This presentation was used during the February 28, 2012 parent awareness session.

1. STAAR
Parent
Awareness
Session
February
28,
2012

2.  Presenters:
 Cheryl
Lang,
Executive
Director
of
Elementary
Education
(943-­‐5011)
 Dr.
Jana
Rueter,
Executive
Director
of
Middle
School
(943-­‐5000,
ext
6032)
 Becky
McCoy,
Director
of
Assessment
(943-­‐5000,
ext
6034)
 Don
Wise,
Director
of
High
School
Curriculum
(943-­‐5000,
ext
6039)
 Audience?

3. State of
Texas
Assessment of
Academic
Readiness

4. Begins
this
SPRING
–
2012
STAAR:
Grades
3rd
through
8th
grades
EOC:
for
9th
graders
(10
and
above
still
take
TAKS)
th
STAAR
will
measure
STUDENT
PERFORMANCE
and
ACADEMIC
GROWTH
All
tests
in
elementary
and
middle
school
are
LINKED
to
ENGLISH
III
and
ALGEBRA
II

5. Grades
3-­‐8
HIGH
SCHOOL
COURSES
Reading
3-­‐8
MATH
ENGLISH
SCIENCE
SOCIAL
Math
3-­‐8
Algebra
I
English
I
Biology
STUDIES
Writing
4
&
7
Geometry
English
II
Chemistry
World
Geo
Algebra
II
English
III
Physics
World
Hist
Science
5
&
8
US
History
Social
Studies
8
The
high
school
STAAR
tests
are
EOC
(End
of
Course)
tests,
not
GRADE
LEVEL
tests.
**Current
10th
-­‐12th
graders
take
TAKS.

6.  Did
the
student
learn
the
grade
level
curriculum
AND
are
they
ready
for
the
NEXT
grade?
 Learning
builds
between
grades.
 STAAR
is
vertically
aligned
from
high
school
down
to
elementary.

7. 7

8.  STAAR
is
more
rigorous
which
means
our
instruction
of
our
curriculum
will
be
more
rigorous!
 Higher
level
thinking
is
required.
 Student
connections
and
application
are
required.
We
are
utilizing
STAAR
as
an
opportunity
for
our
teachers
to
improve
instruction
and
increase
student
learning!

9.  Grades
K
–
2nd:
District
assessments
 Grade
3:
Reading
and
Math
 Grade
4:
Reading,
Math,
and
Writing
 Grade
5:
Reading,
Math,
and
Science
What
is
different
from
TAKS:
 Longer
tests
 Four
hour
time
limit
 More
rigorous
test
questions
EXAMPLES…

10. What
is
the
best
summary
of
an
article?
A.
Ranchers
owned
a
lot
of
cattle.
In
order
to
find
enough
food,
the
cattle
had
to
roam
freely
across
large
areas
of
land.
The
ranchers
needed
help
with
their
cattle,
so
they
hired
vaqueros.
B.
Spanish
ranchers
hired
vaqueros
to
take
care
of
their
cattle.
The
cattle
lived
in
large
open
areas.
Vaqueros
used
horses
and
special
clothing
and
tools
to
help
them
with
their
work.
When
the
ranchers
moved
away,
the
vaqueros
taught
their
skills
to
new
settlers.
C.
Vaqueros
took
care
of
cattle
that
wandered
across
large
areas
of
land.
The
vaqueros
watched
over
the
cattle
and
chased
harmful
animals
away.
They
also
helped
find
calves
in
springtime.
D.
Spanish
ranchers
owned
cattle
that
grazed
in
large
areas
of
grassland.
It
was
difficult
to
keep
track
of
the
cattle
and
take
care
of
them.
The
cattle
ranchers
needed
some
help,
so
they
hired
vaqueros,
who
were
similar
to
cowboys.
Eventually
the
Spanish
ranchers
left.

11. Reba
is
planning
a
dinner
for
24
people.
She
wants
to
make
3
tacos
for
each
person.
Taco
shells
are
sold
in
packages
of
12.
Which
of
the
following
equations
can
be
used
to
find
p,
the
number
of
packages
of
taco
shells
needed
for
the
dinner?
A.
(24
×3)
÷12
=
p
B.
(24
÷3)
×12
=
p
C.
(24
×3)
×12
=
p
D.
(24
÷3)
+12
=
p

12. READ
the
information
below:
There
are
people
in
our
lives
who
are
special
to
us.
Sometimes
this
person
is
a
teacher
or
coach,
a
parent,
a
brother
or
sister,
or
even
a
friend.
THINK
about
the
people
you
care
about.
WRITE
about
one
person
who
has
been
important
to
you.
Explain
what
makes
that
person
special.
PLUS:
28
Revising
and
Editing
Questions

13. Some
students
attach
a
balloon
to
a
straw
and
then
tape
the
straw
to
the
top
of
a
toy
car.
The
students
inflate
the
balloon
and
release
the
car.
The
car
travels
40
centimeters
across
the
floor.
What
should
the
students
do
to
determine
whether
the
force
of
the
air
from
a
balloon
is
enough
to
push
the
car
40
centimeters
across
the
same
floor
in
repeated
trials?
A
Test
the
car
several
times
using
an
identical
balloon
filled
with
different
amounts
of
air
B
Test
the
car
several
times
using
different-­‐sized
balloons
filled
with
the
same
amount
of
air
C
Test
the
car
several
times
using
an
identical
balloon
filled
with
the
same
amount
of
air
D
Test
the
car
several
times
using
different-­‐sized
balloons
filled
with
different
amounts
of
air

14. 14