PUBLISHED: January 21, 2008 | A Times editorial | The St. Petersburg Times

A Welcome Challenge to FCAT Monopoly

In most any other context, a state education commissioner's willingness to consider new ways to judge school performance would seem routine, even mundane. But in Florida, where a standardized test has been treated for nearly a decade as the only barometer of success, a simple declaration by new state Education Commissioner Eric Smith made news.

"We probably," he said Tuesday, "need to look at a broader array of tools to measure school performance."

His observation is as obvious as it is overdue. Even the company that markets the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test argues the state is using it for purposes well beyond its original design. Schools can be put on probation or even shut down if the scores remain low. Teachers can get or not get bonus pay based on the results. Nine-year-olds can be held back a grade if they fail the reading portion.

High school is a good example of the FCAT's limitations. It tests reading, writing, math and science, which represent only a portion of the curriculum for many students. The grading formula that is supposed to judge a high school's success doesn't even consider the rate of graduation.

Smith is not the first to speak of changes in accountability. Gov. Charlie Crist and Senate Education Chairman Don Gaetz, a former school superintendent, have also spoken of the need to use more than just a test. But his comments are welcome, particularly given the more dogmatic and confrontational approach of his two permanent predecessors.

That stubbornness is partly to blame for the continued resistance to performance pay. Former Commissioner John Winn tried to enact a merit pay plan on his own, forcing districts into contract disputes and fights with their own faculty. The current plan, enacted too hastily by lawmakers last year, may end up with fewer than 10 districts participating.

Smith said he will bring a more patient approach. Rather than point a finger of blame at the districts that refused to participate this year, he argues the state should learn from the districts that do adopt plans. "We need to have conversations led by teachers," he said.

Smith is only six weeks into the job, but his tone is encouraging. The path of conflict has hurt the cause of educational accountability, and the limits are now plain to see. When teachers turn down pay raises because they refuse to be judged by one standardized test, they are sending a powerful signal to the capital. Maybe now someone will listen.