Florida

News, analysis, and opinion about K-12 education in Florida
Image of a staff meeting.
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School & District Management Teachers Hate All Those Meetings. Can Principals Find a Workaround?
Principals can't do away with every meeting, but they can reduce some and make others more effective.
Olina Banerji, March 15, 2024
4 min read
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media, March 7, 2023, at the state Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. Students and teachers will be able to speak freely about sexual orientation and gender identity in Florida classrooms under a settlement reached March 11, 2024 between Florida education officials and civil rights attorneys who had challenged a state law which critics dubbed “Don't Say Gay.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media, March 7, 2023, at the state Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. Students and teachers will be able to speak freely about sexual orientation and gender identity in Florida classrooms under a settlement reached March 11, 2024, between Florida education officials and civil rights attorneys who had challenged the state's “Don't Say Gay” law.
Phil Sears/AP
Equity & Diversity What's Permissible Under Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law? A New Legal Settlement Clarifies
The Florida department of education must send out a copy of the settlement agreement to school boards across the state.
Ileana Najarro, March 12, 2024
4 min read
Teaching Profession Video Nonstop From Classroom to Classroom, an ESOL Teacher's Day
This ESOL teacher moves from room to room throughout the day, working with students from kindergarten through 5th grade.
1 min read
Jacqueline Chaney ask her 2nd graders a question during class at New Town Elementary School in Owings Mills, Md., on Oct. 25, 2023.
Jacqueline Chaney ask her 2nd graders a question during class at New Town Elementary School in Owings Mills, Md., on Oct. 25, 2023.
Jaclyn Borowski/Education Week
Teaching Profession The State of Teaching The 'Difficult, Beautiful' Work of Teaching
From sunup to sundown, America's teachers grapple with countless decisions, interruptions, joys, and frustrations.
James Minor teaches his IB Language and Literature class at Riverview High School in Sarasota, Fla., on Jan. 23, 2024.
James Minor teaches his IB Language and Literature class at Riverview High School in Sarasota, Fla., on Jan. 23, 2024.
Zack Wittman for Education Week
Curriculum How an International Baccalaureate Education Cuts Through the ‘Noise’ on Banned Topics
IB programs offer students college credit in high school and advanced learning environments.
Ileana Najarro, February 29, 2024
9 min read
 Conceptual photo of of a young boy studying mathematics using fingers in primary school.
Kilukilu/iStock/Getty
Mathematics Schools Prioritize Reading Intervention. But What About Math?
Early intervention can have large positive effects for students down the line, researchers say.
Sarah Schwartz, February 23, 2024
7 min read
Image of articles of clothing on a coat hook outside a school entrance.
Laura Baker/Education Week via Canva
School Climate & Safety School Dress Codes Often Target Girls. What Happens When Male Teachers Have to Enforce Them?
Male teachers say the task can put them in a risky and uncomfortable position.
Alex Harwin & Sarah D. Sparks, February 15, 2024
11 min read
Eric Parker teaches a class NW Classen High that has immigrant students and he has a flag representing each, which is a way to make them feel welcome, Tuesday, September 10, 2019.
Eric Parker teaches a class NW Classen High that has immigrant students and he has a flag representing each, which is a way to make them feel welcome, Tuesday, September 10, 2019. In a study published in the Review of Economic Studies last year, researchers analyzed population-level school records and birth records from Florida to measure the impact of immigrant students on U.S.-born peers’ academic outcomes.
Doug Hoke/The Oklahoman via AP
English-Language Learners Do Immigrant Students Help the Academic Outcomes of U.S.-Born Peers? One Study Says Yes
Schools and districts across the country have recently been reporting larger numbers of immigrant student enrollment, researchers say.
Ileana Najarro, January 31, 2024
5 min read
Books are displayed at the Banned Book Library at American Stage in St. Petersburg, Fla., Feb. 18, 2023. In Florida, some schools have covered or removed books under a new law that requires an evaluation of reading materials and for districts to publish a searchable list of books where individuals can then challenge specific titles.
Books are displayed at the Banned Book Library at American Stage in St. Petersburg, Fla., Feb. 18, 2023. In Florida, some schools have covered or removed books under a new law that requires an evaluation of reading materials and for districts to publish a searchable list of books where individuals can then challenge specific titles.
Jefferee Woo/Tampa Bay Times via AP
Curriculum One School District Just Pulled 1,600 Books From Its Shelves—Including the Dictionary
And the broadening book ban attempts may drive some teachers out of the classroom.
Elizabeth Heubeck, January 24, 2024
6 min read
Image of an exterior school door and shadows of student crossing the view.
Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week and Getty
School & District Management How These Principals Nip Apathy in the Bud After Winter Break and Long Weekends
Cellphone bans, Instagram posts and shout-outs are small fixes to the growing problem of student apathy.
Olina Banerji, January 19, 2024
6 min read
Tight crop of two holding hands and listening to one another.
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Student Well-Being Q&A Gratitude and Growth Mindset: A Student Makes the Case for Better Mental Health in Schools
Addressing student mental health has become a top priority for many districts.
Lauraine Langreo, January 17, 2024
4 min read
Students creating programs while using laptop
E+ / Getty
Science This District Hopes Seeing What AI Can Do Will Spur More Students to Take Computer Science
Districts including Florida's Broward County put an AI twist on coding activities during an annual computer science event.
Alyson Klein, December 19, 2023
2 min read
Santaluces High School teacher Michael Woods stands in front of his school sign in Lantana, Fla., wearing his protest shirt "We Are All Human" in opposition to recent book bans by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on May 24, 2023. DeSantis is touting a series of measures he has pushed that have led to an upswing in banned or restricted books — not just in Florida schools but in an increasing number of other conservative states.
Santaluces High School teacher Michael Woods, standing in front of his school in Lantana, Fla., on May 24, 2023, wears a protest shirt in the colors of the pride and transgender flags. Now, Florida is being sued over a law prohibiting teachers from using pronouns that don't align with their sex at birth.
Jim Rassol/AP
Law & Courts Florida Teachers Sue Over State Law Restricting Their Pronoun Use
The teachers seek to overturn the measure, which prohibits them from using gender-neutral honorifics or pronouns that don't match their sex at birth.
Madeline Will, December 18, 2023
5 min read
Emmitt Glynn teaches AP African American studies to a group of Baton Rouge Magnet High School students on Monday, Jan. 30, 2023 in Baton Rouge, La. Baton Rouge Magnet High School in Louisiana is one of 60 schools around the country testing the new course, which has gained national attention since it was banned in Florida.
Emmitt Glynn teaches AP African American studies to a group of Baton Rouge Magnet High School students on Monday, Jan. 30, 2023 in Baton Rouge, La. The high school was testing a version of the new course, which has since gained national attention.
Stephen Smith/AP
Social Studies The Revised AP African American Studies: What's Been Changed and Why
The new framework, published Dec. 6, will be used for the course's official launch next fall.
Ileana Najarro, December 6, 2023
6 min read