MANDATORY STAAR POLICIES
Texas Education Code section 39.023(c):
• “ A school district shall … adopt a policy that requires
a student's performance on an end-of-course
assessment instrument for a course listed in this
subsection in which the student is enrolled to account
for 15 percent of the student's final grade for the
course.”
• There is no other “STAAR” policy requirement. This is
the minimum you have to do.
DRAFTING THE POLICY
• TEA ‘s Q&A guidance #14 and #15 made it
clear that a STAAR EOC-Exam must account
for 15% of a student’s final course grade and
that this affects whether a student receives
course credit.
• Suggestion: when drafting your policy, use the
statutory language.
“DISCRETIONARY” POLICIES
• There are still several areas where districts need
to make policy decisions. Those include:
• Calculating the 15%
• Using STAAR Score for Student Taking STAARModified and STAAR-Alternate (STAAR-L has
some guidance).
• Converting the Raw EOC Test Scores.
• Awarding Partial Semester Credit.
• Determining How Retake Scores Are Used.
• Determining Class Rank.
“DISCRETIONARY” POLICIES
• These policies represent areas where you have
discretion or where we are waiting for further
guidance.
• As of now:
• TEA is aware of our questions on this topic.
• TEA intends to release Proposed Regulations on
STAAR by late Oct/early Nov. (Finalized by end of
Dec./Jan? possible)
• But, districts want to provide parents and students
some notice about the STAAR policy changes now.
CALCULATING THE 15%
• TEA has not provided guidance about how to calculate
the 15%.
• There are some options…..
CALCULATING THE 15%
Possible Options:
1. Include EOC score at 15% of each semester.
(Problem: the district has to retroactively recalculate
the 1st semester grade.)
2. Include the EOC score as 30% of the 2nd semester
grade only. (Problem: Doesn’t feel “fair”; creates
potential for surprises, hard to understand.)
3. Count each semester grade as 42.5% of the final
course grade and the EOC score as 15%.
CALCULATING THE 15%
• Several options, but recommend using a calculation that
parents and students will be familiar with –
• Example:
(
1st Sem Aveg. + 2nd Sem Avg. x 0.85
2
OR it can be represented as:
1st Semester Average = 42.5%
2nd Semester Average = 42.5%
EOC Test Score = 15%
)
+ ( EOC x 0.15) = Final
Grade
USING STAAR-MODIFIED/STAAR-ALT SCORES
• TEA Q&A #14 states that there is no requirement that
districts count STAAR-M or STAAR-A as 15% of a
student’s final course grade.
• This exception is not found in the current statutes and
regulations.
• TEA Student Assessment Division: “This statement
reflects what we intend the new regs to be. But,
proposed regs will not be released until late Oct./early
Nov.”
USING STAAR-MODIFIED/STAAR-ALT SCORES
• TEA’s Guidance could change.
• So, you have some options:
• Wait until the regs are finalized and then draft policy
• Put a statement similar to TEA’s Q&A in your
policy/regulation
• Put a statement that leaves room for change in your
policy/regulation (i.e. “The district will use a student’s
STAAR-M or STAAR-A exam scores in calculating a
student’s final course grade in accordance with
statute and regulations.
CONVERTING RAW EOC TEST SCORES
• TEA Q&A #14 makes clear that TEA will not provide
guidance on how the raw EOC exam scores should be
converted to a scale of 0-100.
• You have options, but we recommend linking the
grades to TEA’s performance levels.
• Example….
CONVERTING RAW EOC SCORES
L1: Unsatisfactory
Academic
Performance
Minimum Score
70%
L2: Satisfactory
Academic
Performance
L3: Advanced
Academic
Performance
EOC
Grade
# Qs
correct
0%
70%
100%
AWARDING PARTIAL SEMESTER CREDIT
• We know students cannot receiving credit for an entire
course if the student fails to achieve a passing grade
for the course after the EOC exam score has been
included.
• But, we have no guidance on whether the student can
receive partial credit for the first semester if he
passes that semester.
• Walsh Anderson considers this a discretionary choice
that TEA will not likely provide guidance on.
• You still have this option.
DETERMINING HOW “RETAKE” SCORES ARE USED
TEXAS EDUCATION CODE 37.023(c) says:
• “If a student retakes an end-of-course assessment
instrument for a course listed in this subsection, as
provided by Section 39.025, a school district is not
required to use the student's performance on the
subsequent administration or administrations of the
assessment instrument to determine the student's
final grade for the course.”
DETERMINING HOW “RETAKE” SCORES ARE USED
• Students are allowed by law to retest for any reasons
at any administration, but Districts choose whether to
count retake scores as 15% of the final course grade.
• Consider the options and determine what would help
your students.
• Possible options:
• Don’t count retakes/ Count any retakes
• Only count the first retake score
• Only count retakes if it allows the student to achieve a
passing grade for the course
DETERMINING CLASS RANK
• Nothing about STAAR changed the district’s ability to
choose when and how class rank is determined.
• However, class rank challenges can arise from
parents/students.
• Recommended: Making “class rank” changes
effective only with the 2011-12 ninth grade class as
any changes will likely be due to STAAR-related
changes.
• Options (to be discussed).
OTHER ISSUES: CREDIT BY EXAM
• A district can give a student credit for a course in which the
student received some instruction if the student scores
70% on a criterion referenced test for the course.
• Districts may be using these more and more as districts
work with the student who failed as result of the EOC
score.
• TEA Q&A states that a student who takes credit by exam
still has to take the EOC.
• We don’t know – does the EOC count as 85% and EOC
score as 15%. Hopefully this will be in the regulations.
Keep an eye out for this.
OTHER ISSUES: INCLUSION OF 8TH GRADE
STAAR SCORES
• HB 2135 was intended to eliminate double testing for
8th graders who are enrolled in an EOC course. The
students aren’t required to take the 8th grade math
test and STAAR, but the district could decide to have
them take both.
• What we don’t know: If TEA will count 8th grader EOC
scores towards middle school accountability
calculations.
• We’re keeping out an eye for guidance here.
HOW TO DEAL WITH THE CHANGES
• The STAAR landscape will keep shifting this year.
• Consider your options:
• Draft a policy – but realize it may chance.
• Draft a policy with broad language – i.e. “The district
will award partial course credit in accordance with thr
law and regulations.”
• Draft a policy that gives the Superintendent authority
to adopt regulations.
THANK YOU!
Walsh, Anderson, Brown, Gallegos & Green, P.C.
P.O. Box 2156
Austin, TX 78768
512-454-6864
Mark Goulet: Mgoulet@wabsa.com
Kelley Kalchthaler: Kkalchthaler@wabsa.com