Algebra 1 Standards: Will the FLDOE Listen?

On October 14, 2019, the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) held another session of their Florida Standards Listening Tour, this time at  John I. Leonard High School in Palm Beach County. The Listening Tour is designed to give Floridians the opportunity to offer public input on the new draft standards, developed in response to Governor DeSantis’ Executive Order 19-32 which called for new K-12 academic standards, eliminating “the last vestiges of Common Core.”

Palm Beach County was the Listening Tour’s southernmost stop on the East Coast of Florida; currently no stops have been scheduled in Miami-Dade or Broward counties (the two largest school districts in Florida). Monday’s meeting was, also, the closest stop to Monroe County, home to Accountabaloney co-founder Sue Woltanski, who travelled to John I. Leonard High to give public comment. Speakers were limited to 2 minutes and the session was not streamed on thefloridachannel.org. Here are Sue’s prepared remarks:

“Good afternoon. My name is Sue Woltanski. I am a pediatrician and Monroe County School Board member. I drove more than 2 hours today to speak as the parent of 2 public school children whose education has already been disrupted TWICE by politically motivated standards changes. Hopefully, we will take the time to do it right this time so it sticks.

If the goal of this change is to completely eliminate Common Core then why aren’t we going back to Florida’s pre-common Core Sunshine State Standards or at least using them as the baseline during this revision? They were well respected.

More specifically, I have concerns regarding the developmental appropriateness of the K-2 Math and Reading standards. Pushing academics into younger ages, before children are developmentally ready, may cause real harm. It is not necessary for children to read in kindergarten and this intense focus on academics pushes aside the more developmentally appropriate work of kindergarten like developing social skills, creativity and a love for learning.

Also, while Common Core Math has become essentially a four letter word, the previous rewrite of common core to our current Florida Standards was particularly damaging to Algebra 1 standards, which now contain a significant number of Algebra 2 and statistics standards that would be better taught in their own respective courses.

In the new draft, Algebra 1 continues to contain way too many standards. Math teachers tell me it is impossible to cover everything well in the year and students are struggling in Geometry and Algebra 2 because they do not fully grasp basic Algebra skills. This is a problem because a firm grasp of Algebra is essential for the higher math required for careers in science and engineering.

The Algebra 1 EOC remains the highest stakes test of all and stands in the way of graduation for many English Language Learners and students with special needs. Districts have reacted by expanding Algebra 1 into 2 or 3-year courses for struggling math students, preventing those students from focusing on the practical math and financial skills that might better serve their future.

Please rethink the Algebra 1 standards, assessment and graduation requirement.”

At the conclusion of the session, Chancellor Jacob Oliva, assured the audience that their concerns had been heard, specifically concerns regarding developmentally appropriate standards and the need for phonemic awareness (three speakers had spoken about the needs of students with dyslexia). Commissioner Richard Corcoran assured the audience that this standards revision, a campaign promise of Governor DeSantis’,  was NOT politically motivated and he believes, if done right, these new standards will “literally’ change students “hearts and minds and souls” and instill a love of learning in all students. The goal, per Commissioner Corcoran, is to have “the world’s greatest standards.”

The Listening Tour has several more stops. Each session begins at 5:30pm. Please participate, if you can.

• October 16 – Collier County, Collier County School District Office
• October 17 – Hillsborough County, Jefferson High School
• October 21 – St. Johns County, Liberty Pines Academy
• October 22 – Hamilton County, Hamilton County High School
• October 23 – Walton County, Walton High School

You can find more information at the www.fldoe.org/standardsreview. If you cannot attend a tour stop, you can provide specific input on proposed second draft of the standards online. The January 1, 2020 deadline is fast approaching. Now is the time to speak up.