Fort Worth ISD is the latest district to release self-reported and calculated A-F accountability ratings.
Official Texas school ratings currently remain in limbo for the second year running.
When the Texas Education Agency decided to adjust some of its metrics, notably those related to students’ performance on the state STAAR exam and career readiness, several public school districts objected to the stricter requirements. Dozens of school systems joined together in a lawsuit to prevent the release of accountability reports for the 2022-2023 school year, which would include ratings under both the old and the new grading method. The number of school districts involved in the lawsuit has since grown.
“The A-F system is designed to properly reflect how well our schools are meeting those high expectations, and the adjustments we are making this year will ensure it continues to serve as a tool for parents and educators to help our students,” Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said in a September 2023 press release, defending the changes.
In August, a Travis County judge granted a temporary restraining order preventing the release of accountability reports for the 2023-2024 school year.
Schools, however, can still choose to release their own self-reported and calculated grades.
Dallas ISD recently did so and projected the district would receive an overall C rating from the state’s academic accountability system, down from the B it earned in 2022.
As districts increasingly release their results, their objections to the new scoring become more and more obvious, as student academic achievement has fallen, not only in Fort Worth ISD and Dallas ISD but across the entire state.
The Fort Worth Report details the self-reported and calculated grades for FWISD. Here’s the start of the story:
How did individual campuses perform in Fort Worth ISD’s self-reported and calculated A-F accountability ratings for 2023 and 2024?
Fort Worth ISD released estimated A-F ratings Sept. 10, though grades remain preliminary due to legal issues blocking the Texas Education Agency from releasing official ratings.
More than half of Fort Worth ISD schools saw their state-issued accountability rating jump in 2024, according to unofficial, self-reported grades. The district scored worse than it did in 2022, the last year TEA released official ratings.
Out of Fort Worth ISD’s 125 campuses, 51 improved their A-F ratings by one or more letter grade, while 56 saw no change and 18 saw their scores slip, according to data released by the district.
Numbers from 2022 paint a different picture. The district’s overall rating was a B — compared to its estimated C rating now — and 69 campuses were rated a letter grade higher that year than they were in 2024.