Category Archives: STAAR

HISD reaches out to Hispanic community with live STAAR forum in Spanish

Panelists will be taking questions from studio audience and callers

The Houston Independent School District is reaching out to its Spanish-speaking community and familiarizing them with the new state-mandated STAAR exam by broadcasting a live STAAR Forum in Spanish on Tuesday, March 6, from 7 to 8 p.m. on HISD TV.

This live Spanish forum will provide parents and students the opportunity to ask questions and share their concerns about STAAR with a panel of bilingual experts, including administrators and school principals. The panelists will also outline the chief differences between the previous state exam, TAKS, and STAAR, and discuss the state’s recent decision giving school districts the option of deferring implementation of the requirement that high school students’ scores on STAAR end-of-course exams count toward their class grades

Viewers can participate by submitting questions through HISD’s Twitter and Facebook accounts, via e-mail to STAAR@houstonisd.org or by calling during the forum to 713-556-8901. 

What:         Live STAAR Forum in Spanish

Who:          HISD parents, students and STAAR panelists

When:        Tuesday, March 6, from 7 to 8 p.m.

Where:       HISD-TV (Comcast, Ch. 18 and AT&T U-Verse, Ch. 99) and online at www.houstonisd.org/HISDTV.

Join HISD for noontime chat on STAAR – March 7 on houstonisd.org

Parents, teachers and community members can visit houstonisd.org for an interactive web chat on STAAR on Wednesday, March 7, from noon to 1.

A chat window will display a running feed of questions and answers during the live event. Viewers can simply watch, or actively participate by typing questions into the chat window. Selected questions will appear along with a response from HISD’s panel of STAAR experts.

On the Q&A panel: Curriculum Director Nancy Gregory, Director of High School Office Mark Shenker, and Middle School Accountability Manager Richard Blair.

See who came out to the live STAAR information session

 More than 100 people crowded the main studio and two overflow areas  to learn more about the new state end-of-course examinations  at HISD’s live STAAR forum. Parents, students, educators and other members of the community engaged a panel of experts in a question and answer session covering a variety of issues related to STAAR.

Click through the photos below to see who came out to the event.

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Calls, emails pour in during live STAAR session at HISD-TV studio

The calls poured in as HISD hosted a live forum on the state’s new accountability test: STAAR. More than 100 people crowded the HISD-TV studio and two overflow areas to watch the forum, and viewers at home called in and emailed their questions throughout the show. More than 75 phone calls were received during the event.

Students in the live studio audience.

Host Denisse Cantu fielded questions from the live studio audience, callers, and email. A common theme emerged from the students who participated: “Why the change to STAAR?” (Answer: To measure students’ college readiness.)

“STAAR will prepare students for high school and beyond,” said Chief Middle Schools Officer Dallas Dance.

Other students and parents asked about preparations for STAAR. Some expressed concern about whether tutorials would be enough, and what the district was expecting  performance-wise in the first year of a new accountability system.

“It’s our expectation that you will do very well,” said Mark Shenker, director of the High Schools Office. He emphasized the Grad Labs, tutorials, after-school resources, and weekend sessions that continue to be available to students in HISD.

Several viewers called in to ask about the district’s plans for delaying the 15 percent requirement for high schoolers’ end-of-course exams. Based on the Texas Education Agency’s  move to defer the rule, HISD administration will recommend to the school board that the requirement be delayed a year.

A complete report of the questions and answers from this event will be posted here and on houstonisd.org in coming days. If you have a question about STAAR, please email STAAR@houstonisd.org.

Another opportunity to learn about STAAR: live forum Tuesday, Feb. 28, on HISD-TV

 HISD will be hosting a live STAAR forum (in English) for parents, students, and staff on Tuesday, Feb. 28, from 7 to 8 p.m. A panel of experts will answer questions from a studio audience and viewers at home.

Westside High School student Khadijah Ray promotes the Feb. 28 STAAR forum.

Viewers can watch it live on HISD-TV (Comcast, Ch. 18 and AT&T U-Verse, Ch. 99) or online at www.houstonisd.org/HISDTV. To submit questions, simply call 713-556-8901 or email STAAR@houstonisd.org.

You can also follow the forum and ask your questions via Twitter – follow @HoustonISD.

A similar forum will be held on March 6 for Spanish-speakers.

The show will air again at 10 p.m. on Feb. 28, and throughout the months of February and March on the following days and times:

  • Wednesdays at 10 a.m.
  • Thursdays at 8:30 p.m.
  • Saturdays at 2 p.m. 

To find out more about STAAR, click here or visit the HISD STAAR Q&A blog.

BREAKING: TEA Commissioner Defers STAAR 15% Requirement

Texas Education Commissioner Robert Scott announced today that is he deferring implementation of the new 15 percent grading requirement connected to the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness end-of-course examinations. The 15 percent rule requires that State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) exam performance count for 15 percent of a student’s final grade.

Click here to read more.

Parents bring questions to HISD’s STAAR info session

School Improvement Officer Anastasia Lindo speaks to parents about the STAAR test.

HISD parents attended an information session Thursday night, hearing directly from a panel of experts representing elementary, middle and high schools; curriculum; and special education. After viewing an overview presentation outlining the differences between TAKS and STAAR and the new requirements high schoolers will face, the session opened up to questions.

Presenters Anastasia Lindo and Richard Barajas, both school improvement officers, emphasized the importance of preparing for the new, more rigorous accountability test.

“STAAR does count,” Lindo said.  HISD will receive a raw score this year, and some students may be required to take summer school as a result of their performance.

Members of the audience asked questions about the new discussion around delaying the 15 percent requirement – which would affect this year’s ninth-graders. Barajas acknowledged there is growing support around an effort to postpone that requirement until next school year.

Questions were also submitted via email and the STAAR Q&A blog.

Several parents asked about provisions for students in special education. Assistant Superintendent Sowmya Kumar spoke to those concerns, emphasizing that accommodations are made on an individual basis. Kumar also emphasized the importance of students working toward the recommended graduation plan.

“Students who take anything but regular STAAR are working toward a minimum high school diploma,” Kumar said. That can limit a student’s choices in the future.

Kumar encouraged parents to contact HISD staff members directly with any questions: “We’ll be happy to talk to you directly.”