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Frequently Asked Questions
- What type of activities does the Alliance promote?
- What are some of the past activities of the Alliance?
- What is the FCAT?
- What are the Sunshine State Standards?
- Who developed the Sunshine State Standards?
- If a high school student fails the test, what are his or her options?
- Was there a test required for graduation in the past? If so, how does the FCAT test differ from that test?
- Is there a site where parents can explore the contents of the FCAT?
- How has the current education reform better prepared African American students for college?
- What is the demographic makeup of minority students in Florida community colleges and universities?
- What are the FCAT Data Results for African American students as compared to previous years?
- What are the goals and objectives of the A+ Plan?
- Why should African Americans support the A+ Plan?
- What happens if a school receives a failing grade of F? What does an F grade mean?
- What assistance does DOE provide to the F school? What assistance does the school board/district provide?
What type of activities does the Alliance promote?
The African American Education Alliance is a not for profit organization, created in response to the concern that Florida's communities are not fully aware of the benefits of the education reforms and are not taking full advantage of what is available within the education system.
Outreach activities are conducted locally and regionally throughout Florida in an effort to ensure that our communities are aware of the benefits of Florida's education reforms and also ensure that our students are receiving the benefits of the education reforms. Events are open to the public and the general public is encouraged to participate in all functions. The goal is raising education awareness, opportunities, and the advancement of education for all.
The Alliance monitors the performance of African American students and applauds improvements. We provide assistance and suggest corrective actions if there are declining student performances.
The Alliance seeks to facilitate an open line of communication between educational institutions implementing education reform and our communities in order to ensure that our unique issues are address. We have subcommittees whose main concentration is in the following areas: Educational Partnerships, Community, Religious Organizations, and Leadership Outreach, Events/Public Relations, and Fundraising/Membership Outreach.
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What are some of the past activities of the Alliance?
Facilitation of meetings which brought together educators, community leaders, representatives from school districts, DOE, community colleges and higher education institutions to discuss the state of education in Florida and the impact on African American students and communities. The Alliance created a Strategic Plan to address the challenges of the education reform and identified ways to build upon the current foundation to continually improve those initiatives for the benefit of African Americans. Consequently, we have held programs that recognized the success of African American students and teachers.
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What is the FCAT?
The FCAT, Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test, is a test given to Florida students to measure what they know and are able to accomplish in reading, writing, mathematics, and science. The test is part of Florida's plan to improve student's achievements. It measures content standards, called the Sunshine State Standards.
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What are the Sunshine State Standards?
The Sunshine State Standards are broad statements that describe what a child should know and be able to do at every grade level. These standards cover seven content areas: social studies, science, language arts, health/physical education, the arts, foreign language and mathematics.
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Who developed the Sunshine State Standards?
The Sunshine State Standards were created in the late 1990's by a diverse group of 600 teachers across Florida. The teachers worked together to answer the question" What do our children need to know at each grade level?" The FCAT was designed to test whether students have mastered the skills they need at each level.
Some of the questions are repeated for the sake of continuity and to enable teachers to compare results over time and others are new and fall into one of two categories:
- Field Tests-questions that do not count toward the student's score, but are tested for effectiveness and bias.
- Proven questions-questions that have appeared once before during field testing and have been determined to be effective and unbiased.
Questions are weighted, which means that some are more difficult (and worth more points), while others are basic (and worth fewer points).
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If a high school student fails the test, what are his or her options?
The students who have not met the minimum required score on FCAT may:
- Receive FCAT remediation-they may take the FCAT as many times as necessary to get a standard high school diploma.
- Participate in GED Fast Track-they can earn their GED in the summer and begin college, join the military, or begin other careers that require a diploma.
- Enroll in vocational and technical courses while they pursue their GED or retake the FCAT-many opportunities are available in the technical fields.
- Use FCAT and GED tutorials and learn more about their options on 12thGradeOptions.org.
- Obtain additional, personalized assistance from High School guidance counselors, adult education counselors in districts and community colleges and DOE's live toll free hotline at 1-800-315-0833.
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Was there a test required for graduation in the past? If so, how does the FCAT test differ from that test?
The FCAT replaced the HSCT (High School Competency Test) which used to be the test required for a high school diploma in Florida for 20 years. The HSCT tested 10th graders on an 8th grade level, whereas, the FCAT tests students on 10th grade level.
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Is there a site where parents can explore the contents of the FCAT?
