Last week, the Texas Education Agency released the 2017 accountability ratings. Districts and their eligible campuses are designated into three performance categories based on their previous year's scores: “met standard,” “met alternative standard” and “improvement required."

According to the TEA website, approximately 95 percent of school districts and charters across Texas achieved the “met standard” rating, including Spring and Klein ISDs.

The rating system is based on four indexes, including student achievement based on STAAR results, student progress year-to-year, closing performance gaps between certain student groups, and postsecondary readiness—which measures high school diploma achievement and college, military or workforce readiness.

Distinguished local schools

In Klein ISD, each campus evaluated received a “met standard” rating and 13 KISD campuses earned distinctions in science and in student progress. Ten earned distinctions in math, six earned distinctions in reading, and Theiss, Krahn and Metzler elementary schools each earned all possible distinctions.

Most SISD schools also earned a "met standard" rating and two elementary schools—Northgate Crossing and Cooper—earned all possible distinctions in the 2017 accountability ratings. In addition, five campuses received distinctions in science, four in math and nine in student progress.

Some improvement needed

Two campuses—Clark Intermediate School and Dekaney High School—received “improvement required” ratings. SISD Superintendent Rodney Watson said the campuses where improvement is needed will receive extra support this school year.

“We are very proud of the teaching and learning that is happening across the district, and we’re committed to seeing all of our schools continuing to improve and achieve,” Watson said.

Ratings changes coming

The 2017-18 academic year is the last in which districts and campuses will be evaluated on these standards. In mid-June, Gov. Greg Abbott signed House Bill 22, changing the accountability rating system.

According to the TEA website,  schools will be evaluated by three domains, student achievement, school progress and closing the gaps. However, domains will receive A-F rankings, accumulating into a whole letter grade for each campus.

Campus grades will then accumulate to create a district A-F letter grade. Districts will receive their grades under the new A-F accountability ratings in August 2018, while individual campuses will receive grades in August 2019.

Additionally, local accountability systems will be implemented to allow well-performing districts and charters to evaluate their own campuses. While the state-mandated domains will remain, districts can submit locally developed indexes, as well, to influence their overall A-F ratings.