House Bill 8, passed through the Texas Senate on Wednesday, August 27, will replace the mandated STAAR test if Governor Greg Abbott chooses to sign the bill.
Instead of one big test at the end of the year, the revised testing system, which will be used starting in the 2027-2028 school year, includes three tests throughout the year.
Tests will be administered at the beginning of the year, the middle of the year and then again at the end of the year.
Despite the three tests being shorter in time than the STAAR test, the end of the year test will continue to be used to determine schools’ accountability rankings and other statistics.
A Northwest ISD representative said the bill fails to accomplish the ultimate goal: reducing the high-stakes, high-stress environment of standardized testing.
“House Bill 8 rebrands STAAR testing, it does not abolish STAAR testing,” the district said. “Lawmakers refused to adopt norm-referenced testing that would tell parents and educators how students perform in specific subjects as well as how they compare to their peers across the nation in a low-stress environment.”
The bill is nearly identical to Senate Bill 8, which passed the Senate, but failed to make it out of the House during the Texas Legislature’s first special session.
In addition, HB 8 prevents districts from administering local benchmark and practice tests, so districts will rely solely on tests from the Texas Education Agency.
Ultimately, Northwest ISD, which called for Abbott to abolish the STAAR test completely, said it is disappointed with the outcome of HB 8.
“After a concerted effort from high-powered lobbyists, the Texas Legislature ignored the decadeslong calls of parents and educators to truly reform standardized testing in Texas by moving away from a single-day, high-stakes test,” said the district. “The bill fundamentally misunderstands the complaints of parents and educators. It adds standardized testing at the beginning and middle of a school year without understanding how districts use low-stress tests at these points to tailor instruction to student needs.”
Texas public schools will continue to administer the STAAR test until the new, three-per-year testing system is implemented in the 2027-2028 school year following a beta period.
For more information on House Bill 8, visit the Texas Legislature’s website.
