back the quickest I've ever experienced.    These results should guide instruction, not \"punish\" or withold advancement. All current research provides information on the lack of results with denying students advancement to the next grade.     That's not to say that for students who score minimally or substantially below grade level, that different instruction should be provided.  ",null,"If students pass the EOC, they should not be double tested. It's a waste of time, energy, and an unnecessary test for students and teachers.",null,"Students who have a very low cognitive ability should not be tested at all. It is undo stress on the student(s), his/her family, and the teacher(s) of that student.     In addition, if a parent/guardian of a student with very low cognitive abilities, or a terminal situation, wishes to have their child exempted from this test, their wishes should be honored.",{"$nulls":4},"If LEAs choose to use their own assessment, and it meets all the above criteria, that should be their decision. However, it should not, I repeat, should not be used to measure that LEA against other LEAs in the state."]
["Jennifer","Teachers",null,"Lee County Schools","Lee","More provisions and availability of funds need to be provided for Performance based assessments. Gone is the day that students should be sitting for hours and filling in a bubble sheet! We need to allow for teachers and districts to formulate good quality PBAs to use in lieu of standardized tests. Students are not uniform and we are missing the high and the low performers with our standard ways of measurement. ",null,null,null,"We cannot place such a small percentage on SWD - they represent more than that small number in our schools at present. SWD are hindered enough as it is - they should not have to waste their time with test prep and testing that is not appropriate for them nor does it represent any accurate measured progress. ",{"$nulls":4},"Districts need to be the ones who make the decision on which assessment is appropriate for their local area. "]
["John Meeks","Teachers",null,"Self","Duval","I believe that all core academic subjects should have state-level assessments at the end of the school year.  It does not make sense, in my opinion, for there to be a patchwork of 67 different exams for M/J World History, for example, while there is a statewide End of Course exam for seventh grade civics.  If the state truly believes in accountability and assessment, they should have consistent assessment for all academic subject areas.","The state should invest properly in the infrastructure to administer student assessments in a timely manner.  It does not make any sense to administer an end of course exam in March or April simply because the state is concerned about the computers crashing.  The state also should properly communicate with the districts in advance of testing to ensure that the proper software and applications are installed and operational prior to any computer-based test administration."]
["lisa","Teachers",null,"pinellas county schools","Pinellas","State assessments are testing far more than just the standards.  We are putting 8 year olds on a computer, expecting them to read passages while scrolling up/down and switching between multiple texts and then asking them to answer questions.  We are not only assessing content, then we are assessing their attention span and focus, their computer saavy and their abilitiy to sit still and stare at a computer for at least an hour.  This is totally unreasonable, even for a 10 year old.  Then, you are calculating school grades and schools staff evaluations based on that.      Another problem is that the way questions are asked on assessments is not communicated to counties.  So teachers are stuck guessing, after reading a 1 or 2 sentence standard, how to word and phrase their instruction since teachers have to sign a legal document stating they will not look at the test or the questions.  Totally unfair to both students and teachers.","The assessments should not be administed to ESE or ELP students.  Nor should the tests be administered on a computer at all in elementary school.",{"$nulls":4},"State assessments are testing far more than just the standards.  We are putting 8 year olds on a computer, expecting them to read passages while scrolling up/down and switching between multiple texts and then asking them to answer questions.  We are not only assessing content, then we are assessing their attention span and focus, their computer saavy and their abilitiy to sit still and stare at a computer for at least an hour.  This is totally unreasonable, even for a 10 year old.  Then, you are calculating school grades and schools staff evaluations based on that.      Another problem is that the way questions are asked on assessments is not communicated to counties.  So teachers are stuck guessing, after reading a 1 or 2 sentence standard, how to word and phrase their instruction since teachers have to sign a legal document stating they will not look at the test or the questions.  Totally unfair to both students and teachers.  And now we are asking a student who may have just moved here from an African village with no technology to sit and take these tests.  Totally unreasonable.",null,null,"It would be far better to do a national test, such as the SAT 10 than to do the Florida state assessments.  Kids need to be able to have a book and a pencil in their hands and not be sitting in front of a computer trying to do it.  Also, if our state standards are developmentally inappropriate then so would be our assessments.","We are killing the love for learning in our children.  Children feel they are never doing good enough because they are straining so much to reach our goals.  We need to go back to educating for our future rather than educating for accountability."]
