Education
BY HANNAH NORTON & JAMES T. NORMAN
TEA temporarily blocked from issuing new A-F accountability ratings
What changed?
School district officials have expressed concerns about several changes to the A-F system. The following information was shared by the Texas Education Agency.
Based on performance from the 2021-22 school year, about 15% of Texas schools would receive lower A-F ratings under the new system.
temporary injunction Oct. 26 to prevent the agency from assigning or adjusting the ratings. The TEA said it would immediately appeal the injunction. If the agency appeals, the injunction would stand until a final determination is made, according to court documents. Kingsville ISD Superintendent Cissy Reynolds- Perez said districts would lose revenue if their accountability ratings drop, as some parents would send their children to other schools. “This ruling completely disregards the laws of this state and, for the foreseeable future, prevents any A-F performance information from being issued to help millions of parents and educators improve the lives of our students,” TEA spokesperson Jake Kobersky said.
A district court temporarily blocked the Texas Education Agency from issuing its new accountability ratings for public schools, siding on Oct. 26 with over 100 school districts who sued the agency calling the ratings “unlawful.” Some schools said updates to the TEA’s A-F accountability system would substantially lower performance ratings despite indications that performance has improved. A few weeks after the case—Kingsville ISD, et. al., v. Morath—was filed in August, the TEA announced Sept. 12 it was delaying the release of the new ratings, which would be based on performance and test scores for the 2022-23 school year. District Judge Catherine Mauzy issued a
Meanwhile, 14% of schools would receive higher ratings and 71% would not change.
7% of elementary schools, 6% of middle schools and 47% of high schools would receive lower ratings.
Kingsville ISD Superintendent Cissy Reynolds-Perez said many districts' overall ratings would drop by one or more letter grades due to the changes, even if their performance improves. If a district or one of its campuses receives a failing grade for five consecutive years, the state can intervene.
SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
The A-F accountability system was established by the 2017 Texas Legislature. Ratings are based on a variety of factors, including:
The framework TEA Commissioner Mike Morath said the agency updated its A-F system to:
What’s next?
Account for students on alternate paths, including those who previously dropped out Increase focus on the “lowest- performing,” or most at-risk, students Align the STAAR test with classroom instruction Better reflect student achievement coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic
The annual State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness
“We look forward to future conversations with [TEA
Commissioner] Mike Morath about how to implement the assessment and accountability system in a manner that is fair and transparent for all school districts in the state of Texas,” the Texas Association of School Administrators said in a statement. The trial on the case will take place at 9 a.m. Feb. 12.
Academic growth
High school graduation rates
Student preparedness for college, a career or the military
SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
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