Dallas ISD will reduce the number of semester exams, otherwise known as Assessments of Course Performance (ACPs), by more than 30 percent in the upcoming school year.
The majority of the cuts in testing will happen in elementary schools, where all second semester ACPs have been eliminated and first semester exams are limited to Reading and Math plus Grade 5 Science and Grade 4 Language Arts.
“Reducing the number of assessments will allow for more valuable time for teaching and learning inside the classroom,” said Stephanie Elizalde, chief of school leadership.
For example, a third-grader last year took ACPs for language arts, science, social studies, music, math, and reading. A third-grader this year will only take first semester ACPs that correspond with the STAAR math and reading exams.
Dallas ISD used the ACPs to measure student mastery of material throughout the year. However, after looking at data and talking with teachers, students and parents, Dallas ISD officials decided the district could still effectively measure students’ achievement without potentially over-testing them.
