The TAKS results above represent everything that is wrong with the current accountability system in Texas.
These results are from one of Spring Branch's middle schools. With improvements in nearly every category, scores all above 95%, and commended rates all above 49%, this school is rated "Recognized" rather than "Exemplary."
Why you ask? Because the current system does not reward this kind of school-wide success, but rather punishes the entire school for the failure of a single student or student population group. Wouldn't a better approach be to reward the entire school for success? Indeed, this could be accomplished without losing accountability by measuring school-wide success and at the same time individual student year-over-year growth.
For more information, see these previous posts.
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