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Standardized Testing Assignment

The standardized test in Texas is called the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test. It is administered annually in grades 3-8 and certain high school courses to assess student performance in core subjects like math, reading, science, and social studies. While the test is mandatory, some parents are opting their children out of taking it due to concerns about anxiety and that education should not be defined by a single test. The author acknowledges both sides of the debate but does not think opting out is the best solution and that long-term change requires electing different education leaders.

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Sandra Celestino
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21 views

Standardized Testing Assignment

The standardized test in Texas is called the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test. It is administered annually in grades 3-8 and certain high school courses to assess student performance in core subjects like math, reading, science, and social studies. While the test is mandatory, some parents are opting their children out of taking it due to concerns about anxiety and that education should not be defined by a single test. The author acknowledges both sides of the debate but does not think opting out is the best solution and that long-term change requires electing different education leaders.

Uploaded by

Sandra Celestino
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Standardized Testing Assignment- Texas

In the state of Texas, the standardized test is called The State of Texas Assessments of
Academic Readiness, or STAAR. This standardized test was implemented in the 2011-2012
school year, is tested every year at the end of the academic school year, and is required in the
following grades and subjects:

 Grades 3–8 Mathematics and Reading


 Grades 4 and 7 Writing
 Grades 5 and 8 Science
 Grade 8 Social Studies, Algebra I, English I, English II, Biology, and U.S. History

The following article written by Houston’s KHOU Channel 11, Texas students not taking
STAAR exams | khou.com , speaks about the stand many parents are taking when opting their
children out of the STAAR exam. They are choosing the opt their children out, despite the
consequences their school and district might face, like being shut down or taken over by the
Texas Education Agency for failing to comply with the 95% participation rate per school.
I, honestly, can see both sides to this argument. As a nervous tester myself, I remember how
much anxiety built up around the TAAS exam, the standardized test we took in Texas when I was
in public school. It completely took over my life and I remember that no matter how much I
studied and prepared myself for those important days, came testing day I completely froze. As a
parent now, I see this same anxiety in my children. It breaks my heart, because I know education
and school is just much more than just a test. At the same time, I don’t think it’s the districts’
fault, or the school they attend. They are just trying to comply with the regulation set by the state.
I do agree with taking a stand and pushing back when it comes to the standardized test, but I
don’t believe opting my children out is the way to do so. I think those push backs some come
from electing the correct people to serve in office, not by having the school, district, pay for the
consequences.
When it comes to my very own children, we talk about STAAR just like we do about any
other exam. We do not place extreme importance on it because we don’t want our kids to build
anxiety from it. We ask them to try their best, as we do with any other test, and if they don’t
perform as well as they normally do in other exams that it’s ok. This test does not define them.
The learning they receive through out the year, the grades given by the teachers that know them,
and all the work they do is a lot more important than just a test.

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