["Denise Ervans","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Collier","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state Get rid of state testingtesting. The lonGGet riGet rid of state testingGet rid of state testingd of state testinget rid of state testingger you do it, the more you look like idiots. You're not teachers. Let teachers teach and children learn. ","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing","Get rid of state testing. It is a waste of my taxpayer dollars. It is a sad thing that somehow people that never enter the classroom (or entered and left) have become experts in the field of teaching. It's just more state employees getting a lot of money to make rules and regulations about something they know nothing about. They spend zero time with students. Once again, $$$$ spent on everything but teacher salaries.   No money  No tenure  No teachers  Stressed out students   Way to go state testers. I give you ALL an A+ in stressing out an entire generation of children for absolutely no reason other than greed.     Get rid of state tests. "]
["Jeff R Odom","Teachers",null,"None","Lake",{"$nulls":13},"Either provide the money for technology to the districts so that students can all test simultaneously or use paper testing.  The classroom is completely disrupted from March to May due to testing.  It takes for or five days to administer one test because of the lack of computers on which to administer the tests."]
["Carol Rosasco","The Public","Parent of students that have graduated","self","Brevard","Who defines \"high quality student academic assessments\"? ","If states are paying for students to attend charter schools, they should be held to the same standards and required to administer the same assessments. Who is going to review the assessments so that they meet the criteria set forth in this section? Independent state committee? Federal Gov't? Is it worth the money to even review this? Will it become political? I like the idea that assessment can include portfolios or other work done throughout the year and not necessary by a single exam!","Do Not Over test our students!","Why is this limited to math? ","Why is the 1% limit needed?  How will this filter down to individual schools? Will this exclude this option for students that would benefit from alternate assessments because of the 1% limit?","Like having parent involvement in process.",null,null,null,"I  assume Advanced Placement exams are an example of such an assessment. I agree that students shouldn't have to take more than one final exam per subject. Only concern is the timing of the results of the exams. Could it effect graduation for some students?","Do not over test!",null,null,"These assessments need to be funded by the state or Federal govt, not local school districts!! This is CRITICAL for implementation."]
["Neil Blumengarten","Teachers",null,"Self","Hernando","This part includes the phrase, \"in consultation with  local educational agencies,\" however I do not see how or where local educational agencies have been consulted.  ","Are we sure the FSA meets these requirements?  While they were found to be valid in the fall of 2015, the group that investigated them did have some comments, which do not seem to have been addressed.","Please ensure this remains in place.  ",null,"As I said in the previous section, having significantly disabled students, both physically and/or cognitively, take these assessments is child abuse.  There is absolutely no reason that a dying child should their parents fight for the child not to take the test.  "]
["Hattie Mercer-Gilley","Teachers",null,"Hillsborough County Schools","Hillsborough",null,"Students are being tested so much until teachers do not have the time to teach so that the students learn what they are being taught. Teachers are being forced to teach to the test unconsciously for student success on paper."]
["Deborah McCambry","Teachers",null,"American Federation of Teachers (AFT)","Bay","Assessments-Districts make final decision on promotion. Individual circumstances may impede students from passing state mandated assessments.",null,null,null,"Poor grades of small schools are hurt significantly by the low test scores of students with cognitive disabilities. Large schools are not affected by small number of students with low test scores. Unfair "]
["Angela Fortune","Teachers",null,"Okaloosa County School District","Okaloosa","No comment.","Add a clause stating that the state will provide funding to ensure that there are enough computers (and additional test administrators) in the schools to minimize educational disruptions.  Set an acceptable amount of disruptions for testing purposes.  During the last two months of school, frequently, half of my students are in testing while the other half is in class with me trying to learn.  In addition, I am pulled from my classroom for at least 3 days during the last couple of months of school so that I can assist in giving tests.  Meanwhile, my own students have a substitute teacher and must try to learn without my expertise and assistance.  In other words, the entire last two months of school at the high school level is a big series of interruptions due to all of the testing going on throughout the school.  There are a ridiculous amount of interruptions to the educational process during the last two months of school, thereby severely impeding the educational process.","This provision is wise and shows common sense.  Keep it."]
["Dixie Donovan","Teachers",null,"self","Columbia","We test our students too much.  I disagree with the high stakes EOC for 7th grade Civics.  EOCs should be for high school courses only.","The tests seem to be written for failure, which is great for the companies providing the tests.  The thing that no one thinks about is population distributions.  We humans are designed to fall under normal distributions, bell curves.  Legislation wants the students to fall under an exponential function.  The bell curve says not everyone can pass a test.  The exponential says everyone can.  The Algebra 1 EOC has to be passed to graduate.  It is assumed that after higher math the ones not passing will eventually pass.  Do you not take into account the head game of failing four to six times a year and now it's the senior year and panic has taken over?  Legislate all you want, but not everyone on the left side of the bell curve will pass the test.","I agree any middle school student taking a high school EOC should be exempt from taking the respective grade level test.","Advanced 7th grade math is the 8th grade pre-algebra course.  These students should take the grade level test that matches the course they are taking.  As it is they do not."]
