State test requirements change for 2020-21 year
By Lynsi Musselman
Test taking can unnerve most students – even former students – so when the subject of standardized testing comes up, administrators, teachers, students, and parents in the state of Texas wince.
State of Texas Assessment and Academic Readiness (STAAR) exams were cancelled for the 2019-2020 year due to school closures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Texas Education Agency (TEA) announced earlier in the summer that tests will be administered for the 2020-2021 school year but with a few changes.
Governor Greg Abbott stated that moving up to the next grade level will look different for students because of the impact of the current public health crisis.
He said the promotion requirements related to the STAAR test for students in grades five and eight have been waived for this school year.
Students in fifth and eighth grades who do not meet grade level are typically required to re-take the test late in the school year and sometimes again in the summer.
The waiver from Abbott means the mathematics and reading portions that serve as the exit portion of the test will only be administered once for those grades.
The tests will be given in May, coinciding with STAAR tests for grades three through eight.
Abbott explained that it is the state’s goal to continue providing high quality education for every student.
“This will be a uniquely challenging school year, so this year is about providing students every opportunity to overcome disruptions caused by -COVID-19,” Abbott said. “By waiving these promotion requirements, we are providing greater flexibility for teachers and students, while at the same time ensuring that Texas students continue to receive a great education.”
The traditional A through F rating system for school districts will remain the same though, with a few adjustments.
Albany High School principal Glen Hill said with the waived requirements for promotion, the STAAR test still needs to be taken seriously as the test results determine how teachers instruct, and the district will still be held accountable.
“With no tests last school year, the district will not get measured on growth when the tests are taken this year,” Hill said. The rating will rely solely on data.”
TEA’s 2019 accountability rating system scored AISD a B, with 57 percent of districts in Texas also given that grade.
