The Texas House has passed House Bill 8, voting 82-56 to eliminate the annual STAAR test and replace it with three shorter exams administered in fall, winter, and spring, starting in the 2027-2028 school year.
The decision, which followed hours of contentious debate, marks a shift from the near-unanimous 143-1 support for a similar STAAR reform bill in May, with concerns raised over the Texas Education Agency’s role and the bill’s complexity.
Authored by Rep. Brad Buckley (R-Killeen), the bill aims to alleviate the high-stakes pressure of the multi-day STAAR exam by implementing three tests that provide results within 48 hours, allowing for immediate feedback to teachers and parents.
“Members, our system is in need of reform. We are in a position where districts see our school accountability ratings as broken,” Buckley said, per Fox 4 KDFW, noting that some districts administer over a dozen benchmark tests to prepare for STAAR, a practice the bill would ban.
However, Democrats expressed unease about the bill’s scope and the TEA’s authority to create and grade the end-of-year exam, especially given the agency’s power to take over districts failing accountability ratings for five consecutive years.
“We’re going to have TEA both create the test that determines whether or not the school and district are taken over by them. That’s a conflict,” Rep. Gina Hinojosa (D-Austin) said, KLTV reported.
Hinojosa unsuccessfully proposed an amendment to strip the TEA’s test-writing role and debated Buckley, arguing that the bill adds state-mandated testing days. Buckley countered that the bill aligns with prior testing schedules.
The 61-page bill also faced scrutiny for its complexity and limited input from teachers and parents, as the reduced school start dates limited their testimony.
“This bill is too big. No one on the floor understands it. If you do, you are one of three people,” said Rep. Diego Bernal (D-San Antonio), vice chair of the House Public Education Committee, who tried unsuccessfully to delay the vote.
“It’s clear that most people on the floor don’t understand it. Not only do they not understand it, but they either don’t understand it or don’t care what it would do to the lived experience of kids like mine and yours when they go back to school,” Bernal added, according to Fox 4.
The bill, which includes a committee of about 40 classroom teachers to assess the fairness and difficulty of the new tests, now heads to the Texas Senate.
If passed and signed by Gov. Greg Abbott, who has prioritized ending the STAAR test, the changes would reshape standardized testing in Texas public schools.
Comments