Education

A 2008 American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)/Human Rights Watch report found that corporal punishment in public schools is routine in many parts of the US, and that almost a quarter-of-a-million school children were subjected to this violent, degrading punishment in the 2006-2007 school year.

Twenty states permit corporal punishment; Florida is one of them! Read the entire report here.

National Education Association's report on education in America based on Florida's Department of Education statistics.

The national education report card compiled by American Legislative Exchange Council. Florida's students score 48th on ACT scores and 43rd nationally on the SAT. Barely 60% of Florida's students graduate, compared to the 70% of students nationally. According to ALEC, Florida spends only $7,652 per pupil compared to the national average of $9,389. After all their indicators are taken into account, Florida is 37th in the nation for education.

The State of Preschool 2008 from the National Institute of Early Education Research. In 2005, after a constitutional amendment, all 4 year olds whose parents wanted could attend a voluntary pre-K program. According to this report, Florida is 2nd in the nation in accessibility but 34th in terms of state spending on the programs.

Florida is a leader...in High School Drop out rates. Nearly 1 in 4 Florida High School students do not graduate.

Less than 4% of Florida’s students are in school districts funded at or above the national average – Florida ranks 46^th in the nation. See more of Florida's education system plights in The 2008 Education Week's Quality Counts Report.

Once again, education comes under the scrutiny of policymakers as low graduation rates are addressed and linked to economic challenges facing the state if Florida fails to graduate its future; its children.