EDUCATION

Voucher angst imperils FCAT bill

A sweeping education bill to change the way the FCAT is used is in danger of failing in the waning moments of the session.

BY GARY FINEOUT

gfineout@MiamiHerald.com

The Florida Senate on Wednesday put together a mammoth education bill that would finally change the way the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test is used, but that same legislation would also expand a controversial private school voucher program by $30 million.

The move drew protest from several Democrats, as well as the state's teacher union, which say it's wrong to spend more money on vouchers during the same year that Florida's sagging tax collections has led lawmakers to cut money for public schools. Called the corporate income tax scholarship program, the plan enables about 20,000 students from low-income families to attend private schools at a cost of $88 million a year.

''Brick by brick, we are dismantling public education,'' said Sen. Frederica Wilson, a Miami Democrat.

But Democratic opposition may not matter -- because the sweeping education bill, as it now stands, is also unacceptable to House Republicans. They don't like other parts of the Senate bill that would impose more controls over charter schools and crack down on how school districts handle bad teachers.

SESSION ENDS FRIDAY

Rep. Joe Pickens, a Palatka Republican helping shepherd education legislation, said it's possible that many of the major education bills could die when lawmakers end their annual session on Friday.

Senate Republicans have tied all education legislation into one measure that also includes a top priority of House Speaker Marco Rubio, a sweeping overhaul of the school standards that dictate what kids in Florida learn and what they get tested on.

''It has higher standards and better schools and less reliance on the FCAT,'' said Sen. Don Gaetz, the Destin Republican who is pushing the legislation.

Former Gov. Jeb Bush made the FCAT, given to students in grades 3 through 10, the centerpiece of his school reforms. Test scores are used to grade schools, which are then given rewards or sanctions based on the results.

LESS EMPHASIS ON TEST

This year, lawmakers are considering altering the use of the FCAT for high schools. Instead of basing school grades on just FCAT scores, high schools would also be graded on how many students graduate and how many pass college preparatory exams.

This move has won widespread support from Democrats, who consider this the first major change to the high-stakes test in nearly a decade. Gov. Charlie Crist also said he supports the move.

''I love the changes,'' Crist said Wednesday. ``It's good to have other factors as part of what we utilize in order to determine how education is pursued and how students are doing in the classroom.''

Crist is also supportive of the bid by GOP lawmakers to add an additional 5,000 students to Florida's corporate income tax scholarship program. Under the plan, corporations pay for the vouchers instead of paying corporate income taxes to the state.

''If private entities have the desire to contribute and give chances for other options for educational opportunities for children, it sounds like a good thing,'' said Crist.

Marshall Ogletree of the Florida Education Association, however, said it was inconceivable that the state would expand the corporate vouchers in a year that school budgets are cut and when lawmakers also slashed by half the money that goes to public school teachers who complete a rigorous national certification program.

Sen. Ted Deutch, a Boca Raton Democrat, said while the FCAT legislation is a ''good first step,'' it's ''not enough'' to justify voting for more vouchers.

''This is an assault on the public school system,'' said Deutch.

Miami Herald staff writer Breanne Gilpatrick contributed to this story.