EOC scores above state average
By Donnie A. Lucas
Albany High School students scored above state averages in all five tested subject areas according to preliminary results recently issued for the STAAR End-Of-Course tests by the Texas Education Agency.
The required tests were given in March for both English I and English II and in May for Algebra I, Biology, and U.S. History.
Students must pass all five tests to meet graduation requirements.
However, for grades 3-8 not even the preliminary STAAR test scores have been made official by the Texas Education Agency, with an expected release date of Aug. 11, 2023.
“TEA has not reported results for grades 3-8 in a formate we can use yet to determine passing rates,” director of student services Leigh Lowe said. “They are using a new reporting method this year, and the reports are different from in the past, so we don’t even know how to calculate those scores yet. We will post them on the AISD website as soon as they are received.”
Parents will eventually have access on the parent portal website to individual reports on tests taken by their children.
Lowe said that TEA has stated that while there may be adjustments made to the preliminary EOC scores when the final results are issued in August, those scores should not fall lower than the preliminary results just released.
The overall EOC results are broken down in four categories including Masters Grade Level, Meets Grade Level, Approaches Grade Level, and Did Not Meet Grade Level.
The local results also show that Albany students exceeded the overall statewide results in all five tested areas. Results among averages of all Region 14 schools was higher on four of the five tests, scoring the same in one testing area.
“We are really pleased with the progress high school students have shown on the EOC tests,” Lowe said. “We are looking forward to getting the final set of scores, especially since testing rigor increased, and our scores are all the same or higher this year, except in one area.”
She also said that receiving the scores for grades 3-8 later than in the past is causing uncertainty about providing remediation for students who did not pass.
The Texas Legislature passed HB 4545 two years ago requiring students to receive 30 hours of accelerated instruction in each subject area not passed. However, the number of hours was reduced this summer to 15 hours per test not passed.
“We provided the 15 hours of remediation in the tested areas during summer school, but students who didn’t attend or needed help in more than one or two areas will have to complete those hours after school starts.” Lowe said.
Parents of students that failed to pass a test were notified to send their child to summer school to obtain accelerated instruction or remediation.
“However, some parents opted out of using the summer school option this year,” Lowe said.
She added that the problem was compounded if students did not attend summer school for remediation, which will now have to be completed during the school year in addition to their current workload.
EOC Results
In English I, a passing rate of 93 percent was achieved this year, compared to 84 percent last year. The state average was 80 percent, while the average for Region 14 was 78.
A total of 95 percent of local students taking the English II exam passed this year, compared to 92 percent last year. Statewide, 74 percent of Texas sophomores passed the EOC, while 83 percent passed in the region.
For Algebra I, 82 percent passed locally compared 89 percent last year. Seventy-eight percent passed across the state, and the Region 14 total was 82 percent.
Albany students had a near-perfect rate of 99 percent passing on the Biology EOC, compared to 100 percent last year. The state average was 89 percent, and 92 percent passed in the region.
Finally, a full 100 percent of the junior class passed the U.S. History EOC this year, compared to 93 percent last year. The state average was 95 percent, and 97 percent passed in Region 14.
“I am extremely proud of what our students and staff have accomplished,” superintendent Jonathan Scott said. “Our goal continues to be focused on yearly growth and building off of that.”
