By David R. Colburn and Brian Dassler — Many of America’s super wealthy are focusing their philanthropic endeavors on reforming public education in some of the poorest communities in the nation by offering parents and children alternatives to traditional public schools.

By John Koenig – Improvement is always good, so I was pleased to learn that Florida’s middle-and high-school students posted their highest-ever scores on the FCAT reading test this year. Yet, I was also be appalled by how low those record high scores are. As the saying goes, reading is fundamental.

By John Koenig — If merit pay won’t motivate teachers to improve their performance, what will? Daniel H. Pink says that Once adequate base pay is reached, three things motivate high-cognitive-skills people:

• Autonomy – allowing them more freedom to determine the best way to do their jobs
• Mastery – providing opportunities for them to improve their skills, and
• Purpose – establishing a greater sense of mission.

By John Kennedy – Social conservatives in Florida angered by what they saw as an attack on free speech are fighting back with legislation that could kick the door open a lot wider than they thought. The bill aimed at encouraging school prayer is drawing praise from an unlikely pairing of free-speech advocates and social conservatives.

A century-old provision of the Florida Constitution may soon be dusted-off for the first time before the state Supreme Court, with the fate of millions of dollars in state funding to religious organizations hanging in the balance. The state’s First District Court of Appeal is asking justices to decide whether Florida has violated its constitutional ban on state money going to “any church, sect, or religious denomination, or in aid of any sectarian institution.”

Not surprisingly, Florida’s Legislature has again demonstrated that in setting education policy, common sense is in short supply. If about a third of the students entering high school aren’t graduating, then the thing to do, they’ve just said, is “Make it tougher to graduate!”

Much has been made of the fact that this legislation would allow for the creation of a school voucher program, but the amendment’s broad language would open the door for direct government funding of religion in virtually any area. Beyond the unfairness of taxing Floridians to support a religion in which they may or may not believe — a proposition that Thomas Jefferson denounced as “sinful and tyrannical” — religious liberty is even further harmed by government funding because the government always controls what it funds.

Whenever Florida’s economy is in a slump, the state’s community colleges see an almost instant jump in enrollment. Going back to school is good for Floridians, and good for Florida. The Catch 22: With a sagging economy comes declining revenue to the state, which means less money is available to fund those community colleges with soaring enrollment.

Florida should repeal its constitutional language barring individuals from participating in public programs because of religion. The Catholic Church’s commitment to serve all members of society regardless of their religion or creed is a vital part of what has enabled Catholic institutions to successfully partner with the state in many areas.

There’s been a lot of pushing and shoving this legislative session. Bills have been rushed through committees at such a blistering pace it appears that lawmakers are making a unified effort to avoid public scrutiny. Even as Florida sits perched on the edge of economic disaster, legislators write bills that would divert tax dollars away from the state’s general revenue fund. SJR 2550/HJR 1399, sponsored by Sen. Thad Altman, is the latest example.

Florida is not alone in having what’s known as a “Blaine amendment” – or “No Aid” provision – in its state constitution. Thirty-seven other states also restrict state aid to religious-affiliated institutions. Efforts to repeal it in Florida are not new. And neither is the passion-packed debate over the separation of church and state that ensues.

By Michael Joe Murphy, Managing Editor — Gov. Charlie Crist’s veto of the lightning-rod education-reform bill known as Senate Bill 6 draws a line in the sand, separating him from the leadership of the Republican Party. “I know in my heart it’s the right thing to do,” Charlie Crist said of his veto. But was it the right thing to do to ensure students leave Florida public schools better prepared? Or was it the right thing to do to revive Crist’s chances of winning a seat in the U.S. Senate?

By John Koenig, Editor and Publisher — Now it’s the teachers’ turn: Gov. Charlie Crist’s veto of the teacher-compensation bill does not end the push to link teacher pay and job security to student performance. It only buys teachers a bit of time to come up with their own accountability proposals. The advocates of Senate Bill 6 are not going away.

Elvis has re-entered the building: Almost four years after he left the state Capitol, former Gov. Jeb Bush is hovering over this spring’s legislative session, with a host of measures advancing in the Republican-ruled Legislature this election year that look ripped straight from his political playbook.

Dissatisfaction with teacher pay and school funding is nothing new. In 1968, Florida teachers walked out, the first statewide strike in the U.S. history.