Homework revisited: A year after Marion County School Superintendent Heidi Maier ended homework for students, the school board will consider a policy that allows elementary school teachers to assign it again. Maier and other administrators conceded last week in a workshop session that some homework is necessary. But they don’t want it to get excessive. “It needs to be meaningful and engaging,” says deputy superintendent Jonathan Grantham, not just busy work. Ocala Star-Banner.
Anti-test movement: The once vibrant movement to slow or eliminate high-stakes standardized testing as a tool for measuring student progress has slowed significantly, according to many in the field. “I think it is much quieter, whether that’s because (Every Student Succeeds Act) plans (are mostly approved) and federal law is not going to be opened up for awhile,” says Patricia Levesque, chief executive officer of Foundation for Excellence in Education, a think tank started by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. But she doesn’t think the debate is dead. “A lot of things are cyclical,” she says. “That’s just the way that policy is.” Many states are still tweaking details. Levesque’s group, for instance, is urging states to push testing to later in the school year. Education Week.
School security: Metal detectors will be used at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School this fall, but the school district will no longer require students to have clear backpacks. Sun-Sentinel. The 20 new armed guardians for the Manatee County School District met Monday for their first day of training. More than 270 people applied for the jobs. The district chose armed guardians over sworn school resource officers because of the costs. “Let’s not rush to judgment right now,” says Pat Bartholomew, the director of safety and security for the district. “We had a very solid vetting process, a selection process, so let the training speak for itself.” Bradenton Herald.
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