The district has 29.6% of its teachers holding an advanced degree compared to the state average of 25%, said Gary Nye, FISD’s executive director of continuous improvement. Nye along with Amy Harp, managing director of academic programs, presented the Texas Academic Performance Report to trustees March 4.
In a nutshell
The Texas Education Agency provides data on the performance of each school and district in the state through the Texas Academic Performance Report, also known as TAPR.
The report has several components, Nye said. This includes the TAPR itself as well as:
- College, career and military readiness data
- Financial information
- District accreditation status
- Campus performance targets
- Reports on violent or criminal incidents
- Student performance in postsecondary institutions
Instructional staff makes up 70.9% of the district’s employees, while the state average is 65.1%, Nye said.
“This shows in Frisco [ISD] we continue to put the largest percent of our staffing [efforts] toward staff that will directly impact the classroom,” he said.
Other data on teachers and district staff includes:
- FISD teachers have 10.4 years of experience, with half of those years spent with the district.
- District principals have an average of 6.6 years of experience, compared to 6.1 years of experience statewide.
FISD students performed higher across all subjects of the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR. The exam tests various grades in reading, math and social studies.
The TAPR uses three levels to indicate a student's STAAR performance.
- Approaches grade level means the student has some gaps in the content knowledge and will need additional support. This is still a passing score.
- Meets grade level means the student has a strong understanding of the content and is prepared to progress to the next grade.
- Masters grade level means the student has shown mastery of the course and is skilled in the subject area.
Also of note
Districts are scored on the career, college and military readinesses, also known as CCMR, that students demonstrate in the TAPR. The criteria for meeting CCMR includes but is not limited to:
- Earning dual course credit
- Passing AP or International Baccalaureate exams
- Enlisting in the armed forces
- Earning industry-based certifications
District staff are also working to improve early childhood literacy and math, Hays said.
“A worldwide pandemic happened and impacted those particular scores,” she said.
FISD is working to improve these by:
- Expanding the pre-K program
- Creating math tool kits for elementary curriculum and instruction
- Monitoring pre-K-5 assessments to identify where interventions are needed
The Texas Education Code requires school districts to publish a report on violent and criminal incidents at each campus in the district. Less than 1% of FISD students were involved with an incident categorized as a criminal violation, Nye said.