["Brad Hall","Teachers",null,"Brevard Public Schools","Brevard","Assessments should be limited to the core subjects currently listed and should NOT be extended to elective courses"]
["Deborah Antonelli","Parents and Families","teacher","self","Collier","too many assessments ",null,"yes to this section",null,"yes please assess in a different manner or not at all",{"$nulls":4},"yes  allow"]
["Joni Hancock","Teachers",null,"Self","Duval"]
["Lori Spinner","Parents and Families",null,"self","Brevard","As a parent of a child who is graduating next year, I am appalled at the volume of testing my son has been subjected to -- and the VOLUME of lost instructional time due to the state's decision to do computer-based testing.  The ridiculous amount of lost instructional time in our schools due to rotating students in and out of computer labs for multiple sessions on multiple days is ridiculous.  In addition, my son has been the graduating class subjected to ALL the testing changes, adjustments, and introduction of NEW tests with a complete disregard for statistical validity standards.  He has had new EOCs, new FSA tests for graduation, tests will count -- now they won't count.  Our state and our DOE is the laughing stock of the entire country -- but it is not a laughing matter when it is YOUR child who has been subjected to constant changes in the accountability system and testing requirements.  We would never do this to adults -- yet we do it to our children.  Standardized testing should be for program analysis and individual diagnostic purposes ONLY -- not as a tool to penalize students and negatively impact their learning environment and learning time.  There isn't even standardization across the State on the \"grading formula\" used district by district in how EOC grades are assigned.  Some counties use T-score analysis.  Some counties use an A - F grade based upon the EOC \"levels\".  Some counties give all students an \"A\" on their 30% EOC if the student earns a level 3 or above.  HOW IS THIS STANDARDIZED???  These students who are competing for the same spots at the university level are having their grades and GPA impacted by a 30% EOC that has NO standardization in the letter grades assigned.  ELIMINATE the high stakes testing that impact students and return our accountability testing to a progress monitoring system for schools and districts.  NO single test should have the level of impact we currently have with EOCs and the FSA graduation requirement.  What a farce.  Those of us who are educated enough to KNOW what is a valid process for developing an assessment protocol are APPALLED at what our state has done to our children.  Personally, my child will be just fine because he has been a high achiever all his life -- but we have seen what it has done to his peers and friends.  I am disgusted with our state's accountability system that is CLEARLY driven by politics and money.  Gov. Bush started us on this train and it was no surprise that the Bush Family had economic ties to Pearson and other major testing companies.  Our state accountability system has been used to line the pockets of politicians, testing company lobbyists, and private/charter school corporations.  I find it ironic that private schools can receive students on tuition grants (from state $$ generated by tax breaks to private corporations) YET they are exempt from participating in the state assessment system.  One republican politician last year stated it would be \"unfair\" to make private schools participate without enough preparation time.  Really?!?!?  But it was FAIR to make constant changes to the standards, testing format and accountability system on a regular basis that public schools were tied to?  Sometimes even in the same year???    The political motivations behind this entire system are so blatantly obvious I am not sure how any of you can sleep at night.  You harm children on a regular basis for monetary and political gain.  Shame on all of you.      I am sure my comments will be ignored as you have ignored the thousands of parents who are FED UP with our state's accountability and testing system.  But it was cathartic for me to write it anyway.  I can only pray that we can generate enough grass-roots momentum to get someone in Tallahassee to listen to the VOTERS and not the testing company, private/charter school lobbyists.  You represent the PEOPLE not corporations.  If we can't get you to listen, hopefully we can get enough momentum to VOTE YOU OUT. ",null,null,null,"What a ridiculous proposition.  What does the overall state demographic have to do with an individual school's population?  There should be NO limit set by a numerical standard.  It should be based upon the IEP and analysis of each individual student's needs.  Many schools serve a large population of students with significant disabilities.  Why should a student be \"forced\" to take a standard assessment instead of the alternative that is MORE APPROPRIATE for their needs because YOU have set an arbitrary level of 1% for the state??  How is that INDIVIDUALIZED as per the expectations for IEPs and IDEA?  Unreal. "]
