Second-called Special Session ENDS 

The second-called special session ended with the passage of one of the Governor’s priorities that significantly impacted public education … the elimination of the STAAR test. But is STAAR really gone? Technically, yes, but not until the 2027-2028 school year.  The STAAR test will still be administered for the next two years, and after that there will be a new assessment system.  Deemed a “through-year” system, there will be required tests throughout the year with beginning-of-the-year (BOY), middle-of-the-year (MOY) and end-of-the-year (EOY) tests that will be shorter in length than the current STAAR. (NOTE: This is not an elimination of the A through F rating system.) As with most consequential pieces of legislation, the devil is in the details. (ANOTHER NOTE: The 2027 legislative session may also make changes before the new testing system is effective, so stay tuned!) Here are a few highlights from House Bill 8 that changes the assessment and accountability rating system in Texas 

• Replacing STAAR with three through-year tests (beginning-, middle-, and end-of-year) starting in 2027–28 and making changes to end-of-course exams.
• Eliminating the English II end-of-course exam.
• Requiring adopted and developed BOY and MOY assessment instruments to be adaptive to each student.
• Using technology to return results within two business days. 
• Allowing additional dashboard metrics, such as student engagement and workforce development information, that would not count toward ratings. 
• Requiring automatic rescoring of exams at no cost to districts for students whose writing portion of a reading language arts assessment is on the cusp of earning the next highest performance level.
• Requiring results to be available to parents within one-click on a website.
• Limiting benchmark testing by districts.
• Allowing a student to demonstrate military readiness through verified enlistment or by achieving a commissioner-established passing score on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) and by successfully completing a JROTC program.
• Requiring results to be available to parents within one-click on a website.
• Calling for the creation of an accountability advisory committee.

You will find a summary of the bills that passed during this special session on this webpage. 

Legislative Corner is published periodically throughout the 89th Texas legislative session. For more information about RISD’s legislative involvement and priorities, please visit the legislative page here. Other resources include Texas Legislature Online (TLO) – find legislation (bills), committee hearings, legislative member info, and more; The Quorum Report – sign-up for “Daily Buzz” or a listing of political news articles; Texas Tribune – online daily news, also a data dashboard for education.