This School Year, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) Has Been Replaced

Dear Parents:

This school year, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) has been replaced with a new testing program, the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR). This new assessment is designed to determine whether students have mastered the material and concepts required for their current grade or course.

Under TAKS, students were administered the assessment that aligned to their grade level regardless of whether the instruction they were receiving was aligned to that assessment. For example, all 8th grade studentstook the same assessment, regardless of whether they were enrolled in a pre-algebra or algebra course.

The 82nd Texas Legislature passed House Bill 2135 attempted to address this issue by requiring students to take the STAAR assessment for the subject in which they receive instruction if the content covers the entire curriculum for that subject.

For the Houston Independent School District (HISD), this legislation means that 7th grade students in Pre-AP Math would take the Grade 8 Mathematics STAAR assessment. This is due in part because the HISD Math 7 Pre-AP curriculum covers the entire standards for Grade 8 Mathematics.However, not all middle schools currently align their instruction in Pre-AP to the HISD curriculum. As a result, not all students enrolled in Pre-AP across the District receive instruction in the standards for Grade 8 Mathematics.This needs to be corrected, as we are required to report to the Texas Education Agency the number of students in Pre-AP Math 7 since those students are currently slated to take the Grade 8 Mathematics STAAR Assessment.

In the coming weeks, our staff will be making adjustments to your child’s course description to better reflect the course in which your child is appropriately receiving instruction. This will ensure that all students take the correct assessments aligned to what they are learning in the classroom.

This summer, our campus will be offering a pre-algebra math course to ensure students are prepared for Algebra I as an 8th grader. Your child will be able to enroll in Algebra I upon successful completion of that course.

Thank you for your understanding, and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to give us a call at School’s Phone Number.

Sincerely,

Principal’s Name

School Name