by Nicole Bradford
Texas’ A-F rating system remains on hold again, as public schools continue challenging the validity of a new grading system.
New ratings based on the STAAR, or State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, weren’t released last year due to a pending lawsuit, which was blocked in August. Shortly afterward, a charter school network petitioned to have the ratings released. A decision may come as soon as Sept. 16.
In Pearland ISD, scoring from the most recently administered state-mandated testing doesn’t define the district, but it is reviewed and used as a tool to improve, administrators say.
“This is my 19th year in Pearland — and I don’t believe we’ve ever been solely stuck on what the test is going to be as much as we’ve been about preparing students for their future,” said Dr. Charles Allen, executive director of curriculum and instruction.
Pearland ISD Trustees heard a report this month on the most recently administered state-mandated testing. In general, Pearland ISD students’ scores were above state and regional averages, though there was a drop in third-grade reading scores that were lower than the year prior. The board noted that third graders are the class that missed attending kindergarten during the COVID pandemic. In addition, the testing window was moved up in the school year.
In fifth-grade science testing, Pearland students performed roughly twice the state average, but results also showed that many students were not prepared for the next grade.
Noting a recent push at the state level to divert public school funding, Trustee Kris Schoeffler inquired about increases in the difficulty of testing and state standards.
“We want our students to be tested as rigorously as they can because we want to prepare them for the real world, for college and beyond,” Allen said.
