Text of the Bill and a Brief Summary
The information below was updated on 1-10-24 to reflect the final version of the bill.
- SB 7004 (full text) is one of three bills proposed by the Senate PreK-12 Education Committee that focuses on deregulation of public schools. The focus for SB 7004 is on regulations regarding assessment and accountability.
SB 7004 makes several significant changes to Florida’s graduation and retention requirements as well as to teacher evaluations. Some of the proposed changes include:
- Grade 10 ELA assessment count as 30% of the student’s final grade. (Line 398)
- Eliminating the requirement to pass Grade 10 ELA assessment and Algebra 1 EOC in order to earn a high school diploma. (Line 395 and Line 405)
Allows for a third grade student who receive a Level 1 on the ELA assessment to be promoted to 4th grade if the student’s parent determines promotion to be in the student’s best interest.(Line 1062) This portion was amended out of the bill on January 10.- Prohibits VAM from being the “sole determinant to recruit instructional personnel.” (Line 1232)
As important as what is included in the bill is what is not included. The proposals fall far short of creating parity between all publicly-funded schools.
- Nothing in this bill reduces the number of tests students take nor the amount of time spent testing.
- The bill continues to favor publicly-funded private, corporate schools over public schools.
- Publicly-funded private schools still don’t have to share their test scores with the public, and they are not labeled with an A-F grade.
What’s Next
The bill has passed the Senate. The House companion is radically different. In the coming weeks the respective chambers will need to come to some compromise.
Talking Points
Leveling the playing field between public, charter and private schools is necessary in order to create a robust public school system that attracts and retains highly trained teachers and education staff professionals, and ensures students are learning and thriving. While the Senate Deregulation packages contains some good items, the bills also contain more regulation and restrictions on collective bargaining.
- Students thrive best when their education is looked at as whole and not based on just one exam. This also allows teachers to educate holistically and not just for a test. Punitive graduation requirements tied to high-stakes testing do not help teachers or students.
- Data is key to ensuring students across school types are successful. Continued conversations are required to ensure that private schools are disclosing data that is relevant to measuring the success of school districts.
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- SB 7004 (full text) is one of three bills proposed by the Senate PreK-12 Education Committee that focuses on deregulation of public schools. The focus for SB 7004 is on regulations regarding assessment and accountability.
SB 7004 makes several significant changes to Florida’s graduation and retention requirements as well as to teacher evaluations. Some of the proposed changes include:
- Eliminating the requirement to pass Grade 10 ELA assessment and Algebra 1 EOC in order to earn a high school diploma. (Line 848)
- Allows for a third grade student who receive a Level 1 on the ELA assessment to be promoted to 4th grade if the student’s parent determines promotion to be in the student’s best interest. (Line 1080)
- Prohibits VAM from being the “sole determinant to recruit instructional personnel.” (Line 1250)
As important as what is included in the bill is what is not included. The proposals fall far short of creating parity between all publicly-funded schools.
- Nothing in this bill reduces the number of tests students take nor the amount of time spent testing.
- The bill continues to favor publicly-funded private, corporate schools over public schools.
- Publicly-funded private schools still don’t have to share their test scores with the public, and they are not labeled with an A-F grade.
SB 7004 has been referred to the Fiscal Policy Committee for what will likely be its final committee stop before heading for a vote in the full Senate.
The bill could be heard in the Fiscal Policy Committee as soon as Dec. 5. We’ll know by Nov. 28 if the bill is placed on the agenda for the Dec. 5 meeting.
- 9-0 : Senate PreK-12 Education Committee, 11-15-23. (Senators Osgood and Yarborough both had excused absences from the meeting.)
Coming soon.
