Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has announced that a legislative proposal has passed that will end the common-core-based, end-of-year Florida Statewide Assessment (FSA) making room for the new Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (F.A.S.T) plan, which will monitor student progress and individual growth. In short, Florida Standards Assessments (FSA) will be eliminated in all Florida public schools. Students in third through 10th grade will take English and math tests throughout the year.
The proposal is intended to reduce testing time by upwards of 75 percent, with the hope of benefiting both students and teachers. The idea is to make it possible for educators to track and receive real-time data that will better show where a student may need additional instructional help. The reference to real-time meaning the F.A.S.T. would make it possible for students to receive feedback in the current school year, not like the FSA method which typically provided testing results during summer break.
“We are here with legislators to officially announce the removal of the FSA from the state of Florida,” Governor DeSantis said. “Instead of having one major test at the end of the year, which provided no feedback to students before the summer came, we would do progress monitoring that would monitor progress throughout the school year; it will be shorter, it will be more individualized, and it will provide good feedback for students, teachers, and parents.”
The 2021-2022 school year will be the last time the FSA is administered in the state of Florida. “Next year, Florida will become the first state in the nation to do a full transition to progress monitoring to inform school accountability,” Gov. DeSantis said.
Results from the final test of the year will be used to calculate school ratings.