["Jay-Scott Moylan","Teachers",null,"School District of Palm Beach County","Palm Beach","Excerpt from the text- \"...provide coherent and timely information  about student attainment of such standards...\" It took the state until January 16 of this year to decide what the scoring standards would be for the tests that the students took last year in April. That is far from timely. Anyone who makes tests should determine what passing scores will be when the test is created - NOT almost a year later. This is blatant political nonsense to deliberately guarantee a certain number of failures. It is simply wrong!  In addition, why is there absolutely NO student accountability in middle school?","Quote from the text - \"...be used for purposes for which such assessments  are valid and reliable, consistent with relevant...\" If only 51 percent of a district's students pass the reading/Language Arts assessment, you have proven that the test and the standards are NOT valid, ipso facto. I administered the 6th grade practice math test this year. It included plane, volume and other aspects of geometry that, in the past, were not taught until 11th grade. These are not \"high\" standards; they are absurd standards. Neuroscience informs us that many students have literally not GROWN the parts of the brain that perform such complex tasks at 12 years of age!","Well, duh!",null,null,null,"According to ELL research, and there is a LOT of it, ELL students require five years, on average, to achieve proficiency level in English. Currently state accountability formulas require students to be proficient in only two years or their scores hurt the school's grade. Patently absurd! This expectation needs to be adjusted to align with reality.",null,null,"Schools are allowed to administer too many local assessments. The actual number of instructional days has been severely compromised, especially in situations like mine. I teach at an alternative school where absenteeism is very high. The sheer number of state and district assessments is too high to begin with, and then the trouble of trying to do make-up assessments becomes a nightmare of instructional interruption.",null,"It is a waste of time to test in the first year at all. The necessarily low scores will be a morale-killing disappointment that will cause many students to give up and refuse to try in future years. I have seen it many times. IN addition,expecting proficiency within two years or the school's accountability rating takes a hit is ridiculous. According to a large body of research data, it takes five years, on average, for ELL students to become proficient."]
["Kam Camara","Teachers",null,"self","Sarasota","Stop mandatory FSA's and FCAT's for all students.  They cause too much stress everywhere. Kids, teachers, administration, Boards of Ed., counties, etc. They are a huge waste of money and they have some \"stupid\" requirements. ","If you want to place ownership and accountability on the students, then start treating them with such.  Have them sign out/off the test when done instead of making them sit for 80 minutes. Trust them to do their best and accept that what comes of the test, is due to the student!! Let them use a dictionary. If a child doesn't know how to spell a word, and GOES to find out, that is a better judge of education that relying on just memory. Rethink the \"law\" that rates teachers every year by their scores. Some teachers are given loaded classes of low academic kids.  ","As always, there is too much testing so anything that can lower that is a good idea.",null,"If the State REALLY wanted to assess students, they would take into account a lot more types of testing. The FSA is too narrow. Students have so many other facets; problems, weaknesses, strengths, creativity, neurological as well as physical issues. ",null,"Give the tests in both languages. That should tell you more of what the child knows and can do, rather than how well they know English. ",{"$nulls":4},"Test is both languages!!"]
["Enrique","Students",null,"self","Miami-Dade","ESSA unlinks standardized test scores from student teacher accountability. Please take this opportunity to follow through.  Thank you"]
["Sandra A. Daire","Teachers","Parent","self","Miami-Dade","There are too many assessments that affect these students academic futures at a too early age.  Such \"high stakes tests\" for both teachers and students are taking a lot of the fun out of learning.","Part of the problem is in the Standards that are tested themselves, which in Mathematics, for example, loose continuity when students seek advancement in the subject.  The student (& parent) peer pressure to take Algebra 1 in Middle School is crumbling the basic Algebra foundation needed to succeed in higher mathematics.  The flexibility of thinking and manipulate algebraic expressions, as well as the introduction of topics that cannot be fully taught or understood, or connected to the algebra curriculum, makes students' algebraic knowledge a swiss cheese (holes) and a salami (incomplete pieces, rather than connected learning (for example: having a small percent of the EOC test residual plots - can we just teach this in a class like statistics, where the significance is understood and there is time to elaborate the concept ?  The required assessments are dictated by the standards that need revisions!","No comments.","Magnet High Schools requiring Algebra 1 completion is an understood way to accept \"top\" students.  In the mean time, the great students that just need a little more time to learn the math and gain the pre-algebra foundations, obtain a level 3 in Algebra 1 that haunts them later when they face problems in Algebra 2 and beyond.  Has anyone looked at Stats that follows these students who in Middle School barely passed Algebra?  Have the parents been educated on the tradeoff of being able to apply to certain high schools versus barely gaining the Algebra knowledge? ","How was this 1% determined.  Is this an arbitrary number.  Will a 1.5%, for example include children otherwise excluded that should not be?",null,"Another test?","How about the same test, but different scoring?",null,"I do not know enough to comment.",null,"I really like scenario # 2.  Growth is important in Language Acquisition.","Once exited, the students should count.","Preparing for the high stakes testing has made learning and teaching ta recipe given by the schools, districts, and state.  The teacher has to sometimes deviate from let's say a pacing guide, or a standard's content limits to introduce that which will light up the kids' faces, intrigue them in  a subject, or make the class simply fun.  The moments (time) existent for investigations, communications, making connections, and alternative assessments has been truncated by tests that are radically changing how we teach and how our students learn.  My own children are more interested in how they did on the test than in the concepts learned and the beauty of the learning.  Thinking back at my high school years, I do not remember the graduation tests, but do recall my classes - Algebra was more than an EOC !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"]
