Tag Archives: 15%

2012-2013 School Year Ushers in Year Two of STAAR

The 2012-2013 school year is the second year for the new state assessment known as STAAR, which requires high school students to take End of Course exams or EOCs rather than grade-based assessments under TAKS. Last year, only high school freshmen were required to take STAAR End of Course exams. This year, all ninth- and tenth-graders in the state of Texas will take STAAR EOCs.

Under STAAR, a student’s score on an EOC would normally count toward 15 percent of their final course grade. However, the Texas Education Agency has deferred implementation of the 15 percent grading requirement for the 2012-2013 school year.

Westside High School freshmen and their parents wanting more information on STAAR recently came out to a special campus workshop. The informational session was held to help parents understand how the new EOC exams could impact their child’s course grades and GPAs, as well as their ability to graduate.

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House letter to TEA: 15% requirement in first year of STAAR “not fair or good policy”

The Chair of the House Committee on Public Education, Rep. Rob Eissler, has invited House members to co-sign the following letter formally requesting the commissioner to defer implementation of the 15% rule.

Letter to TEA

The letter says the suspension of ratings for districts during the first year – while students are held accountable – is “not fair or good policy.”

For the 2011-2012 school year, districts will not receive an accountability rating as we transition into the new system, but unfortunately our students are being held accountable for all provisions immediately. This is not fair or good policy.

Current law requires that an end-of-course assessment be counted as 15% of a students final grade in a course. We would like to formally request that you defer the 15% provision for the 2011-2012 school year. ……. We strongly believe this action is in the best interest of our ninth grade students.