After lengthy legal hurdles, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has finally released the school accountability ratings for the Lone Star State. After a unprecedented two-year delay due to litigation, Texas parents, and educators now have access to the performance data for the 2022-23 school year. Ratings can be checked at TEA's website, as detailed in a report by KHOU.
The data reveals a dip in overall ratings, with 18% of campuses achieving an "A", 32% at "B", and so forth. In Houston, the largest school district under state control, there's a mix of progress and setbacks – it scored a "C" overall. "Every Texas family deserves a clear view of school performance, and now those families finally have access to data they should have received two years ago," said Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath. However, the ratings come with a caveat, the ratings for the 2023-24 school year remain under wraps, embroiled in another lawsuit, as per KHOU.
As per a breakdown from KPRC 2's Re’chelle Turner, Houston ISD exhibited disparities in performance between student groups. While 25% of Black, and 32% of Hispanic students met grade level in math, their white and Asian peers had higher percentages. The district has yet to respond officially to these findings, as it had previously projected more optimistic outcomes, as per Click2Houston.
The ratings are a composite measure of STAAR test scores, graduation rates, and attention to historically underserved groups. Houston specifically lagged in the "Closing the Gaps" category, reflecting equity challenges. Ahead of the official TEA announcement, HISD's own projections had indicated a considerable increase in campuses achieving 'A’ and 'B’ ratings and a drop in schools at 'D’ or 'F.' With the official ratings now public, Texas State Teachers Association President Ovidia Molina has yet to issue a statement, as detailed by Click2Houston's report.
As for the next round of ratings, they are set for August, assessing the performance for the current 2024-25 year. For Texas educators, parents, and students, this long-awaited transparency will be the backdrop for discussions and decisions as they work toward elevating the educational outcomes across the state's diverse school districts.
