The College Station School Board at its last meeting decided to strive for community accountability even after Governor Rick Perry vetoed a bill that would have helped to develop an alternative to the STAR test.
College Station Superintendent Eddie Coulson says the vetoed bill had been unanimously approved by both the Texas Senate and House, and the statewide support of finding an alternative to high-stakes testing has him more determined than ever to work towards a better solution.
He says the “one size fits all” testing approach is not working, and colleges don’t care about the STAR test.
Coulson says the idea is to consider the district’s individual needs and assess student performance alongside the high-stakes, state-required tests; this would be done through examining students’ academic performances, performances on tests such as the ACT and SAT, participation in extracurricular activities, and other indicators of success.
He says it’s up to the district to independently examine what this community needs, and clearly report about student achievement.