What 9th and 10th Grade Students and Parents Need to Know - STAAR End-of-Course Testing Overview

Sep 30, 2026

Uploaded by Oliver

Overview of the STAAR end-of-course testing program for 9th and 10th grade students and their parents, including key differences from the former Texas TAKS system. Explains that STAAR emphasizes readiness standards, uses 12 course-based EOC assessments instead of exit-level tests, and limits coverage to Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for each course. Highlights deeper, more complex questions, greater critical analysis in reading, and expanded writing requirements such as multiple essays and two-day administration for English EOC assessments, plus field test items.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages44

Reading Time1 h 51 min

AccessFree to download

STAAR program and readiness standards

Key differences from TAKS

EOC assessments by subject

English and math courses

Science and social studies

How STAAR tests differ in depth

Reading and writing changes

Field test questions and essays

English I tasks

Expository and literary options

English II tasks

Expository and persuasive writing

English III tasks

Analytical and persuasive requirements

What 9th and 10th Grade Students and Parents Need to Know 􀀡 All information in this presentation is current as of October 2012. 􀀡 Information presented may change prior to the actual End of Course testing. 􀀡 We will do our best to keep you up to date regarding changes . STAAR is a more rigorous standardized testing program that has replaced the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) for elementary, middle, and high school students . The new STAAR program will emphasize “readiness” standards, which are the knowledge and skills that are considered most important for success in the grade or subject that follows and for college and career. Students who entered ninth grade in the 2011–2012 school year, and all those who follow, will notice the biggest difference in the new high school testing program. With the new STAAR program, the exit-level tests will be replaced with 12 end-ofcourse (EOC) assessments, which students will take as they complete the corresponding course . • English I, English II, English III (2 parts each, graded separately) • Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II • Biology, Chemistry, Physics • World Geography, World History, U.S. History 􀀡 The end-of-course assessments will only assess the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for a given course, unlike the high school TAKS tests that covered material from multiple courses . 􀀡 The questions on STAAR EOC’s will be deeper and more complex than TAKS. • In reading, greater emphasis will be given to critical analysis rather than to literal understanding. • In writing, students will be required to write two essays instead of one, and the English EOC assessments will be administered over two days . There are also field test questions and a 3rd field test essay. English I: Expository and Literary •The expository task requires students to clearly explain what they think about something. •The literary task is “write a story…” English II Expository and Persuasive •The persuasive task requires students to take a position and present a consistent, sustained argument that supports it. English III : Analytical and Persuasive The analytical task requires: • A combination of expository writing and interpretation of one aspect of a literary or expository text (really a hybrid of writing and reading) • Analytical prompts contain a literary or informational text (approximately 350−450 words), which students must analyze

FAQs

What is STAAR and how does it replace TAKS?

STAAR is a more rigorous standardized testing program that replaced TAKS. It emphasizes readiness standards and uses end-of-course assessments for each related course.

How many end-of-course (EOC) assessments are included under the new program?

Exit-level tests are replaced with 12 end-of-course (EOC) assessments. Students take them as they complete the corresponding courses.

What changes affect reading and writing on STAAR EOC assessments?

STAAR reading places more emphasis on critical analysis than literal understanding. Writing requires two essays instead of one, and English EOC assessments are administered over two days, with additional field test questions and a third field test essay.

Sep 30, 2026

Uploaded by Oliver