Texas Votes to Eliminate STAAR Test in Major Education Shake-Up

Big changes could be coming to Texas classrooms. Lawmakers just voted to move forward with a plan to get rid of the STAAR test, and it’s got a lot of people talking.

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Texas Lawmakers Want to Replace STAAR Test With a New System

On Monday, the Texas House gave early approval to House Bill 4, a plan that would officially get rid of the STAAR test and replace it with a new kind of student testing system. Rep. Brad Buckley, who wrote the bill, said plainly, “This bill eliminates the STAAR test,” and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle cheered.

The vote wasn’t even close. 143 lawmakers supported it, and only one, Rep. Brian Harrison of Midlothian, voted against it. The bill still needs one more vote in the House before it moves on to the Senate.

Here’s What Would Replace the STAAR Test

Instead of one big, stressful test at the end of the school year, students would take three shorter tests. One at the beginning of the year, one in the middle, and one at the end. The tests would be quicker too, only about 60 to 90 minutes depending on the student’s grade.

Kids in first and second grade wouldn’t have to test at all. Also, social studies would no longer be a required testing subject. One big improvement is how fast teachers would get results. Right now, it can take up to six weeks to get STAAR scores back. Under the new system, teachers would have results in just 24 hours.

The new system would use norm-referenced testing, which means scores would show how Texas students compare to kids across the country, not just how they match up with Texas benchmarks.

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Changes Are Also Coming to How Schools Are Graded

The bill would also tweak the A through F rating system that Texas uses to grade schools. Buckley says the goal isn’t less accountability, just smarter accountability.

Right now, the Texas Education Agency has a lot of power to change the way schools are scored. With this bill, local school districts and lawmakers would have more of a voice. Some school districts have even sued the TEA in recent years, saying the grading changes were unfair or rolled out too quickly. This new bill could help prevent that from happening again.

Why Cutting Social Studies Is a Huge Mistake

One of the most controversial parts of this bill is dropping social studies as a required subject for testing. While some may see this as a way to free up classroom time, a lot of people are saying this is the wrong move, especially right now.

We’re living in a time when misinformation spreads fast and people are struggling to tell fact from fiction. Media literacy is at an all-time low, and many adults admit they don’t really understand how politics or government work. That’s not a coincidence. It’s what happens when we don’t prioritize teaching students how society functions.

Social studies isn’t just about memorizing dates or names. It’s about learning how to think critically, ask better questions, and understand the systems that shape our lives. When students learn about how laws are made, how elections work, and how to spot biased information, they become better citizens. And right now, we need more of that, not less.

By cutting social studies from required testing, schools might start spending less time on it altogether. And while no one loves standardized tests, this move could quietly push an already undervalued subject even further to the sidelines.

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Some People Are Worried About the New Testing Plan

Even with all the excitement around dumping the STAAR test, not everyone is convinced the new plan is perfect. One concern is that norm-referenced tests might not actually show if a student is meeting grade-level expectations. Instead, they just show how that student compares to others. That could make it harder to figure out who needs extra help.

And while faster results sound like a win, some educators worry that shorter tests won’t give them enough meaningful data to work with. There’s also the question of how much training teachers will need to adjust to this new system. Change is hard, even when it sounds good on paper.

When Could STAAR Testing End in Texas?

If House Bill 4 passes its final vote in the House and gets the green light from the Senate, Texas could start rolling out this new testing system as soon as this fall. But it’s not a done deal yet. The Senate could change things, and the House would have to vote on those changes too.

Still, with overwhelming support already in place, it’s clear that lawmakers and educators are ready for something different. Whether this shift will actually improve public education or bring in a new set of problems is something we’ll all be watching closely.