Florida’s Department of Education released the 2013 FCAT results on Friday, and the results are mixed. The tests show tenth grade students did better in both math and reading over last year. 54% of students passed the reading section of the FCAT, up from 50%, while nearly two-thirds passed in algebra.
Students are required to pass both in order to graduate from high school.
Education Commissioner Tony Bennett says the overall FCAT results are unacceptable, and public schools need to do a better job of teaching.
"What we have to make sure is that we return to rigor, we return to high expectations at the local level, around those foundational pieces: reading, language arts and foundations in mathematics as a catapult to algebra and college readiness", Bennett said.
In grades four through eight, math scores only rose among fourth graders, while falling in all other grades. FCAT scores are one of the main indicators in deciding whether individual schools are graded A through F.