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Article: Florida's high school graduation rate is on a downward slide.
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- January 28, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. _ Florida's high school graduation rate is on a downward slide, and Education Commissioner Tom Gallagher fears it could get worse as academic requirements become stricter.
Gallagher on Wednesday painted a troublesome picture after the state re-calculated its formula in determining how many students are actually getting diplomas in Florida.
The old formula, he said, inflated the real numbers. The new formula _ based on an actual head count _ puts the graduation rate in 1997-98 at only 53 percent, well below the 71.89 percent the state originally figured.
``That's a real count-the-kids number,'' Gallagher said. ``And that's why ...