The number of highly-rated schools in Florida dropped significantly, according to annual school grades released Wednesday.
While the state had 1,481 schools receive A grades last year, this year only 1,124 schools made the A mark.
Meanwhile, the number of schools that received D or F grades increased.
Each year the state hands out A-to-F grades that are used to reward top schools and sanction those that get failing marks.
Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson earlier this month warned that the school grades would drop because of recent changes to the state's grading system.
The Florida Department of Education began using a new assessment last year – the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) 2.0 and a new formula to grade schools.
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Officials in the Miami-Dade Public Schools said the schools fared better than expected and above the state average.
According to a press release, the percentage of A schools decreased only by 11 percent while A schools in Florida fell by 15 percent. The percent of D schools also increased by three percent while they increased by four percent in Florida.
In Broward, 43.3 percent of the schools received an A, just under the statewide average of 43.5 percent.
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Ten Broward schools improved by one letter grade or more, while 90 schools decreased by one letter grade. The State Board of Education in May voted not to let any school drop more than one letter grade.
“Final school grades are visibly impacted by new standards and the increase in rigor,” Superintendent Robert Runcie said in a release. “This was anticipated based on the individual student scores released earlier. As we have stated before, this doesn’t mean that student achievement has decreased, it means that the expectations for our students have increased.”
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