The Texas State Board of Education will be voting on a list of proposed amendments to the Texas Education Code at its upcoming June meetings.
These rule actions were filed for publication at the State Board of Education (SBOE) meetings in May, which The Dallas Express attended and covered previously.
One proposed amendment would allow a trustee of a military reservation school district who retires from active duty or civilian service while serving as a member of the board to serve out the remainder of their term.
The proposal was a topic of debate at the May SBOE meetings, as The Dallas Express previously reported.
Additional proposals included updating course titles and programs to ensure clarity in curricula. These technical edits can be seen in the renaming of “Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Career Development” to “Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Career Development and Career and Technical Education.”
Another amendment proposed that school policies may not limit the number of students identified as “gifted” and “talented.”
Most of the proposals would remove the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for certain courses. TEKS are more commonly known as the curriculum standards for Texas public schools.
Starting in the 2024-2025 school year, the TEKS for K-12 science courses; K-8 technology courses; and high school health science, hospitality & tourism, education & training, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics will all be repealed.
These TEKS will be replaced with a new set of updated coursework and revised course titles.
House Bill 1926 will be implemented, which removes the limit of the maximum amount of funds that can be spent on a public school’s special education services.
The May SBOE meeting also discussed the issue of the increase of uncertified first-year teachers in Texas. In the 2023-2024 school year, a whopping 34.6% of first-year teachers statewide were uncertified, as reported by The Dallas Express. The City of Dallas had a higher percentage of uncertified teachers than the state average for the same academic year, at 38.8%.
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said at the May meetings that he believed the lack of teacher preparedness is directly related to the high teacher attrition rate.
Following the meetings in May, the board approved a new teacher residency program. This program lets aspiring teachers work alongside more experienced teachers before they take on their own classrooms.
Completing the residency program will result in a certification that notes the completion of the course, making Texas the first state to recognize such a teacher residency certification.
Residency programs will become available in September 2024.
The board is accepting public comments on proposed rules until June 17. The June SBOE meetings are scheduled for June 25 through 28.
