Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

The Curriculum Instruction & Assessment department is responsible for meeting curriculum standards, offering continuing staff development, and working with parents, students, and teachers to improve the quality of education in the Grand Saline Independent School District.

The State Board of Education has adopted curriculum standards called the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) that describe what students should know and be able to do, in each grade or subject area. 

The goal of the department is to support the district mission:  "The Grand Saline Independent School District, in partnership with parents, community members and businesses, provides a safe, caring, and motivational learning environment enabling all students to reach their educational, social, and emotional potential. These factors empower graduates to become lifelong learners, which in turn allows them to be globally competitive, successful, productive, patriotic members of an ever-changing society." 

 

State Graduation Requirements
Students follow the high school graduation plan that was in place when they began ninth grade. The four graduation plans currently in use require students to earn 22 to 26 course credits.   

The state's newest graduation plan, created by House Bill 5 passed during the 2013 Texas legislative session, is called the Foundation High School Program. Students entering ninth grade beginning with the 2014-2015 school year are automatically enrolled in this graduation program.

Students must pass five end-of-course assessments to meet the testing requirements for graduation. Those tests cover Algebra I, English I, English II, Biology and U.S. History. 

 

Senate Bill 149: Individual Graduation Committees
Senate Bill 149 has revised the state’s assessment graduation requirements for students enrolled in the 11th or 12th grade for the 2014-2015, 2015-2016, or 2016-2017 school years. A student who has failed the EOC assessment graduation requirements for no more than two courses may receive a Texas high school diploma if the student has qualified to graduate by means of an individual graduation committee (IGC) determination.


TEKS Resource System - https://www.teksresourcesystem.net/module/content/search/tcmpc/
TEKS Resource System, developed by Texas Education Service Centers and a team of content experts, is a comprehensive, customized, user-friendly curriculum management system built on the most current research-based practices in the field. Its primary focus is to impact instructional practices in the classroom to improve student performance.

Texas College and Career Readiness
The Texas College and Career Readiness Support Center is a collection of resources and tools available to all stakeholders committed to building a strong college and career readiness culture in Texas schools. Housed at Education Service Center Region 13, the center’s two main projects, the Texas College and Career Readiness Profile Planning Guide and the Texas Online College and Career Readiness Resource Center, were created to support all educators as they continue to assist students for successful post-secondary options. The center’s website hosts these major state-funded initiatives for easy access and reference.

State Assessment/STAAR
Beginning in spring 2012, the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR™) replaced the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). The STAAR program at grades 3–8 began assessing the same subjects and grades that are currently assessed on TAKS. At high school, however, grade-specific assessments arel being replaced with 12 end-of-course (EOC) assessments: Algebra I, geometry, Algebra II, biology, chemistry, physics, English I, English II, English III, world geography, world history, and U.S. history.

The resources on this website provide information and sample test questions to familiarize Texas educators and the public with the design and format of the STAAR assessments. The information is intended to help educators understand how the new STAAR program measures the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) curriculum standards. These resources are intended to support, not narrow or replace, the teaching of the TEKS curriculum. 

TEA Student Assessment             

State  Assessment Calendars

For more information contact: Kristi Maciel, kmaciel@grandsalineisd.net, District Testing Coordinator