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IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
PLANNING FOR 2003 |
March 9, 2001
TO THE EDUCATOR ADDRESSED:
In July 2000, each public school superintendent was sent a
document detailing my decisions for accountability rating standards
for 2001 and 2002. In that July document, I committed to providing a
planning report to educators each year through 2003 that would
contain a variety of analyses to assist in preparing for scheduled
developments in assessment and accountability.
The 2002-03 school year will bring changes that will have a major
impact on Texas public school education at every level. Elementary
students as well as high school students will be subject to very
personal consequences for poor performance on the state assessments.
Simultaneously, the rigor of those required assessments will be
substantially increased. The three changes that are highlighted
below represent significant increases in expectations for Texas
public education:
- NEW STATE ASSESSMENT SYSTEM. Beginning in 2003, a new state
assessment system will be administered to students at grades 3
through 11. The new state assessments are expected to be more
rigorous than the current Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS)
tests. This is because they are based on the more rigorous
state-mandated curriculum (the Texas Essential Knowledge and
Skills, or TEKS) and because they are linked in difficulty to an
exit-level testing requirement for graduation that incorporates
higher expectations.
- TESTING REQUIREMENT FOR GRADUATION. As stated above, the
testing requirements for graduation will increase and the
exit-level test will be designed for the 11th grade. Unlike the
current exit-level tests administered in 10th grade in reading,
writing, and mathematics, the new grade 11 tests will assess
English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies,
and require knowledge of Algebra I and Geometry, Biology and
integrated Chemistry and Physics, English III, and early
American and United States History. The class of 2005 (students
who are 8th graders in 2000-01) will be the first class required
to pass the new assessments in order to graduate. The first
testing opportunity on the new exit-level assessments for these
students will be in the spring semester of the 2003-04 school
year, when they will be in 11th grade.
- STUDENT SUCCESS INITIATIVE. 2003 will also be the first year
of implementation of the Student Success Initiative (SSI).
Students in grade 3 that year must pass the state assessment in
reading to be promoted without the consultation of a grade
placement committee. Beginning in 2005, students in grade 5 must
pass the state assessments in reading and mathematics to be
promoted; beginning in 2008, students in grade 8 must pass the
state assessments in reading and mathematics to be promoted.
REPORT FOCUS. These planning reports are designed to highlight
areas of performance that may need strengthening in order for
students to meet these new testing requirements. Yes, future
accountability ratings will be based on student performance results
on these new assessments. However, the focus here is to provide
schools and districts with all of the currently available
information to determine whether students are likely to have the
skills and knowledge they will need to meet the new testing
requirements, especially those for graduation.
TIMING. Districts will receive these planning reports in two
parts. Part I is transmitted with this correspondence and the TAAS
test contractor will transmit Part II in May 2001.
PART I REPORT CONTENT. The enclosed reports, titled 2003 Early
Indicator Report, Part I are generated for each district and each
school that serves students in grades 7 and above. Also enclosed is
a state-level 2003 Early Indicator Report, Part I. The Part I
reports contain the following information:
- 2000 Grade 8 All TAAS Tests. This section shows the percent of
8th grade students taking and passing all five assessments -
reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies -
administered at that grade in the spring of 2000.
Rationale: The students currently in 8th grade this
school year (2000-01) will be the first class of students
required to pass the new exit-level examinations in order to
graduate from high school. Although the results presented here
are for the 1999-2000 8th graders, the percent passing all five
tests at 8th grade provides an indication of how well students
at this grade are being prepared for examinations in multiple
subjects at higher grades. This should be useful as a baseline
for planning.
- 2000 Grade 8 TAAS By Subject (as shown on 2000 AEIS). This
section shows the percent of 8th grade students taking and
passing each separate subject area - reading, writing,
mathematics, science, and social studies - administered at that
grade in the spring of 2000. This information was provided in
the 1999-2000 Academic Excellence Indicator System (AEIS)
reports mailed to each superintendent and principal in October
2000.
Rationale: The students currently in 8th grade this
school year (2000-01) will be the first class of students
required to pass the new exit-level examinations in order to
graduate from high school. Although the results presented here
are for the 1999-2000 8th graders, examination of the percent of
students passing by subject allows an analysis of strengths and
weaknesses by subject.
- Cumulative End-of-Course Exam. This section shows the percent
of last year's 11th and 12th grade students who have taken and
passed all four end-of-course examinations by the close of the
1999-2000 school year. End-of-course examinations are
administered in Algebra I, Biology, English II, and United
States History.
Rationale: Because the knowledge and skills currently
assessed on the four existing end-of-course examinations are
required components of the new exit-level examination,
performance on all four end-of-course examinations is currently
our best predictor of performance on the future 11th grade
exit-level tests. However, it should be noted that the required
content of the new exit-level assessments is broader and more
rigorous than the content of the four end-of-course
examinations.
- End-of-Course Exam (as shown on 2000 AEIS). This section shows
the percent of students who passed each of the four
end-of-course examinations during the 1999-2000 school year.
This information was also provided in 1999-2000 AEIS reports
mailed to each superintendent and principal in October 2000. In
the AEIS reports, this information was labeled "Preview of
2003 Exit Level."
Rationale: This is another measure of end-of-course
examination performance that can be an indicator of the
percentage of students expected to pass exit-level tests, and
thus be able to graduate. Examination of the percent of students
passing by specific end-of-course examination allows an analysis
of strengths and weaknesses by subject. Although not an exact
predictor, this information should be useful as a baseline for
planning.
