Garland ISD received its preliminary results for the 2022 STAAR assessments from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) last month and results show some statewide learning loss since 2019.

STAAR tests are standardized and assess a student’s comprehension of material across five core content areas: reading, writing, mathematics, social studies and science. All test scores are issued on a 200 percentage point scale.

As of presstime, Garland ISD indicated that it would not be officially speaking on STAAR results.

“Based on TEA’s latest communication about results not going public for parents or for the portal, I would like to wait to discuss, pending official notification from TEA that the results we have received are indeed accurate and valid,” said Jason Wheeler, director of communications for Garland ISD.

STAAR assessments are given to public school students in third grade and continue through their senior year of high school. For students in grades 3-8, the tests are designed to make sure students are comprehending the material taught to them. Students who do not pass a STAAR assessment in third grade through the eighth grade are not required to repeat a grade.

High school students receive STAAR tests as End-of-Course (EOC) assessments and students must pass the tests in order to be eligible to graduate from high school.

While this year’s STAAR assessments rebounded from score drops compared to the 2021 tests, there were still some drops from 2019 scores, according to a June 16 news release from the TEA.

“These results provide encouraging evidence that the academic recovery plans adopted by the Texas Legislature and implemented by our state’s 370,000 dedicated teachers are working for our students,” said Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath. “We have made some progress to date, but there is still work to be done to fully recover from the academic effects of the COVID slide.”

For the full story, see the July 7 issue of The Sachse News.