The specific link is www.fcatexplorer.org
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How has the current education reform better prepared African American students for college?
Today, a greater number of African-American students are attending community colleges and universities. More African-American students are receiving AA degrees. The number of African-American students attending graduate school has risen and more African-Americans will be lawyers.
- More African-American students are participating in dual enrollment than ever before.
- The number of African American students taking Advanced Placement (AP) courses has gone up 239%.
- Florida leads the nation in minority PSAT test-takers.
- All Florida tenth graders have the opportunity to take the PSAT at no charge.
- The number of African-American students taking the PSAT and SAT has increased.
- For example, in 1999, nearly 4,500 African-American students took the PSAT.
- In only six years, that number had multiplied by more than six times to over 29,000 African-American students taking the PSAT.
- For example, in 2000-2001, approximately 2,700 African-Americans earned an AA degree, compared to nearly 4,000 in 2004-2005.
- In 1998, 24% of new law school students were minorities.
- Currently, minorities comprise 35% of new law school students.
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What is the demographic makeup of minority students in Florida community colleges and universities?
There were a total of 143,839 minority students enrolled in a Florida community college in the 2006 fall term.
- 60,063 African Americans,
- 72,173 Hispanic, and
- 11,603 other minorities
There were 292,402 students in the State University System in fall 2006.
- 40,442 African American (13.8%),
- 49,491 Hispanics (16.9%), and
- 14,837 Other minorities (5.1%)
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What are the FCAT Data Results for African American students as compared to previous years?
There are 5 levels of performance and students must make level 2 in order to "pass".
- Level 1=below basic
- Level 2=not yet grade level
- Level 3=grade level
- Level 4=proficient
- Level 5=above grade level
From 2001 to 2006, African American students continued to narrow the achievement gap, improving nearly twice as fast in reading and three times as fast in mathematics as their white counterparts. There are five categories of achievement that describe the success students have on FCAT reading and mathematics. Level 5 is the highest, and Level 1 is the lowest. Levels 3 and above are considered to be on or above their grade level.
- From 2005-2006, the percentage of 3rd graders reading at or above grade level rose 8 percent, more than double any previous single year gain.
- 75% of 3rd graders are reading at or above grade level, up from 57% in 2001.
- 61% of African American 3rd graders are reading at or above grade level, up from 37% in 2001.
- 70% of Hispanic 3rd graders are reading at or above grade level, up from 46% in 2001.
- Florida's African American and Hispanic students have made the most tremendous improvements of all.
- 49% of African American 4th graders are reading on grade level compared to only 23% in 1999, a 26 point increase.
- 60% of Hispanic 4th graders are reading on grade level compared to only 37% in 1999, a 23 point increase.
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What are the goals and objectives of the A+ Plan?
The fundamental premise of the A+ Plan is that every child can learn and no child should be left behind. The A+ Plan for education has three major parts-one addressing accountability and improving student learning, one to raise standards and improve training for educators, and one to improve school safety and reduce truancy.
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Why should African Americans support the A+ Plan?
African Americans should support the A+ Plan because Florida's education reforms are setting high standards, providing adequate funding, and then holding schools and educators accountable for the performance of the students. Rewards for successes and consequences for failure are given. Families are being provided with more educational choices, including more magnet schools and more charter schools. Also, parents may choose to send their children to higher performing public or private schools if their child's school fails to meet the minimum standards of quality.
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What happens if a school receives a failing grade of F? What does an F grade mean?
The A+ Plan requires all schools to receive a report card on how well they perform. They now receive grades from A to F and rewards or sanctions depending on their performance. School performance includes more than overall student achievement. Schools are being measured on how well the lowest performing students learn. Schools will not receive passing marks if the lowest performing students are left behind. Schools having excellent performance or making significant improvement will be recognized and given financial rewords. Parents will receive report cards on how well their child's school performs each year. Report cards are valuable tools for assessing the progress of our children and can serve the same function for our schools.
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What assistance does DOE provide to the F school? What assistance does the school board/district provide?
Schools performing at a failing level will be given two years to improve during which they will receive assistance from the school district and the Department of Education. Each failing school is matched with a higher performing school in the district to assist in the sharing of successful practices. Schools are provided with increased funding, school improvement facilitators, reading coaches, and technical assistance, as well as assessments to monitor student progress. If the school fails to improve beyond an F in the second year, it will be subject to State Board of Education sanctions currently provided in law.
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