A TCTA-initiated law on paperwork requirements provides that:
- Districts must limit redundant requests for information and the number and length of reports a teacher must prepare.
- Reports that teachers may be required to prepare are limited to a specific list that essentially covers grading, lesson plans, attendance reports, reports related to the health or safety of students, accreditation information or material related to a grievance or other legal matter. Teachers may be required to prepare only unit or weekly lesson plans that outline, in a brief and general manner, the information to be presented in each period at the secondary level or in each subject or topic at the elementary level. (See the complete list below.)
- Pursuant to a TCTA-proposed provision of a bill that passed in 2023, a lesson plan adopted by a school board as part of its instructional materials satisfies any requirement for lesson plans teachers must prepare, meaning that administrators cannot add to the lesson plan requirement.
- School boards are required to review paperwork requirements and transfer to noninstructional staff any reporting tasks that could be reasonably accomplished by that staff.
- Districts may collect other essential information, but such situations require the agreement of the teacher.
- The commissioner must review paperwork that TEA requires of districts and adopt a policy that limits written reports and other paperwork that TEA requires a principal or teacher to complete.
Restricting Written Information
(a) The board of trustees of each school district shall limit redundant requests for information and the number and length of written reports that a classroom teacher is required to prepare. A classroom teacher may not be required to prepare any written information other than:
- any report concerning the health, safety, or welfare of a student;
- a report of a student's grade on an assignment or examination;
- a report of a student's academic progress in a class or course;
- a report of a student's grades at the end of each grade reporting period;
- a textbook report;
- a unit or weekly lesson plan that outlines, in a brief and general manner, the information to be presented during each period at the secondary level or in each subject or topic at the elementary level;
- an attendance report;
- any report required for accreditation review;
- any information required by a school district that relates to a complaint, grievance, or actual or potential litigation and that requires the classroom teacher's involvement; or
- any information specifically required by law, rule, or regulation.
(b) The board of trustees shall review paperwork requirements imposed on classroom teachers and shall transfer to existing noninstructional staff a reporting task that can reasonably be accomplished by that staff.
(c) This section does not preclude a school district from collecting essential information, in addition to information specified under Subsection (a), from a classroom teacher on agreement between the classroom teacher and the district.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1320, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997. Amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 201, § 6, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
Provision of instructional plan
School districts must adopt policies requiring each teacher to provide a copy of the teacher’s instructional plan or course syllabus for each class taught before the beginning of a semester to district administration for posting on the district’s internet website, and to the parent of each student enrolled in the class. Teachers must also provide additional copies of the instructional plan or course syllabus to be made available to a parent of a student enrolled in the class on a parent’s request.