Brownwood ISD Superintendent Reece Blincoe recommended reading an article recently published in the Lufkin Daily News by Mary Ann Whiteker entitled STAAR/EOC — Testing on steroids!  Mary Ann Whiteker is the superintendent of Hudson ISD.

At the November 12th School Board meeting, Assistant Superintendent Liesa Land gave a thorough presentation on the new STAAR End-of-Course exams, scores necessary for passing, cumulative scores that must be obtained, and the implications if scores are not reached.

While the information was thorough, it could, at times, also be complex and confusing. Dr. Reece Blincoe recently recommended an article that may help explain the new system.

“My good friend, and fellow Superintendent Mary Ann Whiteker wrote an article, that summarizes the information similar to what was presented at the Board meeting,” stated Blincoe in an email regarding the subject. “I hope you find this informative, and maybe a little scary, as I did.”

In the article, Whiteker explains the pressures of the state mandated testing for students in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, along with 15 end-of-course high school exams.  Whiteker also lines out the requirements students must meet in regard to these tests to graduate from Texas high schools and why parents should be concerned.  An excerpt from the article is below:

The tests were created to emphasize college readiness standards for all grade levels, all students – focusing on knowledge and skills considered most important for college and careers, rather than focusing on traditional grade-level standards. Upon final phase-in of the new STAAR/EOC System, approximately 45 of the 180 student school days will be dedicated to test administration. This does not include planning and preparation time for the actual administration of “the tests on steroids”!

The STAAR testing program replaces the TAKS testing previously utilitized in the Texas school systems.

Click here to read the full article on LufkinDailyNews.com.