Parental Access Rights Upheld then Denied in Canyon ISD

Edit: Since the time that this article was published, TEA “reached out” to Canyon ISD and ordered them NOT to provide test access.  This was a reversal of the opinion given by the TEA legal department two days earlier.  It was a policy reversal at the behest of a “testing specialist”, not a lawyer who had already approved the process.  Update pending.

A recurring issue in the parental objections to the STAAR test has been the absolute refusal of schools and the TEA to permit parents to inspect the assessments given to their children.  As one mother put it, “I won’t let my child read a book assignment unless the book is appropriate, but they won’t even tell me what is being asked on a four hour test!”   The Texas legislature clearly intends for parents to have the right to review any state assessment given to their child.  The Education Code provides that “[e]xcept as provided by Section 39.023(e), a parent is entitled to access to a copy of each state assessment instrument administered under Section 39.023 to the parent’s child.”  The only exceptions  in 39.023 involve withholding field test questions.  Yet school districts and the TEA have forcefully denied access and argued that they are only required to make general public releases on a schedule created by the legislature.  Obviously, there is a significant difference between a public release and a parental right of access to the assessment instrument administered to the child.

This week, for the first time to our knowledge, a school district has agreed to permit a parent to inspect the STAAR assessment administered to the parent’s child after testing for the day is completed.  The e-mail chain below reflects the clear agreement of Canyon ISD to permit parental inspection of the test instrument after STAAR testing is completed.  TPERN thanks Canyon ISD for complying with the plain language of the law and recognizing the vital role that parents play in the educational preparation and upbringing of their children.  Unfortunately, at this point Canyon ISD is an exception.  They are the one district doing it right.  TPERN urges all Texas school districts to follow the law and permit parental access to the assessment instruments administered to district students.

Parents should note that, as a practical matter, school districts cannot comply with assessment inspection requests once the assessments are returned to the TEA!  Any parent wishing to inspect this week’s STAAR administration assessments at their local schools should immediately make that request in writing.  Please complete an Incident Report online if your access request is denied!