FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
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John L. Winn
Commissioner of Education
F. PHILIP HANDY,
Chairman
T. WILLARD FAIR,
Vice Chairman
Members
DONNA G. CALLAWAY
JULIA L. JOHNSON
ROBERTO MARTÍNEZ
PHOEBE RAULERSON
LINDA K. TAYLOR
September 1, 2005
M E M O R A N D U M
TO:
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District School Superintendents
FROM:
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Mary Laura Openshaw
SUBJECT:
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Just Read, Florida! Reading Endorsement Professional Development On-Line
Course for Competency Three
I
n our continued effort to provide your teachers with high quality reading endorsement
professional development at little or no cost, the Just Read, Florida! office is pleased to announce
the availability of 1,000 free registrations for the online course entitled Applied Data Analysis
for Educational Leaders (ADAPT) offered through North East Florida Educational Consortium
(NEFEC). Please note that this course fully satisfies competency three, which is one of six
competencies required to earn the reading endorsement. Additional information about the
ADAPT training, including training goals and objectives, assignment schedule, and technical
requirements, is available online at http://www.nefec.org/adapt
This process will be on a first come first served basis and is prioritized as follows:
•
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The first tier of eligibility is for teachers who are currently teaching reading
courses in grades 6-12 during the 2005-2006 school year and are required and on
track to finish the reading endorsement by July 1, 2006.
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The second tier of eligibility is for teachers who, in all probability, will be teaching
reading courses in grades 6-12 during the 2006-2007 school year and are required
and on track to complete their reading endorsement by July 1, 2006.
MARY LAURA OPENSHAW
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DIRECTOR, JUST READ, FLORIDA!
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325 W. GAINES STREET • SUITE 1548 • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0503 • www.fldoe.org
Memo to District School Superintendents
Page 2
Please note that teachers certified in elementary education are already considered highly
qualified to teach elementary reading, including sixth grade reading to sixth graders,
but there
may be sixth grade teachers who are certified in other subject areas, such as social studies,
band, music or science, to name a few, who must also pursue the reading endorsement,
since their 2005-2006 (or anticipated 2006-2007) placement is in a reading class. Please see
bullets above to determine their eligibility for the NEFEC complimentary slots.
We commend our elementary teachers who wish to pursue the endorsement, but this NEFEC
professional development must be prioritized for those teachers striving to meet the July 1, 2006,
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) deadline for highly qualified teachers of reading. In addition, we
applaud our reading coaches statewide who are working to complete the reading endorsement,
but they will not be eligible for the complimentary NEFEC slots. Reading coaches do not fall
under the NCLB requirements of being endorsed by July 1, 2006, and therefore we must
prioritize our free professional development to that population of teachers who have the greatest
need. Elementary teachers and reading coaches are encouraged to work with their district
reading endorsement contacts on accessing the endorsement through the district add-on plan.
Teachers may register online for the complimentary slots beginning September 12, 2005, at 8:00
AM (EST) at http://www.nefec.org/adapt/. Registrations will not be accepted before this
date and time. Upon entering the ADAPT home page, select the desired session start date from
the list on the right side of the screen. Then a page with additional information about the training
will appear with a link at the bottom of the page to register. Teachers should follow the
registration prompts through the next series of screens to provide contact information and to
complete the registration process. When asked for payment information, please direct your
teachers to select the payment type of “
Other
” and enter the payment number of “
TIER 1
,” for
those teachers who are currently teaching reading courses in grades 6-12 during the 2005-2006
school year and are required and on track to finish the endorsement by July 1, 2006, or “
TIER 2
”
for teachers who, in all probability, will be teaching reading courses in grades 6-12 during the
2006-2007 school year and are required and on track to complete their endorsement by July 1,
2006.
NEFEC has been offering this fifteen-week course for approximately a year and will continue to
offer it in the future at a cost of $180 per teacher plus the textbook. We anticipate that the free
registrations will fill up quickly, but please know that the course can be accessed for the fee
should you wish to sponsor your teachers.
Please do not delay in communicating information about this opportunity to your teachers,
since this will be a highly competitive process.
Multiple classes will he held during the
following time frames and teachers may select the time period that best suits their schedule.
Confirmations will be sent to teachers who have secured a complimentary slot and also to those
who did not.
Memo to District School Superintendents
Page 3
Sections
Start Date
End Date
Section 1
September 26, 2005
January 30, 2006
Section 2
October 10, 2005
February 13, 2006
Section 3
November 7, 2005
March 13, 2006
Section 4
December 5, 2005
April 3, 2006
Section 5
January 16, 2006
May 1, 2006
Section 6
February 13, 2006
May 29, 2006
Section 7
March 6, 2006
June 10, 2006
The textbook for the class is Developing and Using Classroom Assessments, Third Edition, by
Albert Oosterhof.
We are asking that each district absorb the cost of the textbook for their
teachers enrolled in the class.
The attachment describes the options for ordering this textbook.
NEFEC has 200 texts in stock and can reorder. Once registration is closed, we will notify
district endorsement contacts of the participants from their district so that the appropriate number
of books can be secured. You may wish for teachers to pick up their textbooks at the district
office, or you may choose to deliver them to the teachers at their respective schools by courier, if
that service is available.
If teachers wish to take this course for college credit, Florida State University periodically offers
this online course. Teachers must enter as a degree seeking or special student and pay the full
tuition. Dr. Laura Hassler and her staff can provide more information on this option, and they
can be reached at 850.644.2570. Just Read, Florida! is not sponsoring university tuition.
We are very excited about this opportunity for your teachers. If you have questions about the
registration process, please contact Garnette Knapp at 386/329-3800 or by e-mail at
knappg@nefec.org. If you have questions about eligibility, please contact Barbara Elzie at
850/245-0503 or by e-mail at barbara.elzie@fldoe.org.
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