["Valerie Scotella","Teachers",null,"none","Pasco","enable results to be disaggregated within each  State, local educational agency, and school by— (I) each major racial and ethnic group;  (II) economically disadvantaged students as  compared to students who are not economically  disadvantaged;  (III) children with disabilities as compared to  children without disabilities;  (IV) English proficiency      HOW DO YOU PROPOSE TO DO THIS?","How do you propose to obtain this privileged information and/or how do you expect the children to identify?  The census attempts to sort this information only once every ten (10) years and cannot do so without an unacceptable margin of error.","ensures that the parents of such students  are clearly informed, as part of the process for developing  the individualized education program (as  defined in section 614(d)(1)(A) of the Individuals  with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C.  1414(d)(1)(A))) - you are assuming they a) have parents and b) have parents/guardians who actually care.","Title 1 schools tend to have a wide variety of parental/guardian people in the children's lives.  Often, they are hard to reach even for important communications from the school. Children in middle schools tend to leave important information at school and the schools don't mail it any longer.  I see a host of problems ensuring the parents know anything about the testing and or the changes you are addressing. ","Allow the teachers to remove the bottom 1%","At the Title 1 school I taught at, they included children with severe learning disabilities along with the gifted children.  Is this really a good way to teach and assess the standards?","How about providing the students with an ESOL person???","We have none.  I ahve asked about tthe tests and the answers are always that someone else in some other school does it.  Ridiculous with the high mobility of the population..","You can enact all of the laws you wish on schools that meet some elusive standard of perfection in the state of FL.  he end result will depend not on these standards, but on the day to day practice of the teachers, most of whom are barely able to live on teacher's salaries.  Over time, this will become apparent if things aren't changed.","Any assessment is better than one which is not accessible.","I think there should be more surveys to the teachers from administration at the schools, their respective districts and the state.","Allow he teachers, the students and/or their parents/legal guardians to decide if they should take the tests or not. The schools test everyone because,...according to what they told me,...\"we get money for every person we test.\"","Hard to say,...","ESOL needs to be standardized."]
["E Vance","Parents and Families","Teacher","none","Brevard",null,"B (ii) add to end of sentence  and/or making adequate yearly progress    No single assessment should determine student progression to a subsequent grade.  As I read the following language seems to allow for multiple measures of student achievement and growth:    (vi) involve multiple up-to-date measures of student  academic achievement, including measures that  assess higher-order thinking skills and understanding,  which may include measures of student academic  growth and may be partially delivered in the form of  portfolios, projects, or extended performance tasks;","Some high schools offer Algebra 1A and 1B to all students (with or without ESE designation), while other high schools only offer Algebra 1A and 1B to those Level 1 students with ESE Waiver rights, while other high schools place all students in Algebra 1.  This, in and of itself, is unfair when it comes to accountability as  those high schools that offer Algebra 1A, do not test students at the completion of that initial course.  While schools placing all students directly into Algebra 1, must test all students enrolled in Algebra 1. This is an injustice to students and negatively impacts accountability. Personally, Algebra 1A should be available to all high school students who experienced difficulty in middle school and/or are low level math students.","Why/when did Florida develop another grade-level subject area assessment other than the End-of-Course Mathematics assessment?",{"$nulls":5},"Good option to allow a test that actually benefits students going into post-secondary education (such as ACT) and that measures growth and provides students an incentive to improve their score on a test that possibly doubles as a college entrance exam.",null,"It should apply to subject area tests as well, unless these are given in the students' native language to truly assess ability and not language deficit."]
["Jessica Torrence","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Osceola","\" a set of\"...so we can have more than one option of assessment type for each subject...?","It states that evidence of the technical quality must be on the State Educational Agency website. As far as I can tell, we have no idea about anything of the technical quality of current tests, as the material is \"confidential\" and validity and reliability were undetermined last year, yet still used punitively against students and teachers.    It says \"may be partially portfolio, project, or extended performance task\"...I know this costs a lot of money, but this needs to be implemented. ",{"$nulls":7},"Such exams might be the PERT, SAT, or ACT. The feedback is not as thorough as that given by the current FSAs. How could we address that, seeing as the above exams have been used for years and have validity and reliability and meet the standard of addressing required skills for higher education."]
