FCAT Science

Florida Named A Winner In Phase II Of Race To The Top

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 14:34:24 +0000

The District of Columbia, Florida and eight other states were announced winners in the second round of Race to the Top Grants on August 24th, 2010. Race to the Top state competition is designed to reward states that are leading the way in comprehensive, coherent, statewide education reform. Winning states receive funds to be used in four key areas:

Adopting standards and assessments that prepare students to succeed in college and the workplace;
Building data systems that measure student growth and success, and inform teachers and principals how to improve instruction;
Recruiting, developing, rewarding, and retaining effective teachers and principals, especially where they are needed most; and
Turning around their lowest performing schools.

As a science education consultant that provides hands-on-minds-on inquiry-based science professional staff development teacher training workshops, I’m hoping that Florida school districts will seek out quality and effective professional staff development teacher training opportunities for their teachers. Not “one shot in the arm” training, but long-term training where teachers receive continual training and advice when needed throughout the year from a designated provider who has been proven to provide quality and effective professional staff development teacher training workshops. The training opportunities should be directly connected with the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards, hands-on-minds-on, and inquiry-based. Dr. Diana Wehrell-Grabowski has been providing quality and effective professional staff development teacher training workshops since 1987 throughout the entire state of Florida and nation. Check out the teacher training workshops Dr. Diana Wehrell-Grabowski offers here. Dr. Diana Wehrell-Grabowski looks forward to working with Florida school district in their efforts to implement education reform.

For further details of Governor Crist announcement see the following press release.

Florida Elementary Teachers Attend Teaching Science Through Children’s Literature Workshop

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 00:16:43 +0000

Thirty elementary teachers attended a full-day hands-on-minds-on, inquiry-based teacher training workshop entitled Teaching Science Through Children’s Literature. Teachers were introduced to a wide-array of children’s literature that can be incorporated into the science classroom to teach intermediate level science concepts covering the New World-Class Sunshine State Science Standards. Teachers conducted a wide-array of hands-on-minds-on investigations to explore nature of science, earth and space, physical science, and life science concepts. Investigations undertaken by the teachers were directly connected to the Big Ideas within the New World-Class Sunshine State Science Standards. Teachers explored the states of matter with a unique non-Newtonian substance called . They also were introduced to how to use Oobleck to teach numerous earth and space science concepts. Teachers designed and constructed bottle biology ecosystems to reinforce a wide-array of life science concepts including: food chains, food webs, interdependence, limiting factors, oxygen cycle, nitrogen cycle, carbon-dioxide cycle, photosynthesis, and the water cycle. Teachers were introduced to many of Leonardo daVinci’s innovations and inventions by exploring the book Who Was Leonardo daVinci by Roberta Edwards. Teachers constructed simple parachutes and helicopters, and compared bird feathers to airplane wing design to explore force, motion, and energy concepts as well as make connections to the contributions of Leonardo daVinci to society. Teachers explored weathering and erosion concepts and the rock cycle by conducting hands-on investigations with Coquina Rock. Lastly, teachers observed and studied mangrove seedlings to reinforce numerous life science concepts. Each hands-on-minds-on investigation was directly related to selected children’s literature. All investigations undertaken during the teacher training workshop are directly related to FCAT Science annually assessed benchmarks. A sample of children’s authors included: Lynn Cherry, John Himmelman, Dr. Seuss, Ellen Prager, Kristine and Robert Thorson,Cherie Mason, Jean Craighead George, Carl Hiassen, and many others. All of the children’s literature introduced to the teachers and used within the teacher training workshop can be found and ordered from the following site.

Florida Teachers Attend Teacher Training Workshop to Explore Life Science Concepts

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 14:19:21 +0000

I’ve been conducting full-day teacher training workshops for the past two weeks at a quaint beachside elementary school located in Volusia county, Florida. The six hour workshops are conducted for specific grade levels, aligning with their curriculum maps for the last 9 weeks of the 2009–2010 school year. The following photos were taken from the 4th and 5th grade teacher sessions. During the workshop teachers conducted numerous inquiry-based hands-on science investigations to explore life science concepts. Teachers recorded notes, observations, and attached specimens in their interactive student notebooks. Investigations made connections to the Big Ideas 14–17 from Florida’s Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. The teachers left the workshop revitalized, energized, and excited about exploring life science concepts with their students. Great group of teachers, and an example of a school that has placed emphasis on the importance of conducting meaningful science with their students. During the teacher training workshop teachers conducted the following investigations:

Conducted investigations to explore classification concepts (animal)
Conducted investigations to explore classification concepts (plant)
Conducted investigations to explore life cycles within the plant and animal kingdoms
Conducted investigations to compare and contrast among the plant and animal kingdoms
Designed and constructed a model of a plant or animal cell using a ziplock bag filled with Karo Syrup (represents cytoplasm), with additional materials placed within the bag to represent the cell organelles.
Designed and constructed a classroom terrarium representing a complete ecosystem (garden snails, pill bugs, earthworms, bird seed, soil, water, and decaying plant material were placed inside aquariums). Concepts covered included: interdependence, ecology, environment, food web, community, sun, energy, energy transformation, producers, consumers, and decomposers.
The key concept integrated within all investigations undertaken was structure and function in the plant and animal kingdoms.

