Comments on: Another Order of Florida Reforms, Please

By: Jay P. Greene

Jay P. Greene — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:47:34 +0000

I think Diane is referring to some analyses put out by the Palm Beach school district that shows that lower SES schools are more likely to get lower grades from the A+ system, even with the inclusion of value-added aspect. Of course, what I think that shows is that low SES schools tend to have lower value-added because our system allocates to them teachers who tend to be less effective. In part, this is a function of union mandated pay scales and transfer rights. Teachers can’t make more money by being good, but they can seek to transfer to schools where the work is “easier” (because the kids are more advnantaged). If we had higher pay for working in lower SES schools, this would be much less of a problem.

By: matthewladner

matthewladner — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:11:23 +0000

I’m curious-just what sort of skew are you referring to? Florida has a challenging demographic profile to its K-12 population, and it only became more so between 1998 and 2007.

By: Diane Hanfmann

Diane Hanfmann — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 14:27:17 +0000

How pathetic and unhelpful it is when Florida is used as a positive example. Professors have produced studies showing the system is skewed by socioeconomic factors. Yet these studies are ignored. Could it be POLITICS in action?