Texas released a new round of academic accountability ratings Friday, with overall public school performance remaining relatively flat.
State education officials grade districts and campuses each year largely based on how well students perform on STAAR, the state’s standardized test. The A-F ratings are designed to provide families a tool to evaluate how well schools educate their children.
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Of more than 9,000 campuses, 24% scored an A, 34% scored a B, 23% scored a C, 10% scored a D and 4% scored an F.
Schools with five consecutive F ratings trigger a state law requiring Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath to either close the campus or replace the entire district’s elected trustees and superintendent.
Last year, such takeovers occurred in the Fort Worth, Beaumont, Connally and Lake Worth districts.
In addition to helping parents decide where to send their kids to school, the ratings can help businesses choose which communities to invest in or move to.
Critics say that often comes at a cost to predominantly low-income, Hispanic and Black schools, which receive failing grades at disproportionate rates and trigger district takeovers most often. Supporters of the accountability system say the ratings help state officials hold district leaders accountable for not concentrating enough on student learning.
Texas grades districts and campuses on an A-F scale based on three categories:
- Student achievement: How well students perform on state tests and whether they are prepared for life after high school.
- School progress: How much students improve on state tests.
- Closing the gaps: How much progress schools make in boosting scores for specific groups of children, such as those with disabilities and English learners.