INSIDE INFORMATION Revamping public school accountability BY HANNAH NORTON At the beginning of each school year, the Texas Education Agency rates public schools and districts based on student achievement, school progress and closing the gaps for at-risk students. Individual campuses and districts receive A-F scores, which are meant to hold schools accountable and inform Texans about student performance. Scores for the 2022-23 school year will be released Sept. 28, following months of revisions to the accountability system. The A-F accountability system was established during the 2017 legislative session, under House Bill 22. What is the A F system? Ratings are based on a variety of factors, including
2023 EDUCATION EDITION
What are the goals? What does the update mean?
Serving students on alternate paths O cials adjusted performance indicators to better account for students on alternative paths, such as those enrolled in dropout recovery schools. These schools help students who have dropped out of school get back on track and graduate. Dropout rates will no longer count against overall campus performance.
Boosting public transparency Ratings for campuses and districts are posted online annually, but more information will be publicly available this year. Texans will be able to access data on attendance and absenteeism, advanced learning programs, and more, Morath said. This is meant to give parents a greater overview of their districts’ e orts to improve student performance.
Improving evaluation of student growth To give more attention to students who are performing below their grade level, the TEA added a new indicator called “accelerated instruction.” This allows o cials to accurately measure the performance of students who switch the language they take tests in—such as Spanish to English— between years.
TEA Commissioner Mike Morath said the revised system provides a more holistic view of student performance, focuses more on students in need, and aligns the performance of schools and districts.
Revising college, career and military readiness indicators Over the next four years, the TEA will implement new workforce certication requirements. Morath said there will be a greater emphasis on hands-on experience, rather than just course completion. For example, a student who takes welding classes in high school will gain real-life experience in welding and receive an industry certication.
Aligning classroom instruction The TEA also redesigned the STAAR in 2023 “to better align with classroom instruction” following the passage of HB 3906 in 2019. The exams were administered almost exclusively online in 2023 and focused on writing, o cials said.
High school scores improve
How students perform on the annual State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness largely impacts the annual A-F ratings for public schools and districts. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, tests were not administered in 2020. The exam was redesigned in 2023, so scores from this year cannot be directly compared to previous years.
Students who approached grade level, or passed
Increasing focus on at-risk students Previously, o cials evaluated the academic performance of each student group—including racial and ethnic groups, economically disadvantaged students, students taking special education classes and more. This year, indicators will focus on the performance of the two “lowest-performing,” or most at risk, groups.
Updating target scores
Enhancing district ratings Morath said each district was previously evaluated “as if it is a single K-12 campus.” This meant district ratings were based heavily on the performance of high school seniors, whose graduation and postsecondary readiness are measured. This September, the new ratings will be calculated with a weighted average for each campus, giving each school a balanced share in the overall score.
*NO DATA FOR 2020 **2023 TESTS WERE SCORED DIFFERENTLY, SO THEY ARE NOT DIRECTLY COMPARABLE TO PAST YEARS.
Performance indicators were updated to re ect where students and schools were after the COVID-19 outbreak, Morath said. For example, college, career and military readiness scores have improved by 38% across Texas since 2017. “This is an untold success story,” Morath said.
ALGEBRA I
80% 90% 100% 70% 0% BIOLOGY
70% 80% 90% 60% 0% ENGLISH I
70% 80% 90% 60% 0% ENGLISH II
80% 90% 100% 70% 0% U.S. HISTORY
80% 90% 100% 70% 0%
academic growth high school graduation rates how prepared students are for college, a career or the military the annual State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness
SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY COMMUNITY IMPACT
STAAR scores for high school students were released June 30 and grades 3-8 scores became available Aug. 16.
On Sept. 28, A-F scores for schools and districts will be posted online at www.txschools.gov.
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