Tag Archives: STAAR

When should the state step in to close underperforming charter schools?

Posted on January 16, 2014 by sachartermoms

This story broke just before the holiday break, when I unplugged for a bit, except for a few “Best-of” posts (here, here, and here), and a slideshow of holiday lights. But it’s worth picking up now because it poses this … Continue reading →

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Debate: What if every Texas school got a letter grade rating, A through F?

Posted on August 16, 2013 by sachartermoms

Parents, would you find it helpful if every school in Texas got a letter grade, A-F? Do letter grade ratings give parents a useful yardstick for quality? Or, do they oversimplify and obscure the differences among schools? Please leave a … Continue reading →

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KIPP Aspire and New Frontiers charter schools earn three state distinctions

Posted on August 13, 2013 by sachartermoms

As mentioned in this earlier post, the Texas Education Agency recently released a new set of school accountability ratings. To highlight the top-performing schools in the state, the TEA released a list of schools that were rated “met standard” and also earned all … Continue reading →

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Five San Antonio charter schools tagged “improvement required” under new state accountability ratings

Posted on August 9, 2013 by sachartermoms

The Texas Education Agency recently released a new set of accountability ratings for Texas school districts and campuses. This is the first set of ratings based on STAAR standardized testing data. (See this earlier post for a discussion of previous ratings.) … Continue reading →

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Closed door discussions on education reform bills SB2 (charter schools) and HB5 (standardized testing)

Posted on May 25, 2013 by sachartermoms

I mentioned earlier that the charter school bill—SB2—is in the hands of a conference committee. Reports from Austin say that both SB2 and HB5, a bill to modify standardized testing requirements, are both being negotiated among members of the House, Senate, and … Continue reading →

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Mom says “I love high stakes testing”

Posted on November 12, 2012 by sachartermoms

Washington Post columnist Esther J. Cepeda recently went to parent-teacher conferences  and brought home the standardized testing results. I laid the papers out on the kitchen table: Lengthy, detailed progress reports showing the grade and weight of each quiz and … Continue reading →

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SA Ready: materials for STAAR prep and college-and-career readiness

Posted on October 9, 2012 by sachartermoms

SA Ready is open for business. According to the website: SA Ready is a free platform that gives teachers access to high quality lesson plans and teaching resources. Developed in partnership between Generation TX San Antonio and Educational Policy Improvement Center … Continue reading →

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Departing commissioner Robert Scott predicts backlash against standardized testing

Posted on July 18, 2012 by sachartermoms

Texas Monthly senior executive editor Paul Burka interviewed Robert Scott on his last day (July 2) as commissioner and summarized the standardized testing debate. “The Big Test”, Paul Burka, Texas Monthly, August 2012. Burka asked Scott about his criticism of Texas’s standardized … Continue reading →

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Standardized testing: STAAR “bridge study” allows comparison to TAKS

Posted on July 9, 2012 by sachartermoms

In Texas, the STAAR test is replacing the TAKS test, but the Texas Education Agency argued that the scores were not comparable, and so asked for a one-year waiver from “No Child Left Behind.” The federal waiver was denied, so … Continue reading →

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Excuses: school districts share STAAR results

Posted on June 15, 2012 by sachartermoms

In an impressive feat of diligence, a reporter at the San Antonio Express-News, Maria Luisa Cesar, has rounded up STAAR standardized test results for nearly all of the public school districts in the San Antonio area. “Students’ STAAR English scores lagging”, … Continue reading →

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