{"id":4182,"date":"2017-01-02T08:00:21","date_gmt":"2017-01-02T14:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.birdvilleschools.net\/district\/wordpress\/?p=4182"},"modified":"2017-01-03T13:38:01","modified_gmt":"2017-01-03T19:38:01","slug":"what-everyone-ought-to-know-about-the-states-new-a-f-ratings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.birdvilleschools.net\/district\/wordpress\/what-everyone-ought-to-know-about-the-states-new-a-f-ratings\/","title":{"rendered":"What You Ought to Know About the State\u2019s New A\u2013F Ratings"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"afratings\"<\/p>\n

Birdville ISD believes in a fair accountability system, one in which Texas students are served by a comprehensive community-based accountability system that looks beyond high-stakes, multiple-choice tests to meaningful assessments that have value for students, parents, and teachers; a system that measures what each community considers important in promoting college and career readiness.<\/p>\n

But, a comprehensive community-based accountability system is not what parents and communities across the state are getting with the new A\u2013F rating system. This new rating system will not reflect how well a school or district is educating students. In fact, it is quite the opposite.<\/p>\n

Beginning with the 2017\u201318 school year, the Texas commissioner of education will assign each public school district and campus with a rating in the form of an A\u2013F letter grade to comply with House Bill 2804, passed by the 84th Texas Legislature in 2015. Don\u2019t be fooled by the apparent simplicity of these new ratings. They may not accurately represent how well a school and district are performing.<\/p>\n

Birdville ISD, along with school districts across the state, opposes this A\u2013F rating system which is clouded by complicated rules and calculations rather than clear and concise data that everyone can understand. The legislature does not want a community-based accountability system. Instead, they want a rating system that appears to be simple, but in fact, includes five areas of focus (\u201cdomains\u201d), each with its own set of criterion, and complicated data formulations that will not truly reflect the quality of a school or district.<\/p>\n

Also, ratings will be based on a bell-type curve where 10 percent<\/em> of the schools\/districts receive an A, 35 percent<\/em> receive a B, 40 percent<\/em> receive a C, 10 percent<\/em> receive a D (Needs Improvement), and five percent<\/em> receive an F (Needs Improvement). If ratings are based on this type of curve, how will schools and districts ever be able to improve when 15 percent must<\/u> always<\/u> fail?<\/p>\n

Here is what is currently known about A\u2013F rating systems:<\/p>\n