A weekly alert that contains in-depth news, information, insight and analysis on the most critical education related issues and topics facing Florida.<\/p>\n
Less than half of states fund tutoring directly. Florida is one of them<\/p>\n
High-impact tutoring is an immersive form of tutoring based on relationship building and individualized instruction known to improve education outcomes and even school attendance. The Florida Legislature established the Florida Tutoring Advantage program in 2024 and which is administered by the University of Florida\u2019s Lastinger Center for Learning. In last school year alone, the review detailed the state funded $22 million toward the program, including $2 million for AI-enhanced learning support. [Source: Tampa Bay Times<\/a>]<\/p>\n Bizarre AI school threat trend prompts warning from Florida law enforcement<\/p>\n A bizarre social media trend involving AI-generated images and videos of a familiar children\u2019s book character is making its way into Florida schools. Law enforcement agencies around Florida are urging parents, students and staff not to engage with the posts. The trend features AI-generated versions of the Cat in the Hat, sometimes depicted lurking outside schools or making threatening statements directed at school districts. [Source: WFTV<\/a>]<\/p>\n 9\/11 education flourishes under Florida law as 25th anniversary nears<\/p>\n This 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks brings not only memorial services, but education. Florida law requires all middle and high school students to learn about what happened that day. None of the students currently in school were alive in 2001, and the same is starting to be true for teachers, many of whom were born in the early 2000s. [Source: WTVT<\/a>]<\/p>\n Florida\u2019s public school enrollment falls while vouchers soar<\/p>\n As the pool of prospective students attending public schools dwindles, less enrollment, and thus less funding, is a top concern for school boards across Florida, overshadowing pandemic-era culture war issues that dominated elections. School choice policies like universal vouchers, championed by state leaders, is undeniably a major driver of this decline. [Source: WGCU<\/a>]<\/p>\n 10 Florida trucking schools ordered to cease operations after failing to meet English requirements<\/p>\n The Florida Department of Education is taking steps against ten Florida trucking schools that failed to meet federal standards, officials announced on Tuesday. Last month, federal authorities removed 110 commercial driver\u2019s license training schools from their Training Provider Registry. A commercial driver\u2019s license, or CDL, is required to operate large or heavy commercial vehicles like semi-trucks, tankers, or buses. [Source: WFLA<\/a>]<\/p>\n ALSO AROUND FLORIDA: <\/p>\n \u203a Students warned Florida about \u2018fishy\u2019 nursing school, records show<\/a> [Orlando Sentinel] \u203a Northwest Florida schools, universities share how AI is used in classrooms<\/a> [WEAR]
Frustrated, a Florida nursing student wrote to the state\u2019s attorney general, explaining how they\u2019d paid $16,500 to their school and completed their program months earlier but still did not have a diploma or transcript and so could not work as a registered nurse. There were other problems at Carleen Health Institute, too, the student said in a December 2021 letter.\u00a0The complaint was one of more than 40 lodged by current and former Carleen students over a five-year period.<\/p>\n
Across Northwest Florida, schools and universities currently use AI to varying degrees. Officials say there are guardrails in place for the responsible use of AI.\u00a0At the University of West Florida, they set clear expectations for students on how to safely use AI. In fact, the school offers an AI intelligence in education graduate certificate.<\/p>\n