from The News Service of
Florida and staff
Gov. Rick Scott signed the teacher merit pay bill on Thursday at the charter KIPP – Knowledge Is Power Program – School on McDuff Avenue North.
It was Scott’s first signed legislation since becoming governor. “We must recruit and retain the best people to make sure every classroom in Florida has a highly effective teacher,” said Scott.
The portion of the bill dealing with eliminating multiyear contracts for new teachers goes into effect July 1.
Schools are given three years to set up new evaluation systems for teachers tied to test scores. That portion goes into effect July 2014.
This is the second year the Legislature has attempted to pass a merit pay bill, with former Gov. Charlie Crist vetoing the bill last year after teacher protests.
This year, the response from teachers was muted and Scott indicated early on his support for tying teacher pay to test scores.