In Lesson 10, Mr. and Mrs. Sarver talk about the world of public education and how it deals with the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR).

First, we would like to apologize for not being as consistent as we should be on the blog and the podcast. Both of us have been passing illnesses back and forth between ourselves and our children. Of course, we also have the extra added pressures of the Spring Semester!

During all of this, we also have been going through a little bit of a rebranding. We are expanding our offerings to teachers, administrators, and school districts by offering mentoring, consultation services. Check out the new look and services at Realistic Efficient Pedagogy.

Parents and the STAAR Test

Many feel that the test is too high stakes or that it does not adequately test what the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) say should be taught in school. We have also personally seen students have anxiety attacks when it comes to taking the STAAR.

COVID provided a break in the stringent consequences related to the STAAR test. However, now that we are 'past' the pandemic those consequences can range from losing electives the following year due to House Bill 4545 to students not being able to graduate.

Parents also fear what not passing the test means for their children. They sometimes feel that failing the STAAR means their child is not developmentally up to standards or in need of special education help, which is not always the case.

Administrators and the STAAR Test

From a school standpoint, the STAAR is a needed assessment that gives needed data for administrators and teachers to refocus education. It is used as a major part of the school accountability system that influences how the state grades the school.

Overall though, if the administrators build realistic and efficient systems, the STAAR scores should be within desired guidelines. It is important, but we have far more important things to worry about.

Students, teachers, and the classroom dealing with the STAAR Test

We think that teachers and students should feel the same way as administrators. We must have some time of cumulative assessment to see how they do. However, the students aren't taking STAAR as seriously as they should.

We have policies and procedures in the classroom, such as dropping the lowest grade or something of that nature. But, we have to see if they are ready for the next grade. If they are multiple years behind, they start to feel defeated and that leads to them falling even further behind.

Not only that, teachers are held completely accountable on the STAAR scores. Do poorly, and you might not have a job next year. Fair or not, that is the state of education right now. Especially when issues with the subjectivity of the test means people get different messages.

Conclusion

The educational system uses the STAAR test as an "I Gotcha!" instead of focusing on what is important. However, the narrative that educators spread about the test needs to change as well.

There are a few things that we can do, or at least change the way we think about the STAAR test. It will take dedicated processes and pattern changes for our students to be successful during these stressful times!

More information and tips about things that are affecting education today can be found by listening to our Podcast or take some time to read our blog. If you have any thoughts or feedback, please leave us a comment or contact us via our Contact Us page.

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