Gov. Scott brings 'listening tour' to Pinellas today

Gov. Rick Scott's statewide education "listening tour" will stop in Pinellas County Wednesday.

Scott, who has already visited schools in Jacksonville and South Florida this week, will be at Madeira Beach Fundamental School at 1:30 p.m.

One of the topics of conversation will be the teacher merit pay system, which has not been well-received by all teachers. The system rewards teachers if students perform well but could lead to a teacher being replaced if his or her students continually perform poorly.

Pasco County Teacher's Union President Lynne Webb calls the governor's invitation-only trip a "Tour De Farce."

According to Bay News 9's partner newspaper the Tampa Bay Times, Webb said the tour is "picking and choosing what you want to hear from the get-go."

Critics of the Scott tour say it's simply for political purposes.

That comes after speculation spread that former Republican Florida Gov. Charlie Crist turned independent may make a run for governor against Scott in 2014. Crist vetoed the merit pay law when he was in office.

Scott will have a long day touring campuses. He'll be in Fort Myers before coming to Pinellas this afternoon. The governor also has a meeting at 6 p.m. at the Don Cesar Hotel in St. Pete Beach and a reception afterward at the Dali Museum.