["Sarah Grant","Teachers",null,"none","Flagler","This test does not match the curriculum in our county. The students are not being prepared by playing on iPads or macbook airs all day.  Many students are being passed without the skills necessary to succeed, and teachers are paying the price. ESE IEP students are not being taught to fidelity because each single grade level intervention teacher has about 50 students on MTSS tier 3 and IEP plans. All this doesn't even touch the fact that the FSA assessment is above grade level....and too hard.",{"$nulls":5},"ELA language students at my school are basically phased out by 5th grade so that paperwork and time with students is decreased. These students then score level 1's basically for the rest of their time at school.",null,null,"We chose no local assessments in 3-6 grade as far as I know. I wish we did.",null,"see above. There is not much support for these students."]
["Laurie Hayes","Teachers",null,"Bay Haven Elementary School","Sarasota","Assessments should not be given on the computer in 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade","NO CBT"]
["tina plyler","Teachers",null,"clay county school district","Clay"]
["catherine giles","Teachers",null,"self","Broward","na","The assitive technology must be provided for those students who need it to access the general education curriculum.","This will help the 8th graders.","na","na","na","na","na",null,"na","na","Keep it the way it is right now.","na","na"]
["Jennifer Byers","Parents and Families",null,"None ","Orange","I do not believe in high stakes testing ","I do not believe in high stakes testing ","I do not believe in high stakes testing ",null,"Students with disabilities should not be subjected to high stakes testing. Those with anxiety should be exempt as well ",null,"English should be the only language provided ",null,null,"I do not believe in high stakes testing ",null,"No exception based on language barriers. English only "]
["Robin Bennett","Teachers",null,"Public School Education","Lake","While I strongly support state assessment for ELA, teachers need to be able to compare apples to apples on student gains.  The 9th grade FSA scoring is different from the FSA scoring for ELA.  Thus, gains are not really equal.  I love teaching English and enjoy great success with my students, but I care about student success and teacher success.  Please correct the different scoring between the two grade levels.  How is the essay scored on the 10th grade FSA ELA Assessment?  What is the percentage of the test that makes up the FSA Writing?    Can teachers please have exemplars?","I agree with the 10th grade FSA ELA being a high school graduation requirement."]
["Carolyn Lamborn","Teachers",null,"Charlotte County Public Schools","Charlotte",{"$nulls":4},"The cap of 1% for students with significant disabilities is too low. A county does not control its population. Students with the most significant disabilities are identified by using data, not opinions. Students are wrongly  identified to stay close to the 1% cap","Students with the most significant disabilities are often answering questions simply because we have an M&M or Cheerio above all the answers to at least get them to choose an answer. Many pick the picture they like best. Some pick the last choice for all questions, etc. For the students with the most significant disabilities, this test does not provide useful information. For many students that are IND, the test is appropriate. For many others, it is not. For the students whom the test is not appropriate for would benefit from the  instructional  time that is taken way from teachers who are administering the test."]
["Sandra Dahl","Teachers",null,"Brevard Public Schools","Brevard","I am actually in favor of holding teachers/schools accountable for teaching the standards. What I believe is lacking is appropriate feedback. I encourage the state to either release the tests or at least offer a practice opportunity (much like 10th graders get in our district when they take the ACT or PSAT). My children received their ACTUAL practice tests, with their work, that we could go over. The ACT and SAT are not mysterious. There is a huge cloud of uncertainty with respect to state assessments in Florida (and perhaps most states). Be more transparent and you may find many more stakeholders (students, parents and teachers) will show \"buy in\". "]
["Betty James","School District Administrators",null,"Gadsden County School Board","Gadsden",{"$nulls":6},"1)Core reading programs have the English proficiency standards included at different levels of rigor.  When teachers teach from the expensive core programs districts purchase, they assume they are preparing the students for the FSA assessments.  However, there seems to be a gap.  If students are expected to learn the state's standards, teachers must shift to teach standards and test prep.  How can we avoid test prepping all day, or how can we combine the two with teachers feeling confident that they are preparing students for the FSA assessment while teaching the core reading programs?     2) I feel that we should eliminate students doing writing test in fourth grade?  Please save the writing component for fifth grade and above, and eliminate writing in fourth.  It seems as though we would get better results when the students are more mature to handle the new FSA writing.   Teachers are spending a lot of time trying to prepare fourth graders for writing they do not seem to understand.  "]
