TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A report on the new Florida Standard Assessments exams found a serious issue with the tests rollout, but the test was still deemed valid, and Florida's Education Commissioner faced state House members for the first time since the report was released.
The Department of Education said it is seeking damages from the vendor responsible for administering the test because of all the problems.
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What a difference a day makes. Less than 24 hours after being grilled by state senators, Education Commissioner Pam Stewart received praise from the House Education Commissioner.
On Thursday, questions arose over a review of the state's new Florida Standards Assessment tests and how independent it actually was. The Department of Education was given at least two drafts before the final review was released deeming the test valid.
"We had factual information that was important for Alpine to have. So the work was done with staff," Stewart said.
House members didn't bring it up. But they did ask about other concerns after the rocky rollout of the test. It was marred by errors and a cybersecurity breach.
"I know there is apprehension from all the teachers as to how this new test is going to impact their evaluations," Rep. Janet Adkins said.
"I would point out that that's the biggest misnomer is that if the sky falls and performance plummets, that teacher evaluations are going to plummet as a result," Stewart said.
Despite the criticisms, the House Education chair said she's satisfied with the test and the review.
"Is every parent going to be happy? Possibly not, am I satisfied, is what the question was, yes I am. I believe they've worked very hard to make changes," House Education Committee Chair Rep. Marlene O'Toole said.
School grades are still scheduled to be released in December. Stewart said it was too early to speculate about potential outcomes and dropoffs.