Texas raised its standards for mathematics and reading this year, and Dallas Independent School District eighth-grade students rose to the occasion with an improved passing rate in reading on the first administration of the 2016 STAAR exam. Overall, Dallas ISD eighth-graders taking the English version of the test improved their passing rate in reading by 3.4 percentage points from the previous year. A particular highlight is the 5.8 percentage point increase in reading for African-American students and an 8.4 percentage point increase for English Language Learners. Economically disadvantaged students also performed well, with a 3.1 percent increase in their passing rate. Passing rates…

On multiple Saturdays over the past school year, hundreds of Dallas ISD Advanced Placement students have voluntarily spent part of their weekends at prep sessions working to become even higher achieving students. The prep sessions feature Dallas ISD AP teachers giving lessons in AP subjects that students often find difficult. Kelsey Karcher, Dallas ISD manager of Advanced Academic Services, said the AP prep sessions have become increasingly popular. Last Saturday’s prep session had 564 students attend from across the district. “The popularity of these AP prep sessions speak to the dedication of our teachers and the quality of our hard-working,…

Eleven seniors from seven Dallas ISD high schools have been awarded scholarships by the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation. The students will receive $20,000 in financial support, a laptop and textbook assistance in addition to ongoing support to meet future challenges they may face in completing college. The Dell scholarship web page describes eligible candidates as first-generation college students from low income families who have demonstrated the drive to succeed in spite of obstacles, have overcome personal challenges, demonstrated the potential to succeed in post-secondary education and have the ambition to earn a college degree. To be eligible, scholarship recipients…