A trilingual guide to Miami-Dade's public school and the FCAT system has just been released. I would have correctly named two of the three languages as English and Spanish - but I wouldn't have guessed Haitian Creole to be the third:
...A new trilingual parent guide to Miami-Dade County Public Schools, which includes a wide range of program information and more than 100 phone numbers and Internet sites for additional help, will be delivered Friday to nearly every home in the county.
''It's difficult to figure out how to navigate the school system if you don't know where to start,'' said Susan James, immediate past chairwoman of The Education Fund, which oversaw the coalition of private companies and government agencies that produced the 72-page guide.
The booklet covers everything from pre-kindergarten registration to high school graduation. It explains the many standardized tests given in public school, provides enrollment information for college-scholarship plans and details how to address problems in the classroom. It also answers questions about remedial programs, special education, gifted classes and magnet school applications...
Every copy is printed in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole, which organizers said would reach the vast majority of Miami-Dade parents...
...Parents, especially those who cannot read English, routinely complain that they are unfamiliar with the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, the high-stakes standardized test given in grades three through 10. Low scores on that test can prevent a third-grader from advancing to fourth grade and block a high school senior from receiving a diploma. The guide lists every test given at every grade level, explains the FCAT grade reports and gives suggestions for improving test scores.
Posted by kswygert at February 2, 2004 09:38 PM