TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida's testing scheme is getting a D or an F from a majority of parents, teachers and school employees. The results of an online survey show the frustration of parents as Gov. Rick Scott canceled one test and is asking lawmakers to consider eliminating others.
Lawmakers will be asked to ratify the governor's order to end the 11th-grade test when they begin meeting next week.
Recommended Videos
Scott's executive order suspends the Florida Standards English Assessment test for 11th-graders.
"These are the 10th-graders who were promised last year, who were told if they passed the 10th grade FCAT, they would be done with reading comprehension testing," said Leon High School Principal Billy Epps.
"Our parents -- 64 percent -- gave testing an F grade in Florida. And 22 percent handed out a D," said JoAnn McCall, with the Florida Education Association.
The state is switching to its own version of common core this year. A demonstration test was difficult to maneuver through and instructions were difficult to understand.
Teachers are calling for the tests to go forward, but not count, until the results can be verified.
"The way we ask questions is new," said Andy Ford, with the FEA. "I mean, everything has changed and now it's time to see what the results are without punishing kids in the process."
Educators familiar with the test said if lawmakers were to sit down and take it there's no doubt they would suspend it for at least a year.
Pasco County Superintendent Kurt Browning said superintendents across Florida would like a moratorium on the new tests.
"We have not had the time to prepare our students because we have not really seen what the test looks like," Browning said.
In a report, the state Department of Education called for the elimination of more tests that it considers redundant.