["Aviva Baker","Teachers",null,"Bailey Elementary","Hillsborough","I'm sure I do but the bill is written in a way that is too hard to understand. :(",{"$nulls":8},"SWD that are below level readers should not be required to take FSA testing that requires on level reading. The student may have grown as a reader but not ever achieve the level required in their grade. Example. I had a student with a reading DRA level of 6 (K) and he moved to an 18 (1st grade, 8 months.) This was tremendous growth but he would never be able to read the fourth grade material to pass the FSA. They did not measure his growth, they set him up for failure. ","The current writing component of the FSA is not fair to students. Fourth grade students are basically required to use APA formatting and they must read approx. 800 words (4th grade level) before they read. Previously students could draw on experiences or their imagination but now they must read and use citations. The love of writing is dead. :("]
["Candace Leebrick","Teachers","parents and families","none","Bay",null,null,"This change is an unacceptable burden placed on gifted and talented students. My daughter is a gifted-identified 7th grader who took Algebra I Honors this year and earned the highest level 5 in our school on her OEC. To force her to also take the FSA Math test would interfere with her ability to participate in mathematics instruction and assessment on her intellectual level. I would expect some family to take this up as a court issue.     Anyone who says it doesn't matter should consider the testing schedule. First, 7th graders write in March. Then they take two days of tests for reading in April. Then they take an EOC for Civics. Then children like Sarah take and EOC for Algebra I. That is significant testing and results in time out of class for all that testing. Forcing her to take another math assessment that is not connected to her grade but will follow her forever not only takes her out of class for additional hours prior to her EOC, but it creates additional test fatigue. Since it does not yield any significant information not available with the Algebra EOC, it is excessive. ",null,"Trying to keep a handle on 1% statewide is going to be a nightmare.",null,null,"The WIDA assessment we gave this year was problematic. (We had a 6th grader who had just arrived in the US in August and had no previous English instruction. We were relying on my somewhat rusty Spanish and her stepfather's translating efforts just to explain the schedule her first day. It seemed clear she would need the lowest band of the WIDA test when we had to order in late October. However, she worked hard all year, practiced on Rosetta Stone, and is very bright. So when we actually tested, she had several places where she could have used the higher test band. If I could have ordered in February, I would have picked it for her. Her score will be artificially low because she didn't have the right test. That seems like a design flaw.","The kids who have to take WIDA and then turn around and take LAS Links hate it! They've already been \"singled out\" once for the year. Twice is too much to them.","I can cheer for things that let us get rid of WIDA. However, I worry about the weirdness of having lots of different tests floating around across the state.",null,"I have worked with students who really wanted to testing experience to be like everyone else and deserved the chance to see the thing before it counted against them. I have also worked with students who would have been so overwhelmed to face that thing their first year that it could have affected their ability to engage with the test for years. It seems wrong to have to set one or the other path to apply to students of every age and language experience. What works for a 10th grader who has take English in his high school in Barcelona is not necessarily what works for a 3rd grader who learned to write in Arabic script and is still figuring out our letters. We are supposed to be able to design plans for the students' individual situations as educational professionals, working with their families. This rigidity is bad for students.","It seems that the student should be out of the subgroup once he or she has exited the program. Just defining it on program membership should help deal with the differing rates that students pick up language. We don't exit kids until they meet criteria."]
["Riva Trowbridge","Teachers",null,"self","Broward",{"$nulls":9},"What is an example of a nationally-recognized assessment? How does this make the decision \"local\"? How will this alternative data be used to compare students county and state wide and students' growth? ","Can students opt-out of state-wide testing and or locally-selected assessments? ","Two years is NOT enough time to master reading and writing in a new language. More time is needed. "]
["Beth","Teachers",null,"None","Osceola","It is interesting that this states \"in consultation with local educational agencies.\" If this stays then FSA will not be appropriate because it was not developed locally. There is no doubt that all assessments should be developed locally, particularly those that are high stakes and bases on Florida standards.","This is very clear and precise. According to this, several changes can and should be made as the FSA does not comply with the true definition of a valid and reliable assessment. Furthermore, it states that students can be given interim assessments and that these can be done in various methods such as portfolios, etc. Therefore, students could be assessed at interim periods and it should not be done only in the form of a high stakes standardized assessment that no one in the local educational field has seen nor has input in developing.","No",null,"No",null,"Funds to provide the personnel needed to administer these assessments need to be provided.",null,null,"If it is the Stanford achievement Test, then it is fine. However, if we continue to use the FSA, then it needs to be developed locally."]
["Tiffany Lueallen","Parents and Families",null,"self","Lake","Remove the VAM from teacher evaluations, stop the high stakes testing.  No student should have that much pressure on them.  A student who has all A's can be retained because one bad test???"]
["Rick Lueallen","Parents and Families",null,"self","Lake","Too much High Stakes testing.  My third grade student was so sick he was throwing up the night before his FSA.  No child should be put under that much stress."]