- Class of 1999 Completion Rates (as shown on 2000 AEIS). This
indicator shows the status of students after their expected
graduation date. It is a longitudinal measure that tracks a
cohort of students to determine their status four years after
entering 9th grade. The components of this measure are percent
graduating on time; percent continuing after their expected
graduation year; percent dropping out; and percent receiving a
General Educational Development (GED) certificate by the
expected graduation date. All of the components except percent
dropping out represent measures of completing, or continuing in,
school.
Rationale: In 2003, just as the state assessment
system will enter another chapter with these new tests, so the
accountability system will enter its second phase with both new
and modified performance indicators. Completion rates will
become a part of this "Phase II" accountability
system. Although the components to be included in the completion
rate to be used for accountability purposes have not yet been
determined, it is useful to focus on these data now in order to
prepare for the future when this indicator will be evaluated for
ratings purposes.
PART II REPORT CONTENT. In addition to the enclosed reports,
districts will receive 2003 Early Indicator Reports, Part II after
the spring administration of the TAAS tests. The Part II reports
will have two components, both of which will be provided by the test
contractor. These are briefly described below:
- Confidential Student Report. The first component is a
modification to the Confidential Student Report (CSR) provided
by the test contractor for every student in grades 3 through 8.
A new section on the report will show how each individual
student who tested in the spring of 2001 would have performed
had the TAAS passing standard been equivalent to a higher
student passing standard, as would be expected on the new more
rigorous tests to be administered beginning in 2003. This
calculated higher standard will be labeled on the confidential
student report as the "Higher TEKS-Based Test
Standard." The same information will also be included on
the optional confidential report to parents. Details on the
definition of the higher standard are provided in an attachment
to this correspondence.
Rationale: The new assessments are expected to be more
rigorous than the TAAS. This new information will alert parents
as to whether their child is already meeting a hypothetical
higher standard on current tests.
- Summary Report. The second component is a new report called
2003 Early Indicator Summary Report, Part II. This report will
provide district- and campus-level comparisons of aggregate
results at the current and higher student passing standards
shown on the CSR. This report will be printed on off-white paper
to differentiate it from the traditional summary reports.
Rationale: This summary report should assist districts and
campuses in planning for the higher expectations in performance
to be required at all grade levels in 2003 and beyond.
A sample CSR and a sample Part II summary report are provided in
this packet. The actual reports for your district and campuses will
be transmitted in May 2001. The Part II 2003 early indicator
information will also be included on electronic data files that are
available upon request from the test contractor at no charge.
USING THE REPORTS. All of this information is for your use in
planning for the future. I urge you to examine the data provided and
determine strengths and weaknesses of your current instructional
program so that you can begin now to adequately prepare students for
the new, more rigorous graduation testing requirements. Even course
sequencing may need to be evaluated. As you examine the attached
information, the magnitude of the task ahead of us becomes glaringly
clear. We have the 2002, 2003, and 2004 school years to make the
curriculum and staff development adjustments needed before the first
group of 11th graders is held to this new standard. Students failing
one or more of the exit-level test sections will then have one more
year to pass in order to graduate on time with their class. The
agency will provide these 2003 early indicator reports for planning
purposes after both the 2001 and 2002 TAAS administrations.
In addition to the Part I reports and associated glossary, two
supplementary guides are attached. One gives examples of how to
evaluate the information in these preview reports and the second
lists possible actions that your district or campuses may take to
prepare for the new assessments. I encourage you to share successful
planning strategies with your fellow educators as circumstances
allow.
STUDENT SUCCESS INITIATIVE. As stated previously, 2003 will be
the first year of implementation of the Student Success Initiative (SSI).
Students in grade 3 that year must pass the state assessment in
reading to be promoted without the consultation of a grade placement
committee. Districts can use the results from reading inventories
given to students in grades 1 and 2 to plan for the implementation
of the SSI. Because the results of these assessments are not in a
form that can be reported back to districts by the agency,
evaluating and targeting reading instruction must be a local effort.
However, information provided in the 2003 Early Indicator Report
Part II can also be used to prepare for the impact of the SSI.
Although the new assessment system and graduation requirements
represent significant increases in expectations for our students, I
am confident that educators will rise to these new challenges. The
increases in student performance achieved over the last seven years
are testimony to the ability of Texas educators to respond to past
challenges. In 1994, the state average "all students"
passing rates for non-special education students in TAAS
mathematics, reading, and writing were 76.5%, 60.5%, and 79.0%
respectively. By 2000, results for special education students and
students tested in Spanish were also included in the evaluations and
passing rates had risen to 87.4%, 87.4%, and 88.2%. Minority and
economically disadvantaged students achieved the highest percentage
point gains. The 11th graders in 2004 and beyond who meet these
higher exit-level expectations will be the best-prepared young
adults that Texas public schools have ever produced. Our future, as
well as theirs, depends on their success. I have every confidence
that we can meet the challenges ahead if we use our preparation time
wisely.
Questions on the 2003 Early Indicator Reports, Part I, may be
directed to the Division of Performance Reporting at (512) 463-9704.
Questions about the 2003 Early Indicator Reports, Part II, should be
directed to the Division of Student Assessment at (512) 463-9536.
Sincerely,
Jim Nelson
Commissioner of Education
Enclosures/Links
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