Students will be taking the STAAR test on campus for the 2020-2021 school year. 

“This year TEA has confirmed that students have to take their test in person and on campus,” counselor Courtney Tarbox said. 

In-person and virtual students will both have to take the test on campus.

“It will be the same testing environment for both in-person and virtual students,” Tarbox said. 

Virtual students have to sign up before the test to be able to come back to campus. 

“We are working with our district guidelines and we will be sending out surveys to students that are virtual, where they will indicate if they will be coming back to campus to test,” Tarbox said.

If virtual students are unable to come back to campus during the testing season, then they will have to come to campus in June to take the test.

“If a student that’s virtual chooses not to come back to campus to take the test, they will have to take it another time, and that will be in June,” Tarbox said. 

Accommodations will be given to students who are unable to take a paper and pencil test.

“If students have any accommodations to take the test online, they’ll still use a computer but it will be on campus,” Tarbox said. 

The in-person testing environment will be similar to previous years, but with extra COVID-19 precautions. 

“Truly testing procedures will just be adjusted for COVID protocol, so we will have fewer students in the rooms and the same expectations that we have during the school day will be in place as well for testing,” Tarbox said.

Changes can still be made to the testing procedures between now and when testing will start in April. 

“We will be adjusting plans as needed based on the number of students that are coming back to campus, and based on any further information that we receive from our testing department at the district level or with TEA at the state level,” Tarbox said.