The gist
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. Jeff Crownover, deputy superintendent of academics and school leadership, presented the report to the board of trustees Feb. 19.
The annual report includes information from State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness scores and other assessments, Crownover said. Several of the data sets, such as SAT and ACT scores, are lagging data from the 2021-22 school year, he said.
“We firmly believe here in Prosper that our kids are more than a test score,” Crownover said. “This tells part of the story but not the whole story.”
Diving in deeper
On average, PISD students scored about 100 points higher than their region and state peers on the SAT exam. The SAT exam is scored from 400 to 1,600. In the 2021-22 school year, PISD students scored an average of 1,111 while in Region 10 students scored an average of 1,017 and across the state the average score was 1,001.
PISD students also outpaced the region and state in ACT, which is scored on a scale of 1-36. The 2021-22 scores were:
- Prosper ISD: 23.3
- Region 10: 19.0
- State: 19.5
The State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR, tests students in grades 3-8 in reading and math. Additionally, fifth and eighth grade students are tested in science, while eighth graders are also tested in 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.
“Even though these numbers are really good we’re always trying to raise that standard,” Crownover said.
Also of note
Districts are scored on the Career, College and Military Readinesses, also known as CCMR, that students demonstrate. Each PISD high school campus is authorized to administer the Texas Success Initiative Assessment, which is designed to test college readiness in reading, writing and math.
“The more data we can gather on college readiness, [then] the more we can intervene and make sure kids are getting what they need,” Crownover said.CCMR is part of the measures districts are scored on by the TEA. New accountability ratings for Texas schools were scheduled to be released Sept. 28 based on adjusted criteria, including a new threshold for college, career and military readiness scores, raising it from 60% to 88% to earn an A rating. The scores have since been delayed due to ongoing litigation.
“We’re successful [in CCMR], but there’s room to improve to get to that 88%,” Crownover said.
The district is creating more options every year to increase its CCMR score, he said. This includes:
- College prep courses in math and English, language arts and reading
- Offering SAT, ACT, TSIA online prep programs at no cost to students
- Expanding CTE programming and pathways
