The backstory
The Texas Education Agency redesigned the STAAR in 2023 as a result of House Bill 3906, passed by the 86th Texas Legislature in 2019, according to TEA.
TEA officials said the STAAR redesign includes several components to better align with classroom instruction. These components include online testing and accommodations, new question types, cross-curricular passages, and evidence-based writing. The new question types reflect classroom test questions, which allow students more ways to show their understanding learned in class. While the test was administered almost exclusively online, students requiring certain accommodations could still complete paper exams.
The details
According to the TEA, STAAR assessments are administered for the following grades and subjects:
- Third to eighth grade mathematics
- Third to eighth grade reading
- Fourth and seventh grade writing
- Fifth and eighth grade science
- Eighth grade social studies
Not only have the results this year show reading proficiency for third to eighth grade students remains largely unchanged, but students also seem to have shrugged off any learning losses from the pandemic.
Passing rates, which are considered “approaching grade level’ by the TEA, have remained fairly consistent from 2019-23, according to the data.
Quote of note
“Teachers across Texas continue to work with passion and skill to help students learn,” Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said in a statement. “This year’s results show the efforts of our educators continue to deliver improved results for students.”
