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 A++ Implementation 

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Middle School Reform

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. When will the new general requirements for middle grades promotion take effect?
  2. Which schools are subject to the new requirements for middle grades promotion?
  3. How should the uniform grading scale be applied at the middle grades?
  4. What is the student’s personalized academic and career plan?
  5. What is CHOICES? What are other comparable cost-effective programs?
  6. Can the semester-long course in career and education planning be incorporated into another course?
  7. The new social studies requirement stipulates that students must complete three (3) middle school or higher year-long courses in social studies, one semester of which must include the study of state and federal government and civics education. Will districts be required to offer a stand-alone civics course?
  8. Are students required to successfully complete a high-school-level mathematics course while enrolled in a school composed of middle grades 6, 7, or 8?
  9. Which mathematics courses will satisfy the high school mathematics course requirement?
  10. Are there any additional requirements for schools composed of middle grades who offer high school level courses?
  11. What are the new requirements for students who are not performing at grade level in mathematics?
  12. Has the rigorous reading requirement been eliminated?
  13. What are the new requirements for students not reading at grade level?
  14. What is an intensive reading course?


1. When will the new general requirements for middle grades promotion take effect?
The new general requirements for middle grades promotion will take effect beginning with students entering grade 6 in the 2006-2007 school year.
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2. Which schools are subject to the new requirements for middle grades promotion?
All schools with middle grades configuration or schools serving students in grade 6, grade 7, or grade 8 are subject to the promotion requirements of S. 1003.4156, F.S.
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3. How should the uniform grading scale be applied at the middle grades?
The intent of having a uniform grading scale for grades 6-12 is so middle school students will become accustomed to the rigors and expectations of high school. A system that assigns “points’ (e.g., where a student can earn up to 4 points per quarter, and 4 points are all that are required cumulatively by the end of the year for promotion to the next grade) are not consistent with this requirement. The uniform grading scale applies to assignments and tests, and it also applies to course completion. To pass a course, a student needs to earn a minimum cumulative grade of 60 percent at the end of the school year.
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4. What is the student’s personalized academic and career plan?
As part of the newly passed requirements for middle grades promotion, each student should be enrolled in a career and education planning course in seventh or eighth grade. The course must include career exploration using CHOICES or a comparable cost effective program, and education planning using the online student advising system known as Florida Academic Counseling and Tracking for Students (FACTS), and shall result in the completion of a personalized academic and career plan. The purpose of the personalized academic and career plan is to provide each student with a plan based on individual aspirations and goals for postsecondary education and possible careers. The plan should include information such as short and long-term goals, results of personal assessments such as interests, values, skills, and aptitudes, careers/clusters of interest, and an electronic personalized education plan (ePEP). The plan must be signed by the student, the student’s guidance counselor or academic advisor, and the student’s parent, and should become a portfolio of information that students can update as they continue their education and the career decision making process.
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5. What is CHOICES? What are other comparable cost-effective programs?
  • CHOICES Explorer is an online education and career exploration system that provides extensive libraries of education, career and recreation articles. Career profiles, post-secondary programs, career videos and much more can be accessed. Students can select a favorite school subject or take the Career Finder or Major Finder quiz to determine their best options, saving their results in a personalized electronic portfolio. Students can combine their assessment results and career goals with the personalized education plan in FACTS.org. Lesson plans and Parent Guides are included. CHOICES Explorer is recommended for middle school students. This program can be purchased from the Florida Department of Education.
  • Career Futures, education and career planning software, enhances self-awareness and skill development as students explore career options and make more informed choices for high school. Career Futures hands-on activities demonstrate how interests, education, earnings and skills relate to workplace realities. Students can start building meaningful plans with access to over 650 occupations and then move over to FACTS.org to build a four-year personalized education plan for high school. The electronic portfolio helps students put it all together. Career Futures is recommended for middle schools and is available only in CD-ROM. It can be purchased through the Florida Department of Education.
  • CHOICES Planner is an online career information delivery system that helps students compare, connect, and choose from a database of occupational and educational options. Assessments include interests, skills, and abilities. All results of assessment and exploration can be stored in an electronic portfolio. CHOICES Planner can be used by secondary and postsecondary schools. It is available through the Florida Department of Education at no charge.
While there may be other comparable systems appropriate for middle school, these are supported by the Florida Department of Education with technical assistance by a toll-free number (800-342-9271), training, and special pricing options to include Choices Planner at no charge. Many features are being planned to ensure that there are seamless transitions between Choices and FACTS.org.
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6. Can the semester-long course in career and education planning be incorporated into another course?
The career and education planning course may be offered as a stand-alone course or integrated into another course or courses offered in seventh or eighth grade. Districts will have nine options for adding a career exploration and planning course:
  • A new course description, Career Exploration and Decision Making, has been developed as a semester long course, Course Number 1700060
The following eight courses have been updated so that districts/schools can integrate the course outcomes into an existing course. (The revised requirements are underlined in the course descriptions, which are attached.):
  • M/J Career Education, Course Number 2305000
  • M/J Exploratory Wheel 2, Course Number 0600010
  • M/JExploratory Career Wheel 1, Course Number 8000200
  • Exploring Technology, Course Number 8600020
  • Orientation to Agriscience, Course Number 8100110
  • Computer Applications in Business, Course Number 8200220
  • Life Choices, Course Number 8500130
  • Exploration of Health Occupations, Course Number 8400210
The Department of Education will develop course frameworks and professional development materials for the career and education planning course. Training and technical assistance will be available for Choices and FACTS.org. Whether the course is offered as a stand-alone course or integrated into another course, a personalized academic and career plan must be completed. The Department is working on integrating these requirements into more courses and will provide more information when this work is completed.
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7. The new social studies requirement stipulates that students must complete three (3) middle school or higher year-long courses in social studies, one semester of which must include the study of state and federal government and civics education. Will districts be required to offer a stand-alone civics course?
No. The Sunshine State Standards for Social Studies Grades 6-8, currently require instruction in history, geography, civics and government, and economics during the middle grades. While districts may elect to offer a year-long stand-alone civics course or a semester-long stand-alone civics course in conjunction with another semester-long social studies course during the same school year (see below), S. 1003.4156, F.S., requires that contained in the three year-long (3) required courses in social studies, at least one semester must include the study of state and federal government and civics education. In order to meet this requirement, beginning with students entering grade 6 in the 2006-2007 school year, a school may select one of the following options:
  1. Offer a year-long Civics course
    • Offer a year-long Civics course
    • M/J Civics, Course Number 2106010
    • M/J Civics Advanced, Course Number 2106020
  2. Offer a semester-long civics course, and a semester-long social studies course during the same school year. These courses are new:
    • M/J World Geography, Course Number 2103015
    • M/J World Geography Advanced, Course Number 2103025
    • M/J Civics, Course Number 2106015
    • M/J Civics Advanced, Course Number 2106025
  3. Offer a year-long U.S. History course, one semester of which must include the study of state and federal government and civics education. Inclusion of course requirements 4, 8, and 9 during a semester of this year-long course could allow this course to fulfill the requirement for the study of state and federal government and civics education.
    • M/J United States History, Course Number 2100010
    • M/J United States History Advanced, Course Number 2100020
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8. Are students required to successfully complete a high-school-level mathematics course while enrolled in a school composed of middle grades 6, 7, or 8?
No. Each school composed of middle grades 6, 7, or 8 must offer at least one high school mathematics course for which students may earn high school credit. Each district must allocate funds provided to the district for students in grades 6 through 8 who complete a high school level Algebra course and receive a grade of “C” or better to the school that generated the funds.
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9. Which mathematics courses will satisfy the high school mathematics course requirement?
Any Level 2 or higher high school mathematics course will satisfy the high school mathematics course requirement for middle grades.

