Apex Learning is the largest provider of secondary online curriculum in Houston Independent School District (HISD). Introduced in January 2010 through Graduation Laboratories (Grad Labs) located at each high school, the program has grown from providing seniors with opportunities to recover credits required for graduation to providing students in…

There has been a resurgence in research that investigates the efficacy of early investments as a means of reducing gaps in academic performance. However, the strongest evidence for these effects comes from experimental evaluations of small, highly enriched programs. We add to this literature by assessing the extent to which a large-scale public…

Apex Learning is the largest provider of secondary digital curriculum in Houston Independent School District (HISD). Introduced in January 2010 through Graduation Laboratories (Grad Labs) located at each high school, the program has grown from providing seniors with opportunities to recover credits required for graduation to providing secondary…

Purpose. The purpose of this study was to examine differences in academic achievement among students who were Hispanic, Limited English Proficient (LEP), or White, using archival data from the Texas Education Agency's (TEA) Academic Excellence Indicator System (AEIS). Data examined were fifth grade reading and math passing rates from the 1993…

In just the last ten years, goaded by broad and still unsettled cultural shifts, education practices have changed dramatically. Schools are no longer just recording and analyzing inputs--dollars spent, number of days of instruction, numbers of students per teacher--but pushing their data-gathering and analysis efforts into the brave new world of…

Used the same methodology and data used by W. Haney in his study of achievement gains on the Texas high school exit examination to demonstrate that his conclusion about the increased pass rate was not correct. None of the 20% improvement in the exit test pass rate was explained by combined increases in dropout rates or special education…

Compared scores for Texas eighth graders on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) and National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to study the achievement gap in mathematics in 1996 and 2000. Results show the likelihood of a ceiling effect impacting students' TAAS scores that created the illusion the achievement gap had narrowed.…

The comprehensive approach to arts education, moving art from the academic fringes into the core curriculum, is producing excellent results at one Bedford, Texas, elementary school. Students there are thinking smarter and performing better. Mathematics, reading, and writing scores on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills are steadily improving.…

Describes three major expenditure categories and school-level operating costs in eight large Texas districts. Teacher salary costs are the primary determinate of resource differences among schools. An analysis of districts' fiscal and performance data shows that resources directed toward greatest student need are inadequate to overcome poverty…

This report outlines statewide results on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) for the 1998-1999 academic year. Also included are statewide data from the administration of the Spanish TAAS and the Algebra I, Biology, English II, and U.S. History end-of-course examinations. To allow a broader view of the assessment program's history,…

This guide provides information about the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) and Texas end-of-course examinations. It displays and explains examples of the TAAS and end-of-course standard and optional reports to assist school personnel in understanding and interpreting student performance data as required by the Texas Education Code. The…

To study the effectiveness of multilingual education programs in the Houston Independent School District (Texas), four groups of students were identified for the analysis of their Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) results. These groups were: (1) students enrolled in bilingual education classes; (2) students in English as a Second Language…

This report outlines student performance results from the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) for the 1997-1998 school year as well as results from the Spanish TAAS tests and the Biology I and Algebra I end-of-course examinations. Data represent test results for students not in special education. The chapters are: (1) "Executive…

This report provides a summary of test results from the Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP), including alternative tests taken for TASP purposes as authorized by state law, by student race/ethnicity for academic year 1999-2000. The results are provided for each Texas public university and community or technical college and for the entire state.…

Texas has apparently achieved great success in closing the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students, at least in the lower grades. Texas students in all grades have made substantial gains on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS). The effect of TAAS-type accountability on student performance in the higher grades is important,…