In 1993, the Texas Legislature enacted statutes that mandated the creation of the Texas public school accountability system to rate school districts and evaluate campuses. A viable and effective accountability system could be developed in Texas because the state already had the necessary supporting infrastructure in place: a pre-existing student-level data-collection system; a state-mandated curriculum; and a statewide assessment tied to the curriculum.

The system initiated with the 1993 legislative session remained in place through the 2001-02 school year. The ratings issued in 2002 were the last under that system. Beginning in 2003, a new assessment, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), was administered. This assessment includes more subjects and grades, and is more difficult than the previous statewide assessment. With such fundamental changes, the accountability system also needed to be redesigned. As soon as results from the 2003 TAKS were available and analyzed, development of the new accountability system began in earnest. Ratings established using the newly designed system were first issued in the fall of 2004.

The ratings issued in 2006 mark the third year of the new system. Many components of the 2006 system are the same as those that applied in 2005. However, there are differences between 2005 and 2006. Significant changes include:

* a higher student passing standard for TAKS;
* an increase in the rigor of the dropout rate Academically Acceptable standard;
* an increase in the rigor of the minimum size criteria for both the dropout and completion rate indicators;
* an increase in the rigor of the underreported students indicator, which can prevent a district from being rated Exemplary or Recognized; and,
* additional Required Improvement opportunities for the dropout and completion rate indicators.

www.tea.state.tx.us/perfreport/account/2006/manual/index.html

To view the complete AEIS Report for SISD, select the following link.
www.tea.state.tx.us/perfreport/aeis/2007/index.html