The Texas State Board of Education plans to discuss social studies standards soon.
In a recent interview, Board Member Aaron Kinsey (R-Midland), chair of the State Board of Education (SBOE), told Texans for Excellence in Education (TEE) that the board plans to delve into social studies standards, a discussion that has been postponed multiple times.
“… We are going to work on Social Studies standards soon, which is important for setting the expectation for what students will know about our American and Texas history as well as our governmental system,” Kinsey told TEE.
A potential American Indian/Native Studies course geared towards students in grades 10-12 has been waiting for SBOE’s approval since January when the board first delayed the vote.
The course teaches the history and living cultures of multiple Native nations, many of which have their roots in present-day Texas.
Additionally, Kinsey acknowledged the declining math scores of Texas students.
“… We know there are deficits in math, and we are working on some tools to assist with that while continuing to dive deeper in understanding what is going on in this area and how to fix it going forward,” Kinsey told TEE.
The most recent end-of-year assessment scores showed a decrease in math scores, as reported by The Dallas Express.
Some 37% of students scored at grade level in 2023 and 2024. Grades 3 (40%), 7 (32%), and 8 (40%) saw the most significant year-over-year drops — a four-percentage point decrease for grade 8 and a three-percentage point decrease for grades 3 and 7.
Based on the available STAAR results for Spring 2024, Dallas ISD students’ math scores seem to show considerable shortcomings. Only 32% of sixth graders scored at grade level in the subject.
Dallas ISD has not performed well on the tests in the past. In the 2021-2022 school year, just 41% of district students scored at grade level or above on their STAAR exams compared to the statewide average of 48%.
At SBOE’s June meeting, the board acknowledged the widespread concern over the scores, per DX.
“Students never recovered from Hurricane Katrina in mathematics skills, and we’re seeing it all over again on a large scale due to COVID,” said SBOE Member Tom Maynard (R-Florence) at the meeting. “We had to start over with mathematics standards after Katrina. We know we have issues, but we don’t know how to pinpoint those. How many of those issues are standards related versus all this other noise in the room?”
“Did COVID cause [the decline], or was our math going downhill and COVID accelerated it?” echoed SBOE Member Julie Pickren (R-Pearland).
Kinsey told TEE that SBOE has seen an uptick in parents’ involvement in their students’ schools. In response, a new parent portal was opened to give parents access to curricula.
“Many SBOE members are parents ourselves and we strive to understand the concerns of parents at large,” said Kinsey. “The entire parental engagement movement is a huge positive for education! We need more parents involved!”
SBOE’s next meeting is scheduled for September 10-13.
Kinsey was appointed chair of SBOE by Gov. Greg Abbott in December 2023. SBOE sets curriculum standards, reviews instructional materials, establishes graduation requirements, and oversees funding. Overall, SBOE impacts 5.5 million public school students in Texas.