SECTION 101.3024. Assessment Requirements for Students First Enrolled in Grade 9 Prior to 2011-2012 School Year or First Enrolled in Grade 10 or Above in 2011-2012 School Year

(a) Students who were first enrolled in Grade 9 prior to the 2011-2012 school year or enrolled in Grade 10 or above in the 2011-2012 school year must fulfill testing requirements for graduation with the assessments required by Texas Education Code (TEC), §39.023(c), as that section existed before amendment by Senate Bill (SB) 1031, 80th Texas Legislature, 2007. For purposes of this section, coursework necessary to graduate means all the coursework required under the student's graduation plan.

(b) With the exception of students who meet the criteria described in subsection (c) of this section, students who were enrolled as follows shall fulfill testing requirements for graduation with the assessments as required by TEC, §39.023(c), as that section existed before amendment by SB 1031, 80th Texas Legislature, 2007, with the applicable performance standards established by the commissioner of education and published on the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website:

(1) in Grade 9 or higher on January 1, 2001, regardless of when they are scheduled to graduate; or

(2) in Grade 8 or lower on January 1, 2001, if they were on an accelerated track and fulfilled all coursework necessary to graduate by September 1, 2004.

(c) A student who entered Grade 11 in the 1989-1990 school year or an earlier school year shall fulfill testing requirements for graduation with assessments as required by TEC, §39.023(c), as that section existed before amendment by SB 1031, 80th Texas Legislature, 2007, under an applicable performance standard established by the commissioner of education that corresponds to the performance standard in effect for the exit-level Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS) when the student was first eligible to take the exit-level TEAMS. Performance standards that apply to TEAMS students will be published on the TEA website.

(d) A student fulfilling testing requirements under subsection (b) of this section will be required to take only those sections of the exit-level Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) that correspond to the subject areas formerly assessed by the exit-level Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) (reading, writing, and mathematics) for which the student has not yet met the passing standard.

(1) If a student has not yet met the passing standard on TAAS reading, the student will be administered only the reading multiple-choice items from the TAKS English language arts (ELA) test.

(2) If a student has not yet met the passing standard on TAAS writing, the student will be administered only the writing prompt and the revising and editing multiple-choice items from the TAKS ELA test.

(e) A student fulfilling testing requirements under subsection (c) of this section will be required to take only those sections of the exit-level TAKS that correspond to the subject areas formerly assessed by the exit-level TEAMS (reading and mathematics) for which the student has not yet met the passing standard. If a student has not yet met the passing standard on TAAS reading, the student will be administered only the reading multiple-choice items from the TAKS ELA test.

(f) Effective beginning with the 2017-2018 school year, a student who has taken but failed to meet assessment graduation requirements under this section may receive a Texas high school diploma if the student has qualified to graduate in accordance with TEC, §28.02541. A student may not graduate under TEC, §28.02541, if the student did not take each assessment instrument or the part of the assessment instrument for which the student has not performed satisfactorily at least three times.

(g) Notwithstanding any of the requirements in subsections (a)-(f) of this section, students who pass all of the required exit-level TAKS tests or meet the alternate assessment requirements of Chapter 101, Subchapter DD, of this title (relating to Commissioner's Rules Concerning Substitute Assessments for Graduation) have fulfilled their testing requirements for graduation.

(h) Beginning with the 2011-2012 school year, students first enrolled in Grade 9 or lower must fulfill testing requirements for graduation with the end-of-course assessment instruments, as specified in TEC, §39.023(c), as amended by SB 1031, 80th Texas Legislature, 2007.

Source Note: The provisions of this §101.3024 adopted to be effective May 29, 2012, 37 TexReg 3827; amended to be effective November 5, 2017, 42 TexReg 6144; amended to be effective October 15, 2019, 44 TexReg 5901; amended to be effective August 9, 2022, 47 TexReg 4675