Florida Schools File Lawsuit Over FCAT After Drastic Swings in Scores

TALLAHASSEE – A lawsuit filed in Leon County circuit court claims Florida is violating its state Constitution by failing to provide a high quality public education system and relentlessly focusing on standardized tests that are not producing sufficient results in academic achievement.
 
The lawsuit claims low graduation rates, stagnant test scores, and persistent efforts by Republican legislators to shift education costs to school districts – all of which they feel shows that the state is not living up to its constitutional mandate to provide high-quality education for its public school students.

NCS Pearson, the corporation contracted to grade this year’s FCAT exams, missed their deadline by over a month. When scores finally arrived, school districts throughout the state reported significant anomalies. Duval County and four of the state’s largest school boards publicly questioned the validity of reading scores earlier this week, after broad declines that were not within normal variation.

Attention was also drawn to a reported grading change in the writing section that may have caused gross increases in some scores. 94 percent of Florida 10th graders passed the writing portion, up from 77 percent last year.

As the tests are used for multiple comparative assessments, many educators are questioning the usefulness of standardized testing, if it is not really standardized in any meaningful sense of the term. The recent debacles only add to the controversy that has plagued the FCAT exams since they were implemented in 2001, with many parents and educators calling for their repeal.

The tests impact everything from teacher performance to school funding and student matriculation. Many teachers also contend that the intense focus on test scores force them to "teach the test" rather than strive for a thorough comprehension of the subjects, while parents have derided the tremendous pressure put on students to perform well, not only for themselves, but for the benefit of their teachers and school districts.