A No to the Jeb Bush Model in Mississippi
I had a little fun at Jeb Bush’s expense earlier this month after he made a pitch for Mississippi lawmakers to adopt his Florida way for education policy. The editors of one state newspaper aren’t biting. This from the Delta Democrat Times in Greenville:
The (Bush) foundation’s Christy Hovanetz pointed to data showing some test scores in Florida and Mississippi were on a similar track before Florida made changes to its school system.
She told Mississippi lawmakers that Florida’s accountability system was a key driver in the improvement.
“People weren’t satisfied any more with how their schools were performing,” Hovanetz said. “I think the catalyst of the rating system really sparked a change in the education culture in Florida.”
But will changing the way schools and districts are graded really change anything? Or is it becoming a shell game, with education officials and lawmakers changing the rules as they g