TEXAS STUDENTS WILL BE REQUIRED TO TAKE STAAR TESTS IN PERSON

  

Public school students in Texas will be required to take this spring’s STAAR tests in person.

In December, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) announced it would move forward with the annual standardized tests, taken in grades 3-12, for the current school year.  According to guidance released in January by the TEA, students must be present at a “monitored testing session” in order to “ensure equitable access and maintain test security.”

School districts will be allowed to set up alternative testing sites outside of their home campus, including performing arts centers, recreational centers, hotels, other established “learning centers,” or any location that can be supervised by a trained test administrator.

The TEA announced in December that the STAAR tests will not be used to calculate ratings for school districts.  The state has already waived the grade promotion requirement of the STAAR test for fifth and eighth graders.

According to the TEA guidance, school districts can apply for waivers to require students who are not scheduled to take the STAAR test to learn remotely on a testing day, allowing test takers to be socially distanced.  The guidance also says districts are allowed to offer additional testing days during the allowed testing window.

Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath previously said these test results will be used to see the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on student learning.

State education officials plan to move required standardized testing online by 2022.