Our hats are off to the organizers of this week's annual meeting of the Florida Council of Teachers of Mathematics (FCTM, http://www.fctm.net/). They’ve used a "math rocks" theme to put together a well organized and well attended conference. You can pick up a great t-shirt with a chalkboard on the front for under $10, the food is super and the discussion is lively.
At the Walch Publishing booth, and elsewhere on the convention floor, we’ve been hearing two topics on everybody’s lips. First is the anticipated state budget cuts that are expected to have a negative affect on educational funds. This, in a state where the per-pupil spending level is already one of the lowest in the country. The Miami Herald covered the story of the budget cuts, and the School Board chairman of Broward County has weighed in with a reasoned reaction. (http://www.miamiherald.com/news/legislature/property_tax/story/267528.html
and
http://www.browardschools.com/pdf/consortiumwilliams.pdf
The second issue is testing. The current Sunshine State Standards are changing, but the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) isn’t scheduled to be revised for there years. Understandably, there's some confusion: will districts wait to implement the new standards, because the existing FCATs reflects the old ones?
While these appropriately weighty matters are being discussed, we took the opportunity to introduce show attendees to our "coming out" party for the Academic Support Program for Middle School Mathematics, developed with the School District for Palm Beach County. The reactions were resoundingly positive and it looks like we have a winner on our hands. We look forward to working closely in the future with Palm Beach and other districts to keep these products fresh and relevant, and, most importantly, effective. (Al Noyes)
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