Judge Blocks TEA’s A-F Grades For Texas Public Schools

A judge has temporarily blocked the release of A-F accountability grades to rate public schools after several districts challenged the validity of the grades.

According to the Dallas Morning News, school districts across the state filed a lawsuit against the Texas Education Agency arguing its grade system is invalid because it is based on flawed grades from STAAR tests. The districts argue that the use of computer grading for student essays, implemented without sufficient validation, could result in unfair and inaccurate ratings.

The TEA planned to release the grades this week but will now have to wait until at least after a hearing scheduled for August 26. The agency argued that the A-F accountability system would help families to know how their schools were performing. The system would have evaluated every public school and district across the state.

“It is disappointing that a small group of school boards and superintendents opposed to fair accountability and transparency have once again filed a lawsuit aimed at preventing A-F ratings from being issued and keeping families in the dark about how their schools are doing,” agency officials said in a statement.

Last year, a similar lawsuit delayed the release of grades, with districts claiming that changes in scoring methods would disproportionately lower their ratings. 

This year’s lawsuit was focused on the state’s grading formula, heavily based on STAAR tests grades. 

Last year, the TEA began grading essays within the tests with AI.

“During the 2023–24 school year, the Commissioner radically changed the way the new STAAR test is being administered by replacing human graders with AI grading,” the lawsuit reads. “This change was made without ensuring that this radical change would not impact the new STAAR test’s validity and reliability.”

Districts argue that some high schoolers were given zero scores on their essays. The lawsuit alleges that this method “threatens to unfairly — and unlawfully — lower the A–F ratings of many school districts and campuses.”

Despite the legal battle, Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath continues to support the STAAR test and the A-F grading system, arguing it would benefit families.