PROCESS OF REVISION
kind of grace or hold-harmless period,” she said. Established by House Bill 22 in 2017, an updated version of the TEA’s A-F accountability system will be enacted for the first time this school year. This refresh is expected to focus on improving college readiness, which is a measure of how many high school graduates are prepared for post-high school educational opportunities by analyzing a variety of factors, includ- ing ACT and SAT scores as well as enrollment in dual credit courses. Previously, 60% of students were required to meet those readiness met- rics to earn an A rating. The refresh will increase that level to 88% of stu- dents to earn an A. On March 6, RISD and PISD officials signed a letter along with 250 other school districts and educational orga- nizations asking the Texas Legislature to pause the planned refresh of the accountability system. “Moving forward with the planned refresh is irresponsible, as it will cause significant confusion among the community, put increased pressure on teachers and other staff who are already at their breaking point, and wrest the policy decision of how we should hold our schools accountable
away from the elected representa- tives,” the letter states. Redesigning the test One of the requirements of HB 3906 was that no more than 75% of points on a test can be based on mul- tiple-choice questions. In previous years, nearly all questions were mul- tiple choice, with only a few short-re- sponse sections in select tests. TEA officials said fewer multi- ple-choice questions will better align with questions teachers ask in class. “When you look at teachers’ expe- riences in the classrooms, there are multiple ways for students to demon- strate their learning,” Laux said. Interactive questions include mul- tipart answer prompts, drag-and-drop and graphing questions, according to Cortez. The test will also integrate writing by using constructed response questions. “We want students discussing, writing and responding to texts in a variety of ways,” Taylor said. “These are instructional strategies that teach- ers use in their classrooms often.”
Since the passage of House Bill 3906 in 2019, the Texas Education Agency has worked to make revisions to the annual STAAR, with most changes to be implemented for the first time during the spring testing window. 2020-21
DECEMBER 2022 First STAAR period conducted fully online
Texas Education Agency begins Operation Connectivity, which is designed to connect all of Texas’ public school students with a device and reliable internet connection
JANUARY 2023
APRIL 18-MAY 9, 2023 Richardson ISD and Plano ISD boards receive information about new STAAR
EARLY 2022
TEA gives initial information on STAAR test changes to school districts
STAAR to be administered in Richardson and Plano ISDs
FALL 2022
AUGUST 2023
New STAAR question types provided by TEA to school districts
Final testing results expected for 2023 STAAR
WE WANT STUDENTS DISCUSSING, WRITING AND RESPONDING TO TEXTS IN A VARIETY OF WAYS. THESE ARE INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES THAT TEACHERS USE IN THEIR CLASSROOMS OFTEN. LAURIE TAYLOR, PLANO ISD CHIEF LEARNING OFFICER.
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SOURCES: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY, RICHARDSON ISD, PLANO ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
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RICHARDSON EDITION • MARCH 2023
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