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TEA has released its final accountability plan for rating districts and campuses for 2008, which will remain in effect until a new accountability system is implemented. The Select Committee on Public School Accountability, created during the 2007 legislative session as part of Senate Bill 1031, is currently reviewing the state accountability system and must make recommendations by December 1, 2008, regarding how the system should be structured to align with the new end-of-course assessments. The Legislature will be required to approve the new system for implementation by September 1, 2011.
Generally, the state accountability system is reviewed annually, with input from an Educator Focus Group, the Commissioner’s Accountability Advisory Committee (CAAC) and others, and the Commissioner makes final determinations based on this input. The 2008 Accountability Manual and a full account of TEA’s final accountability decisions are available on the TEA website, with new accountability ratings scheduled for release in August.
2007 (Used) |
2008 (Adopted in Commissioner Rule) |
2009 (Final Decision) |
2010 (Recommended*) |
|
| Exemplary | ≥ 90% | ≥ 90% | ≥ 90% | ≥ 90% |
| Recognized | ≥ 75% | ≥ 75% | ≥ 75% | ≥ 80% |
| Acceptable | ||||
|
≥ 65% | ≥ 70% | ≥ 70% | ≥ 70% |
|
≥ 65% | ≥ 65% | ≥ 70% | ≥ 70% |
|
≥ 65% | ≥ 65% | ≥ 70% | ≥ 70% |
|
≥ 45% | ≥ 50% | ≥ 55% | ≥ 60% |
|
≥ 40% | ≥ 45% | ≥ 50% | ≥ 55% |
| *Standards for 2010 will be reviewed in 2009 and are subject to change. Numbers in bold indicate an increase from the prior year. |
||||
Highlights of the Commissioner’s Decisions
2008 TAKS Standards
The 2008 Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) standards needed for “academically acceptable” ratings will increase by five percentage points to 70% for reading/English language arts (ELA), 50% for mathematics, and 45% for science; they will remain at 65% for writing and social studies. Despite recommendations to the contrary by the Educator Focus Group and CAAC to raise the recognized standard to 80%, the Commissioner decided to keep the “recognized” standard of 75%. The “exemplary” standard stayed at 90%.
2009-10 TAKS Standards
In 2009, the “academically acceptable” standards will increase by five percentage points to 70% for writing and social studies, 55% for mathematics and 50% for science. The reading/ELA standards remain stable between 2008 and 2009 at 70%. The “recognized” standard of 75%, which applies to all subjects, is unchanged between 2008 and 2009, as is the “exemplary” standard of 90%.
In 2010, the “academically acceptable” standards will increase by five percentage points to 60% for mathematics and 55% for science. In addition, the recognized standard will increase from 75 to 80%.
Grade 8 science
Grade 8 science results will be included in the accountability system beginning in 2008, and 8th grade students must meet the Panel Recommendation (PR) passing standard. According to the Commissioner, although state statute does not require the use of grade 8 science in the accountability system until 2009, this decision reflects the strong consensus among Educator Focus Group and CAAC members to follow the plans published in the accountability manuals since 2005 to incorporate it in the rating system beginning in 2008.
Incorporating TAKS-Accommodated
(TAKS-A)
Beginning in 2008, the grade 8 science and TAKS-A results will be combined with the other TAKS results into a single indicator. In 2008 and 2009, the TAKS-A results will be combined with the TAKS results for the following grades and subjects only:
• Science (grades 5, 8, 10 &
11–English; grade 5–Spanish)
• Social studies (grades 8, 10 & 11)
• ELA (grade 11)
• Mathematics (grade 11)
Beginning in 2010, the TAKS indicator will include these additional TAKS-A tested grades and subjects:
• Reading/ELA (grades 3 through 10–English; grades 3 through
6–Spanish)
• Mathematics (grades 3 through 10–English; grades 3 through
6–Spanish)
• Writing (grades 4 and 7–English; grade 4–Spanish)
According to the Commissioner, the reasons for combining the TAKS and TAKS-A results into a single indicator are: The TAKS-A is an on-grade-level assessment designed for students receiving special education services. Both TAKS and TAKS-A have the same “met standard” and “commended performance” student passing standards; also the inclusion of TAKS results for special education students is not new. Special education students taking the regular state assessment tests on grade level have been included in the state rating system since 1998-99. In addition, combining TAKS-A and TAKS results maintains the same number of measures in the state accountability system. Inclusion of TAKS-A with TAKS parallels the use of the combined TAKS/TAKS-A results in the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) system beginning in 2007-08.
SDAA II
As of the 2008 accountability year, the State-Developed Alternative Assessment II (SDAA) indicator is no longer in the system because it was administered for the last time in the 2006-07 school year. Since the SDAA II is no longer administered, using TAKS-A results in 2008 ensures that some assessment results for students with disabilities who do not take the regular TAKS are included in the state accountability system continuously between 2006 and 2011, while new assessments for students with disabilities are fully phased in.
Exceptions
The original rationale for the Exceptions provision was to provide a mechanism for avoiding the “academically unacceptable” rating due to new indicators or indicators that were being phased-in to the system. It was also designed to provide greater relief for larger campuses and districts serving more diverse student populations that are evaluated on more measures. With the inclusion of additional students (students with disabilities tested on TAKS-A) and an additional assessment (grade 8 science) in 2008, the recommended changes to the Exceptions Provision are aligned with the original purpose of the Exceptions Provision. In addition, permitting the provision to be applied to “academically acceptable” campuses and districts makes the “recognized” rating more accessible to campuses and districts that are large and have diverse student populations, or whose student populations are predominantly economically disadvantaged or at risk.
The Exceptions Provision is significantly modified for 2008 and beyond to allow campuses and districts to achieve a “recognized” or “exemplary” rating, rather than just elevate a rating from “academically unacceptable” to “academically acceptable.” Other changes include expanding the number of exceptions allowed from three to four and altering the minimum performance floor values required.
Annual Dropout Rate
(Grade 7-8) Indicator
The 2008 standards for the Grade 7-8 Annual Dropout Rate indicator was increased from 1% to 2% for “academically acceptable,” and was increased to 2% for “recognized” and “exemplary” also. The Commissioner’s rationale was that the Annual Dropout Rate in effect for 2008 is actually a new indicator because the definition of dropout is now based on the more rigorous National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) dropout definition, which has a significant impact on dropout rates. Under the new definition, the average grade 7-8 dropout rate doubled, not due to an increase in dropouts, but due to a reclassification of students previously not considered to be dropouts. Doubling the standard from 1% to 2% makes it comparable to the standard used to evaluate rates under the prior definition.
Completion Rate
(Grade 9-12) Indicator
The 2008 standards for the grades 9-12 completion rate remain at 75% for “academically acceptable,” 85% for “recognized” and 95% for “exemplary.” These standards, adopted as part of the 2007 Accountability Manual, will be held constant through 2010.
2008-10 Gold Performance
Acknowledgment (GPA) System Standards
The 2007 standards for all GPA indicators will be held constant in 2008, except for Texas Success Initiative (TSI) indicators which will increase by five percentage points to 55% in ELA and mathematics. The standards for these two indicators are proposed to increase again in 2009 to 60% and in 2010 to 65%. The standard for the “commended performance” for all subjects will increase by five percentage points in 2009 to 30%, where it will remain in 2010. The standard for the Recommended High School Program/Distinguished Achievement Program will increase from 80% to 85% in 2009 and will remain at 85% in 2010.
Web posted: 08/04/08 from The Classroom Teacher, Summer 2008.
