Texas schools would shift from STAAR to a new assessment program

The Texas Education Agency would create and run an instructionally supportive statewide assessment program and contract with a nationally recognized provider to support the transition. The program would cover public school assessments in reading language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies, along with required end-of-course tests. Assessments would need to measure essential knowledge and skills, support growth reporting, meet validity and reliability standards, and follow federal requirements. Teacher committees would review agency-developed test questions for alignment, grade-level appropriateness, bias, factual accuracy, and whether students had an opportunity to learn the tested content. Districts and open-enrollment charter schools would administer required assessments under the statewide program. Students would continue taking STAAR until the replacement program becomes available beginning with the 2027-2028 school year; the transition section expires September 1, 2029.

The commissioner would evaluate districts and campuses using achievement, school progress, and closing-the-gaps indicators and assign overall and domain ratings from A through F. The rules would apply to Texas public school districts, campuses, and open-enrollment charter schools covered by the public school accountability system. The commissioner could assign “Not Rated” when a disaster, data problem, small enrollment, or another outside event prevents an accurate evaluation. A “Not Rated” result would not erase consecutive unacceptable ratings, and existing interventions or sanctions would continue. The commissioner could not assign “Not Rated” to every district or every campus statewide. Performance standards would generally increase only every fifth school year beginning with the 2027-2028 indicators, with exceptions needed to keep standards consistent. The accountability-indicator changes would apply to ratings beginning with the 2027-2028 school year; some accountability changes would apply to actions or determinations beginning with the 2022-2023 school year.

School districts and open-enrollment charter schools would have to use specified legal procedures and deadlines to challenge accountability rules or ratings. The rules would cover challenges to rules under the public school accountability chapters and agency decisions about academic or financial accountability ratings. A district or charter school would have to bring a declaratory-judgment action challenging an accountability rule within nine months after the rule is adopted. A district or charter school could not challenge an accountability rating in another proceeding until it had used the available challenge process. Public school funds could be used for a legal action only when the Education Code or the cited government-law procedure specifically authorizes it. The nine-month deadline would run from the date an accountability rule is adopted; the changes to turnaround plans would apply to plans ordered before, on, or after the Act’s effective date.