Free Republic

<p>In New York City and other large cities, high school students are increasingly being expelled &#8212; not for bad behavior, but because administrators think they will fail standardized tests. These students are not considered dropouts. That would look bad for the public school system. Rather, they are called "pushouts." The students are usually offered alternative programs, where they can earn a General Educational Development (GED) diploma. However, GED teachers have said that most pushouts never even get a GED. Such developments are the antithesis of modern public education goals that seek to leave no child behind.</p>

Florida Department of Education Launches Web Site for 12th Graders Online resource provides options for students who did not meet the minimum required score on the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test (FCAT) TALLAHASSEE — Education Commissioner Jim Horne today announced the launch of: www.12thGradeOptions.org, a new Web site for 12th graders who have not met the minimum required score the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test (FCAT) and need information about their options. Students who would otherwise be eligible for graduation, except for meeting the minimum required score on the FCAT, can now receive both classroom and online instruction. "This Web site...

Posted on Wed, Mar. 20, 2002 Inmate makes a rare apologyBob Ray Sanders commentary Judge Bob Gill of the 213th District Court in Tarrant County got the surprise of his life last month when he heard from a man he had sentenced to 10 years in the state penitentiary. In 1995, David Cotto was convicted of aggravated assault and pleaded guilty to another charge of robbery by threat, receiving two 10-year sentences - the maximum - to run concurrently. The judge has gotten several letters from Cotto in the past in which the prisoner was "quite vituperative," lashing out...