FCAT ideas

The Florida Coalition for Assessment Reform isn't sitting around waiting for the Department of Education and the Governor's Office to announce publicly how they plan to salve the growing concerns over the FCAT in the wake of recent revelations about test scoring problems. No. The advocacy group has jumped right in with its own set of recommendations, sent to Gov. Crist and Commissioner Blomberg this morning. Then the group sent the letter to the media, essentially trying to hold the state's feet to the fire on its promise of openness and transparency.

FCAR proposes that the department conduct hearings around the state, investigate all FCAT scores and not just the 2006 third-grade reading results in question, and publish all "relevant documents" about how the test is designed, constructed and administered. They've even enlisted Bob Schaeffer of FairTest, an organization that opposes high-stakes testing, as a co-spokesman for the effort. We've put in calls to get a response from the state officials. We'll let you know when we hear anything.