AUSTIN – The first try for most high school students taking the five State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR®) end-of-course exams was a successful one, according to preliminary statewide results released today by the Texas Education Agency. The results reflect passing rates for the spring 2015 administration of STAAR.
Texas students are required to pass five STAAR end-of-course exams – Algebra I, English I, English II, Biology, and U.S. History – in order to receive a high school diploma. In preliminary statewide results for the 2014–2015 school year for first-time testers, Texas students posted the highest statewide passing rates across the five tests in Biology, U.S. History and Algebra I.
| SUBJECT | 2013-2014 | 2014-2015 |
| Biology | 93% | 94% |
|
U.S. History |
92% | 92% |
| Algebra I | 86% | 85% |
| English II | 73% | 73% |
| English I | 72% | 71% |
“Across the five required subject areas, most high school students taking STAAR end-of-course exams are passing on their very first try,” said Commissioner of Education Michael Williams. “That’s good news for students who are completing this component of their graduation requirement, often times successfully completing their end-of-course exams before beginning their senior year.”
Heading into the 2014–2015 school year, 83.5 percent of students in the Class of 2015 had already passed all five assessments and faced no state-mandated tests during their senior year. Currently, the Texas Education Agency does not have comparable information for Class of 2016 students starting their senior year.
The 2014–2015 school year represented the second time the STAAR U.S. History end-of-course exam was administered statewide. Students posted a passing rate of 92 percent, equaling last year’s inaugural rate.
Students who did not pass STAAR end-of-course exams required for graduation will have the opportunity to retake the tests during the week of July 6–10.
Please note that TEA does not have district-level test results at this time. Those results are available from your local school districts and charters.
Comparison charts of statewide results and summary charts provide greater detail on all STAAR results. To review state-level reports, visit the Texas Education Agency website at http://tea.texas.gov/staar/