["Lisa Stavropoulos ","Teachers","science","Pinellas County ","Pinellas",null,"I think that having only 8th grade science FCAT is not sufficient.  I believe having a yearly assessment so that we can see areas of weakness and growth, so that we can prepare students better and be more competitive with other countries "]
["Mary Love","Parents and Families","Also Teacher","Self","Polk",{"$nulls":13},"As a parent, my concern is the over-testing of my student. She was a 9th grader this year and have 8 tests, in addition to all of the progress monitoring tests done throughout the year. She also lost access to her media center because of it having to be used as a testing center location starting in Feb. How is she to develop research skills if she doesn't have access to the media center or to computers in the school to be used during class because they are all be used for testing? It is awful that for half of the school year my child does not have access to technology or something so simple as the library due to all of the testing being required. By the time she was taking her final end of year exams required, she really didn't care to do her best. She just wanted it to be over. You can't tell me that students are giving their all when they have a different test every week and they are all vital. And let's not mention the number of classes she had to miss because of testing. Teachers are not able to stop curriculum because part of the class is testing. Everyone says it evens out and it really doesn't."]
["Tracy Merritt","Parents and Families",null,"Santa Rosa County School District","Santa Rosa","General agreement.","Love section B,III,vi.  I believe this will be good for students who don't do well under pressure of standardized testing.","General agreement.  I agree that students shouldn't be double tested.",null,"General agreement.",null,"General agreement.","General agreement.",null,"General agreement.  This seems reasonable and thorough.",null,"No specific comments here.  I feel that English language learners should be held to the same standards in grammar and writing as every other student.  It doesn't matter to me how long it takes for them to get there, just that they are able to pass assessments eventually at the same level as everyone else.","It seems to me that English language learners could need additional assistance with the language even after exiting the program, so this would be reasonable and I'm in general agreement."]
["Laurie Gach","Institutions of Higher Education",null,"Miami Dade College School of Education","Miami-Dade","Utilize assessments only for the diagnosis of students' strengths and areas needing development. Should not be used to grade schools, fail students, or punish or reward teachers",{"$nulls":10},"Stop using assessments from any learners to gauge \"learning gains.\" It is not a reliable or valid method nor is it proven. "]
["Barbara DiAlberto","Educator Organizations",null,"The Princeton Review","Broward","The problem in a high school reading class is not the academic assessment, but the education the students receive.  Research shows that in most reading classes in FL, the students get mostly content.  If we teach them strategies on how to take the test (taught by educators who have learned this pedagogy), the students will excel.","If we are going to change any academic assessments, educators should have enough time to plan for it.  Can't we teach students without \"teaching to the test?\"  Wouldn't it be amazing if we could teach them and they could actually learn?","Great idea!  Our students are tested way too much!",{"$nulls":8},"Why aren't we concentrating on teaching these students English?  I don't think that the first option is fair to the students or the school grades.  The 2nd option seems more fair  to everyone."]
["Stephanie Cox","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Pinellas","Less focus on one summative test in 3rd grade. Create a formative assessment for use throughout the state. Give principals and teachers authority to not retain a student if a formative portfolio proved the student should move to the next grade. "]
["Susan Seal","School Administrators",null,"SLPS","St. Lucie","Please, please, please stop the multiple session assessments!!!!! This is particularly disruptive at the high school level. The loss of instructional time is huge!  Especially when many of our at risk students have poor attendance, especially on days they are to be tested.  I see no reason why FSA tests need to be given in multiple sessions.  If the test is 60 minutes long, we have to count on 90 minutes of lost instruction time due to logging on to computers, reading directions, etc.  Something needs to be done to change this, and quickly.  During this last year, we only had one day where we did not have testing from 3/28 until the end of the year.  In addition to FSA tests, we have AP, AICE, senior exams and industry certification tests. There literally is no time left for instruction once testing season begins."]
["Nicole Nichols","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Bay"]
["Cynthia Walker","School Administrators",null,"self","Bay",null,null,"Please extend this exemption to 7th graders who also take high school EOC tests.  A 7th grader who takes the Algebra I EOC should not also have to take the 7th grade math test."]
["Robert Heath","Parents and Families",null,"Self","Bay",null,"It looks as if the requirements allow for multiple testing opportunities to show growth, not just a random data point 3/4 of the way through the year.  I'd like to see this implemented so I can know if my son has learned new information or if he just did well on a test once.",{"$nulls":7},"I would LOVE for our local districts to be able to select their own assessment.  Why should Florida create their own (or in the current case, buy one from another state that only somewhat matches our standards) when there are nationally-administered tests that have been vetted? Why not have a test that measures the beginning of year mark and then the end of year in order to accurately measure student performance?"]