Despite having graduation requirements lowered two years ago, Florida superintendents are again pleading with the state’s Department of Education to delay a scheduled increase in graduation requirements.
On April 20, 2021, then-Florida Department of Education (DOE) Commissioner Richard Corcoran issued an emergency order (pdf), waiving required state assessments for graduation due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two years later, superintendents across the Sunshine State are again pleading with the Florida DOE to keep the state’s graduation standards low, claiming thousands of students would fail due to learning loss during the pandemic.
In May 2018, Florida’s State Board of Education (SBE) eliminated the Post Education Readiness Test (PERT) as an alternative option for students who didn’t pass their state exams. It also raised the bar on ACT and SAT scores and added the PSAT. As the Orlando Sentinel reported, educators and students pleaded with the board not to raise the standards back then, claiming the tougher requirements would prevent students from graduating. The SBE unanimously voted to adopt the new higher standards anyway….