Teacher uses a microscope to observe pond water organisms.

Teacher builds model plant cell from simple household materials.Cell model lab sheet used in making model of plant and animal cell.

Teachers used interactive student journals during teacher training workshop.

Teacher builds classroom terrarium to teach about life science concepts.

Teachers studied the Hibiscus plants as well as the animals that live on or near the Hibiscus plants.

SB4 Bill, A Positive Step In The Right Direction For Promoting Scientific Literacy Among All

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 14:27:05 +0000

SB4, the bill on assessment and graduation requirements passed in the Florida House and Senate, and is now headed for Governor Crist’s desk for approval. I see SB4 as a positive stepin the right direction for the state of Florida to insure that all of its students become scientific literate citizens. Essentially the bill will eliminate the Science FCAT at the high school level, and will be replaced by end of the course science and math exams. SB4 modifies the state’s present graduation requirements of 3 science courses by requiring that one of them be a biology class and a second be either a chemistry or physics class. A weakness in SB4 is the lack of addressing the need for students to take an Earth and Space Science related course. Hopefully, this weakness will be addressed in the near future. Opponents of the bill argue that students not seeking to pursue higher education or careers in science and math should not be expected to take additional math and science courses. Unfortunately, the opponents of this bill have yet to conceptualize the “big picture” which is, it’s irrelevant whether a high school student has the desire to continue onto college or into a science or math related career or not. Every individual needs to be exposed to “more advanced” math and science courses so that when they do graduate from high school they are scientific literate citizens. If Governor Crist gives his seal of approval for SB4 I’m hoping that funding is allocated for increased meaningful math, biology, and physics laboratory experiences for the students. Secondly, funding for providing on-going, quality math and science professional staff development for the teachers will be essential for the implementation of SB4’s revised math and science graduation requirements.

Florida Students Rank Fifth Nationwide in Taking, Passing Advancement Placement Tests

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 15:42:06 +0000

The number of Florida students taking Advanced Placement tests hit a record high in 2009, however the number of students who fail the exams is rising, particularly in the South. No longer are AP classes for an elite group of students, there has been a major push in the state of Florida to get more students enrolled in Advanced Placement classes. The new Florida high school grade system will take into account participation and performance on the AP exams, adding another incentive for schools to encourage participation in AP classes. Florida was fifth in the list of states with the greatest percentage of high school seniors doing well on AP exams. In 2009 21.3 percent of Florida students did well on the AP exams, up from 16.3 percent in 2004. However, data shows that Florida students did not do well when compared to their national counterparts on some AP exams, specifically those in math and science. On the AP Biology exam only 32 percent of Florida students did well, earning at least a 3 on the five-level test, compared to about 49 percent nationally. Kristen Klopfenstein, a senior researcher at the Texas Schools Project and a professor on leave from Texas Christian University, who conducts research on AP has found that students who take AP often do well in college. However, Klopfenstein’s research shows that it’s other rigorous courses, especially in math and science that lead to that success. To see viewpoints of parents and administrators in regards to the push to take AP courses see the following article by Leslie Postal in Orlando Sentinel on February 10, 2010.

State Legislators Are Proposing To Replace The High School FCAT With End-Of-Course Exam

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 23:33:45 +0000

There has been talk amongst Florida lawmakers over the last several years to replace high school FCATs with end-of-course exams. It looks like this proposal may become a reality. A bipartisan group of state lawmakers is moving forward this legislative session with a plan to replace the high school FCAT test with a series of standardized end-of-course exams. The House and Senate education committees plan to jointly introduce bills next month. Lawmakers believe the proposed bill will modernize high school accountability as well as having students be assessed with specific tests to cover specific classes versus the existing 11th-grade FCAT science exam which is not tied to any specific science class. However, individuals have raised concerns that getting rid of the FCAT and replacing it with another test may not be any better. Maryland, Mississippi, New York, Tennessee, and Virginia began using end-of-course exams in 2009. Texas is in the process of developing tests in English, Science, History, and Math for ninth-11th graders graduation requirements by 2011. If the bill is approved, the proposed testing change would likely begin with math next year, followed by science and reading, with the goal of making a complete transition within four years. Students would have to pass the exams to earn course credit, and the courses would become graduation requirements. Thus, instead of taking a math FCAT in ninth grade, students would take an exam after completing Algebra I. Source St. Petersburg Times, Wednesday, January 27, 2010 Is FCAT on the way out? by Jeffrey S. Solochek and Ron Matus, Times Staff Writers. For further details on the proposed bill see the following article .

