More Than Two Dozen Manatee Schools See Their Grades Drop

The state released elementary and middle schools grades today. Tougher grading on standardized tests led to drops in grades at many schools. Eleven local schools received D grades this year.

More than two dozen Manatee County District Schools saw their State school grades drop this year. Just 74 percent of Manatee District schools received an A, B or C this year. Last year 94 percent of schools received those grades. In total, 53 Manatee District elementary and middle schools received School Grades from the state today, of those 27 schools saw their grades drop. School Grades for high schools will be released later this year. The increased rigor of FCAT 2.0 and tougher scoring impacted School Grades across Florida. Manatee District results reflected the following: Five Manatee District schools did raise their School Grades this year compared to 2011, including Braden River Elementary and Buffalo Creek Middle, which both moved …

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FCAT Scores Prompt Manatee School District to Implement Changes

Scores this year were disappointing and the district is searching for ways to improve student performance.

Manatee School District leaders are implementing sweeping changes in curriculum and instruction after a lackluster performance on the FCATS this year. The Superintendent of Schools highlighted the changed this week after particularly disappointing FCAT 2.0 results for Reading and Math for students in grades 4 through 8, and in Science for grades 5 and 8. The results released this week showed the Manatee District trailed the state in terms of the percentage of students considered proficient. FCAT scores are grouped in five different achievement levels – from a low of Level 1 to a high of Level 5. Students scoring Level 3 or higher are considered to be proficient, according to Sunshine State Standards. “We anticipated our proficiency levels …

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Manatee County Teachers to Receive Retroactive Pay Cuts

In a meeting Wednesday night the school board voted 3-2 to cut teacher salaries and to raise the cost of their health insurance.

Early Release Wednesday Sticking Around in Manatee

School board votes to retain school schedules, including controversial half-day Wednesdays.

The Manatee County School Board voted 3-1 on Monday to retain school day schedules, including a half-day of instruction on Wednesday, but asked the school superintendent to review other options for next year. “Modified Wednesdays” have been controversial since they were instituted four years ago to give teachers time for planning or professional development. Still, the board decided to keep the status quo, with board member Julie Aranibar voting against keeping the schedule. Board member Karen Carpenter was absent. Board Chairman Robert Gause said even though he thought the community was split 50-50 on the issue, he was voting to retain the schedule because he believes it is best for the students. At issue was providing teachers with …

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