Note: Only Algebra I (1200310), Algebra I Honors (1200320), Algebra IA (1200370), or Algebra IB (1200380) are eligible for middle grades weighted funding.
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10. Are there any additional requirements for schools composed of middle grades who offer high school level courses?
Schools composed of middle grades will be required to annually submit grades and credit for students taking high school level courses completed at the school via the Florida Automated System for Transferring Educational Records (FASTER).
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11. What are the new requirements for students who are not performing at grade level in mathematics?
For each year in which a student scores at Level 1 or Level 2 on FCAT Mathematics, the student must receive remediation the following year, which may be integrated into the student’s required mathematics course.
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12. Has the rigorous reading requirement been eliminated?
Yes. While it is still imperative that every student be proficient on grade level in reading, the rigorous reading requirement that was formerly part of the Middle Grades Reform Act has been stricken. Please note that most components of the rigorous reading requirement have been incorporated into the district K-12 Comprehensive Reading Plan approved by the Just Read, Florida! Office (S. 1011.62, F.S.).
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13. What are the new requirements for students not reading at grade level?
Section 1003.4156, Florida Statutes, requires that for each year in which a student scores at Level 1 on FCAT Reading, he/she must be enrolled in and complete an intensive reading course the following year.

For students who score at Level 2 on FCAT Reading, placement in either an intensive reading course or a content area course in which reading strategies are delivered shall be determined by diagnosis of reading needs.

While this legislation will be phased in beginning with students in grade 6 in 2006-2007, the requirements of the District K-12 Comprehensive Reading Plan are in effect for all grades beginning with the 2006-2007 school year. This plan requires that all students in grades 6-8 who scored at Level 1 or Level 2 on FCAT Reading in the previous year be placed in a reading intervention course. The intensity of this course is determined through assessment of individual student’s needs, as outlined in each district’s approved K-12 Comprehensive Reading Plan (S. 1011.62, F.S.).
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14. What is an intensive reading course?
The requirement for an intensive reading course may be fulfilled by either M/J Intensive Reading or M/J Intensive Language Arts. The description of these courses can be found at: http://data.fldoe.org/crsCode/68/Language Arts/Remedial/pdf/1000010.pdf and http://data.fldoe.org/crsCode/68/Language Arts/Remedial/pdf/1000000.pdf

For Limited English Proficient (LEP) students, M/J Developmental Language Arts through ESOL will fulfill the intensive reading course requirement. The description of this course can be found at http://data.fldoe.org/crsCode/68/Language Arts/English for Speakers of Other Languages/pdf/1002180.pdf.

For exceptional education students (ESE), Reading: 6-8 will fulfill the intensive reading requirement. This description of this course can be found at http://www.fldoe.org/ese/commhome/esecourse/7810020.pdf.
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