(1) Next Generation Sunshine State Standards establish the core content of the curricula to be taught in the state and specify the core content knowledge and skills that K-12 public school students are expected to acquire. Standards must be rigorous and relevant and provide for the logical, sequential progression of core curricular content that incrementally increases a student’s core content knowledge and skills over time. Curricular content for all subjects must integrate critical-thinking, problem-solving, and workforce-literacy skills; communication, reading, and writing skills; mathematics skills; collaboration skills; contextual and applied-learning skills; technology-literacy skills; information and media-literacy skills; and civic-engagement skills. The standards must include distinct grade-level expectations for the core content knowledge and skills that a student is expected to have acquired by each individual grade level from kindergarten through grade 8. The standards for grades 9 through 12 may be organized by grade clusters of more than one grade level except as otherwise provided for visual and performing arts, physical education, health, and foreign language standards.

(2) Next Generation Sunshine State Standards must meet the following requirements:

(a) English Language Arts standards must establish specific curricular content for, at a minimum, reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language.

(b) Science standards must establish specific curricular content for, at a minimum, the nature of science, earth and space science, physical science, and life science.

(c) Mathematics standards must establish specific curricular content for, at a minimum, algebra, geometry, statistics and probability, number and quantity, functions, and modeling.

(d) Social Studies standards must establish specific curricular content for, at a minimum, geography, United States and world history, government, civics, humanities, economics, and financial literacy.

(e) Visual and performing arts, physical education, health, and foreign language standards must establish specific curricular content and include distinct grade level expectations for the core content knowledge and skills that a student is expected to have acquired by each individual grade level from kindergarten through grade 5. The standards for grades 6 through 12 may be organized by grade clusters of more than one grade level.

(3) The Commissioner of Education, as needed, shall develop and submit proposed revisions to the standards for review and comment by Florida educators, school administrators, representatives of the Florida College System institutions and state universities who have expertise in the content knowledge and skills necessary to prepare a student for postsecondary education and careers, business and industry leaders, and the public. The commissioner, after considering reviews and comments, shall submit the proposed revisions to the State Board of Education for adoption.

(4) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules to administer this section.

History.—s. 130, ch. 2002-387; s. 1, ch. 2008-235; s. 2, ch. 2010-48; s. 32, ch. 2011-5; s. 11, ch. 2013-27; s. 36, ch. 2014-39; s. 12, ch. 2019-119.

1Note.—Section 6, ch. 2013-250, provides that “[f]ull implementation of online assessments for Next Generation Sunshine State Standards in English/language arts and mathematics adopted under s. 1003.41, Florida Statutes, for all kindergarten through grade 12 public school students shall occur only after the technology infrastructure, connectivity, and capacity of all public schools and school districts have been load tested and independently verified as ready for successful deployment and implementation.”