Nominate your district: txedrights@gmail.com Round Rock ISD In order to entice a refusing student to take STAAR, an assistant principal told a 5th grade student that she had just spoken to his mother who had called and wanted him to take it. The child was only at school because the mother had called and asked […]
Opt Out Hall of Fame – The Districts
Waco ISD The district worked with parents to create on campus alternate activities to STAAR testing. Houston ISD Created a district refusal procedure that promises no adverse action against students for opting out. Austin ISD Created in office refusal for opt out kids, allowing them to refuse assessment with parent witnessing, and return to class […]
Preparing for the Two Week Online Window
Parents intending to opt out this spring by staying home during the assessment window need to be aware of the expanded window for online administration. This year, the TEA expanded the window for online administration to two weeks for most STAAR assessments. The paper administration window continues to be one week. Be aware that if […]
Summer School Action Plan
Thanks to Sherry Neeley who has put together this seven step action plan if you get a notice of summer school. TPERN notes are in italics. 1) Send the summer school letter This should be your first response whenever the school tells you unilaterally that your 5th or 8th grader has to go to summer […]
Instant Replay – 2017 Opt Out Webinar
This webinar was held in May 2017 between the first and second administrations of the STAAR assessment. Participants include Scott Placek, Edy Chamness, Ben and Sarah Becker, Caite Brooks and Sherry Neeley. Presented by www.txedrights.net – Texas Parents’ Educational Rights Network
Please Set Your Password
This is a post I hate to write, but it is sadly necessary. A number of parents choose to opt out by having their kids refuse the assessment. This is completely fine. Choose the best route for you. A growing number of schools have chosen to work with parents to enable the refusal to take […]
The “Required” Summer School Notice
As the first results of the STAAR assessment come in and the days left in the school year slip away, more and more parentsof kids who failed or did not take the first assessment are receiving notices that their kids are “required” to go to summer school. Round Rock ISD is even sending notices that […]
Texas Children Deserve Better
by Jennifer Rumsey March 24, 2016 special to txedrights.net It’s that time again. Time for STAAR testing in Texas. STAAR is the legislatively mandated series of high-stakes tests for public school children in Texas, and it is the most recent and most difficult of several testing program iterations that began in the 1980’s. I have been […]
Houston ISD acknowledges 26.010 Opt Out Rights
Fox 26 reporter Andrea Watkins has made real headway in getting school districts on the record about a parent’s right to Opt Out. In her initial report, Katy ISD Director of Assessment, Alison Matney (who has made inaccurate posts on this website) acknowledged that while there is no process to opt out, parents can just […]
Houston ISD Continues to Mislead Parents
Activist parents in Houston ISD rightly celebrated when the HISD Board of Trustees became the first district (to our knowledge) to write Opt Out procedures into their board policies. Further, the parents succeeded in convincing the board to suspend, at least for this year, the HISD specific policy which made STAAR passage a promotion standard […]