Academic Growth in Dallas Schools
Dallas students showed academic growth across most subjects and grade levels — at a rate that often exceeded that of the state overall.
The STAAR results released Tuesday showed Texas’ second-largest district gaining ground amid local leaders’ intensive focus on literacy and math foundations.
“What gives me the most excitement is that our campuses absolutely outperformed the state growth,” Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde said.
DISD has a ways to go to catch up in some subjects so that students are performing at the same level as others across Texas. But the district still showed sizable improvements in the early grades.
Improvements in Reading and Math
Roughly 47% of Dallas third graders met grade-level expectations in reading on the English test, while about one-third did so on the Spanish version of the assessment.
Across Texas, 49% of third graders performed at grade level.
Dallas public schools educate a much higher percentage of low-income students than Texas as a whole. DISD also is home to a larger concentration of immigrant families whose children are learning English.
“We’re getting closer and closer to where the state performance is even though we don’t necessarily resemble the state in terms of our demographics,” Elizalde said.
Challenges and Strategies
She acknowledged that Dallas ISD is not yet where it needs to be in terms of student achievement.
“I anticipate and expect that we’ll be building on this growth,” Elizalde said.
No one factor contributed to the district’s improvements, she added.
“Sometimes people are looking for some innovation when the truth is: It’s continued implementation,” Elizalde said.
“We always knew it’s a long-term strategy of investing in three- and four-year-olds,” Elizalde said.
Early Learning Opportunities
DISD prioritized and expanded early learning opportunities in recent years, Elizalde noted.
Education advocates tout research that shows students who enroll in pre-K are more likely to be prepared for kindergarten. It can lead to stronger academic success, an improved chance of college enrollment and a higher-paying career, studies show.
DISD’s pre-K investment helped boost enrollment and paid off in student achievement in the early grades, officials said.
STAAR Results and Accountability
A negative outlier for the district is seventh grade math, where only 7% of test-takers hit grade-level standards.
Most DISD students don’t take that STAAR math test in seventh grade. The majority of those middle schoolers are accelerated onto an advanced math track that allows them to take Algebra I by eighth grade.
Elizalde said the district must reconsider its strategy around middle school math in light of the continued struggle of low-performing students in that subject.
“They’re still woefully underperforming their potential,” she said.
Scoring and Accountability
District leaders still question the use of computers to score students’ essays on the STAAR exams. A computer analyzes most written answers and assigns a point value. If a district disputes a score and asks for it to be reviewed, then it is done by a human.
Last year, DISD submitted more than 4,600 tests for review by the agency. Roughly 43% showed an improvement after they were rescored.
Elizalde expects to challenge some scores again this year.
“When I disaggregate out just the written components, I still see a disconnect between our students improving, our teachers improving and the percentage of students that are not improving in that particular section,” she said.
Under the state’s academic accountability system, every public campus and district in the state is assigned a grade via a formula largely dependent on STAAR scores. Failing grades can trigger intervention, including a state takeover — such as the one playing out in Houston ISD.
Fort Worth ISD is under threat of such a takeover. However, FWISD leaders touted their growth on STAAR as evidence of improvement.
The percentage of students meeting grade-level in reading improved across all ages.
Parents can log into TexasAssessment.gov and find their child’s STAAR results.
Conclusion
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, Judy and Jim Gibbs, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Ron and Phyllis Steinhart, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Sydney Smith Hicks, and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab’s journalism.
FAQs
Q: What are the STAAR results?
A: The STAAR results are the scores given to students in Texas who take the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness.
Q: How did Dallas ISD perform on the STAAR results?
A: Dallas ISD showed academic growth across most subjects and grade levels, often exceeding the state overall.
Q: What is the significance of the STAAR results?
A: The STAAR results are used to evaluate student performance and determine academic accountability for schools and districts in Texas.
Q: How can parents access their child’s STAAR results?
A: Parents can log into TexasAssessment.gov to find their child’s STAAR results.
