TEA releases preliminary work-in-progress A-F report

The 84th Legislature has passed House Bill 2804, changing the Texas school accountability system so that every campus and district receives one of five ratings from A-F. The ratings will be issued for the first time in August 2018.

The law requires the Texas Education Agency to present a preliminary work-in-progress report noting potential grades by domain to be issued to the legislature by Jan. 1, 2017. That report, which was sent to legislative members last week, is now publicly available.

“It is important to note that the Met Standard/Improvement Required ratings issued in August 2016 and updated in November 2016 are the official academic accountability ratings for the 2015–16 school year. A similar process will be used for the 2016–17 school year," Commissioner of Education Mike Morath said, following the release of report, "The ratings in this report are for informational purposes to meet a legislative requirement and represent work-in-progress models that are likely to change before A–F ratings become effective in August 2018. No inferences about official district or campus performance in the 2015-2016 school year should be drawn from these ratings, and these ratings should not be considered predictors of future district or campus performance ratings.”

The new A-F letter grade is based heavily on state standardized test performance. While the final grading system goes into effect in August 2018, lawmakers required that school districts and campuses receive preliminary ratings based on the 2015-16 school year to give a glimpse of what ratings will reveal. The scores are not official or punitive and the accountability ratings doled out in August still stand. Instead, the Texas Education Agency’s preliminary report to the Legislature shows what letter grades schools and districts would have received for the 2015-16 school year if the rating system had been in place.

Some schools across Texas just a few months ago received top scores from the state but are now looking at unsatisfactory scores.

School districts in Gonzales County got unsatisfactory grades under the new accountability system. Gonzales Independent School District, Nixon-Smiley Consolidated School District and Waelder Independent School District all received D and F grades in varying categories, according to a report sent to legislature last week. Despite the grades, local officials claim the preliminary letter grades do not tell the full story

"If you recall, GISD received 'Met Standard' on all four indices on a system of accountability that required only meeting three of the four indices. It is important to note that this does not change," GISD Superintendent Dr. Kimberly Strozier said in a recent letter. "GISD has still not only met but exceeded expectations in many areas of the STAAR system. In fact we earned distinctions in various areas of the exam."

Strozier went on to say GISD is a great school district with strong students, faculty, staff and leadership. 

"We are confident in our work and our potential to continually improve as we work together. In comparison to the STAAR, the A-F system is very new to us.  In fact, the methodologies of draft “practice run” calculations arrived at the holidays," she said. "Grades subsequently followed on Dec. 30, along with the ‘practice run’ of grade assignments. As we learned our assignments were average to below average with even one failing grade we had many questions to answer on how the grades were assigned. There is still much to learn as the state works to fine tune a new system."

Nixon-Smiley CISD Superintendent Cathy Lauer also made a clarification on the new data.

“I think it's important to note that these results are a ‘test run’ based on 2015-16 data,” she noted. “They do not even include all of the domains. So, while we are interested in the information, we do not believe that these letter grades define us.”

According to Strozier, the new look that TEA is beginning to develop is a system that incorporates a movement that would have the state’s goal of 60 percent of Texans aged 25-34 to have a credential by the year 2030.

"In a nutshell, the A-F system looks like a real initiative to encourage the majority to be college and career ready in a new definition of what that means," Strozier said. "GISD continues to maintain high graduation rates and already outperforms the state in college and career ready graduates at 81.2 percent. Further, 75.8 percent of our graduates based on the current accountability system Met Standard for first year college freshmen not needing to take any remediation exceeding the state."

 Strozier said GISD's average ACT scores in all subjects outperform state averages.

"Saying all that, even with all of our successes contributing to meeting standard in the current system in all four indices the new system requires complicated adjustments in curriculum, personnel, resources and funding. For example, promoting numerous college credits while in high school for the majority gains a higher grade," Strozier said. "Keep in mind not all students want to attend college. We know that many students desire a vocational track and do not desire college career preparation."

Strozier said area D3 - Closing Performance Gaps – for the economically disadvantaged students (GISD is at 70 percent poverty level) – is where the ISD scored the lowest. She also said this area will receive a new look if all goes well taking into account that not all students have the same support systems as others and this can affect their progress in preparedness and subsequent learning levels.

To sum it all up, Strozier wanted to clarify that this is not an indication of how schools are actually performing.

"This is an indication of change in the expectations and structures of public school," Strozier claimed. "Lawmakers seem to be pushing for the transition of moving higher education (college) into the high school setting as well as endorsing vocational trades with certifications prior to high school graduation rather than graduates attending vocational trade schools after graduation.

Strozier said all of this would require rewriting the state curriculum to allow necessary time, awarding districts the funds and resources necessary.

"Only 55 percent of the 'grade' was based on academic performance which is hard to assess one day in the life of a student,” she noted. "It is also a surprise exam with no prior training or knowledge of the methodologies or expectations."

Strozier indicated this method is totally unlike the method by which true “grades” are awarded.

"In the end GISD will continue to ensure promotion of excellence in educating the whole child and will honor and respect multiple intelligences," she said. "We will work diligently and appreciate your support as we learn a new accountability system and adhere to requirements that are assigned moving forward in continuous improvement."

To learn more about the transition to a new accountability system and its implementation, visit the Texas Education Agency A-F Resources Page on the TEA website.