Highlights of the bill expected to be presented in the next few weeks:

Substitute an end-of-course Algebra I exam for ninth-grade FCAT math
Substitute an end-of-course geometry exam for 10th grade FCAT math
Substitute end-of-course Biology I exam for 11th-grade FCAT science
Require passage of end-of-course exams to earn credit in those three courses, which would become graduation requirements
Implement lower-stakes end-of-course exams for English/Language Arts II, Algebra II, Chemistry, Physics, Earth/Space Science, U.S. History and World History as money is available.

Source Florida House Pre-K-12 Policy Committee

http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Committees/committeesdetail.aspx?CommitteeId=2462&sessionId=64

Governor Crist Signs Florida’s Race to the Top Application

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 21:52:31 +0000

Governor Charlie Crist signed Florida’s application for more than $700 million of the $4.35 billion federal dollars that will be available through Race to the Top funds. Race to the Top is the largest-ever federal competitive investment in school reform. The U.S. Department of Education is reviewing the applications, winners will be announced for the first round of funding by April.

If Florida is awarded the funds, half of the awarded funds will go to the 59 school districts, as well as three lab schools, and the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind that signed onto to become a part of the reform. The remainder of the funds will go directly to the state (Tallahassee) to support state-level projects benefiting all school districts.

The funding will be used in the following areas:

Curriculum Standards

Assessments of Student Learning

Increased Use of Data (one-stop data crunching for the entire state for use by teachers and district staff).

Teacher and Leader Quality and

Assistance for Struggling Schools

For complete details on Florida’s Race to the Top Grant visit Florida’s Department of Education American Recovery and Reinvestment Act site.

National Lab Day

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:57:19 +0000

A coalition of educators, scientists, engineers, and philanthropies announced the launching of National Lab Day. A new grassroots initiative designed to reinvigorate science and math education in the nation’s schools and after-school programs which will is hoped to ultimately lead to increased U.S. competitiveness.
The goal of the initiative is to improve the quality of Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education in America. A collaboration between the government and more than 200 public-and private sector organizations, National Lab Day will connect students in grades 6–12 to hands-on learning experiences and promote tinkering in laboratory settings. National Lab Day is a New York-based education organization dedicated to improving science and math education nationwide. National Lab Day welcomes new partnerships and can be reached at info@nationallabday.org. For further details on the National Lab Day initiative please see the following link to the National Lab Day Organization website. http://www.nationallabday.org/

Obama announces $250 million iniative for science and math teacher training

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 17:04:11 +0000

President Obama announced a $250 million public-private combination effort to improve science and mathematics instruction. The goal of the initiative is to help the United States compete in science and engineering fields with global economic competitors. The funding will prepare more than 10,000 new math and science teachers teachers over the next five years, and provide on-the-job training for an additional 100,000 teachers in STEM fields. I am hoping that the state of Florida benefits from this iniative via providing additional and much needed quality hands-on professional staff development for math and science teachers. For further details on the initiative see the article by Nick Anderson, Washington Post Staff Writer in the following link “>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/06/AR2010010602063.html”>

“Educate To Innovate” Program for Excellence in technology, Science, Engineering & Math

Diana Wehrell-Grabowski — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 21:23:47 +0000

November 23rd, President Obama launched the “Educate to Innovate” campaign. The goal of the nationwide effort is to move American students from the middle to the top in science and math achievement over the next decade, over $260 million in public-private investments have been made to help achieve this goal. Big name public and private partnerships have come on board to help achieve this goal including: Time Warner Cable, Discovery Communications, Sesame Street’s Early STEM Literacy Initiative, The MacArthur Foundation, Sony Computer Entertainment America, and numerous other corporations. States have begun submitting qualifying paperwork to state their interest in applying for “Race to the Top” funds. States receiving Race to the Top funds will have to dramatically improve their schools and student achievement in science and math. A major portion of the funds are expected to be used for professional staff development. For further details on the “Educate to Innovate” campaign see the official White House Press release below.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/president-obama-launches-educate-innovate-campaign-excellence-science-technology-en