How many times have you heard phrases like “teach to the test” or “high stakes testing” in casual conversations about the current state of public education? As a parent, I’ve heard them repeated so frequently, that I can’t even think the words “standardized test” without hearing them in a deep, booming action-movie-preview voice. Messages about modern testing have become so perfectly ingrained that we believe them, without question: high stakes testing and performance based school funding are unmitigated bads in Texas public schools. As we head into the Texas 86th legislative session, I think it’s time for the parents of Round Rock ISD’s students to challenge these assumptions.
In 2017, the Texas 85th Legislature passed House Bill (HB) 22 establishing the A-F accountability rating system. After a lengthy process, the system is finally up and running for each district in Texas, and takes into account three different domains: 1) student achievement, 2) school progress, and 3) closing the gaps. Although campuses won’t be receiving a letter grade individually until August 2019, all the information is already available for you to calculate what your campus’s accountability rating would be through the Texas Education Agency website. I highly recommend everyone check out the data from your area schools if you haven’t already: https://txschools.gov/. The student achievement domain of a district’s rating is measured through annual State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (or STAAR) testing. It’s important to note that the STAAR test is designed to measure the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) curriculum standards, not to replace them. I have my own criticisms of the extent to which the STAAR test is able to fully achieve that goal, but they are relatively minor. For the most part, the STAAR test is able to objectively track student progress across time, and it provides parents, teachers, and citizens with a vital tool with which to hold school districts accountable for the proper and consistent education of ALL our students.
STAAR testing results have become particularly enlightening now that the archaic “Met Standard” vs. “Improvement Required” system has been replaced by the A-F accountability ratings, and domain calculations rely on weighted levels of performance. I was particularly horrified to learn from Round Rock ISD’s 2017/2018 Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) that passing the STAAR exam does not mean our students are performing on grade level, but rather that they are merely “approaching” grade level. For example: reading and mathematics are tested annually from grades 3 – 8. Although only 15% of students in Round Rock ISD failed the reading portion of the STAAR test at all grade levels, a full 35% of our students are reading below grade level, and will need targeted instruction in order to catch up during the following school year. Likewise, although only 11% of students in Round Rock ISD failed the math portion of the STAAR test at all grade levels, a full 33% of our students were performing below grade level. It is thanks to the STAAR test, and the TEA’s new accountability rating system that our district can finally begin addressing these academic challenges so that all of our students have a shot at developing into the best versions of themselves. At Round Rock ISD’s last board meeting on Thursday, January 17, 2019, Round Rock ISD’s lobbyist, Marty De Leon, presented the legislative priorities to our Board of Trustees, which they unanimously approved. I will save the rant regarding my personal loathing of tax payer funded lobbying for another day. However, I found the following priority particularly interesting: “Amend A-F for schools to ensure it is a measure of performance. Rationale: … As STAAR continues to evolve, the accountability system needs to be more holistic, recognizing outcomes outside state assessments such as completion of CTE coherent sequences, completion of college level courses, and UIL academic activities.” These stated outcomes are valuable and we should be doing what we can to make them a priority in Round Rock ISD. However, anything that adds a dimension for extracurricular activities or other achievements to the newly implemented A-F system misses the point, and runs the risk of undermining it before it’s been fully rolled-out.
Mystic Crusader 