The State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) is a summative assessment program to measure the academic progress of districts across the state of Texas. In 2021, the exam was redesigned.

The test is now an online assessment, offering new types of test questions, evidence-based writing, and more accessible accommodations for students with specific learning needs. 

The STAAR test was redesigned due to House Bill 3906 which was introduced to make sure the test was staying relevant, current, and aligned with the curriculum.

Ryan Ratcliff, Independence High School’s (IHS) Campus Instructional Support Facilitator and Testing Coordinator, details on House Bill 3906.

“House Bill 3906 was written in support of the STAAR redesign and enlisted a wide range of education stakeholders to create a new summative assessment format,” Ratcliff said. “It included several components of changes and is set to be fully enacted during the next school year. In other words, all the changes the state has been working on over the past three years will officially be put into effect next year.”

Although the digital version of the STAAR test is potentially easier for students, teachers, and staff are minimally affected by this redesign. Teachers will begin preparing students for the different types of questions and writing expectations. 

“Teachers will be affected by the redesign,” IHS English Teacher Dawn Walker said. “Other than increased practice in short answers, I think students and teachers are already able to utilize online resources. Readings and discussions that would be reflected in the short answer responses are already happening in classes.”

Walker believes writing is a vital aspect of any job or career that a person aspires to do.

“Assessing it is necessary to make sure everyone has the same footing when they leave high school,” she said.

Ratcliff explains the benefits of digital assessment.

“Benefits for the new platform are faster results for schools and districts for testing scores as well as decreased cost on paper materials and shipping from the state and districts,” he said. “Students will continue to have access to scratch paper; more accessible online tools for all students (calculators, dictionaries, highlighters, etc), which lowers campus supplies cost from year-to-year.

To learn more about the STAAR assessment visit Texas Education Agency (TEA) for more details.