Houston ISD
101912

K.1.a

TESTING PROGRAMS

LOCAL ACHIEVEMENT
TESTING

EK
(LOCAL)
All students in grades 1–12, except students exempted in accordance with state or federal guidelines, shall be assessed annually
on norm-referenced and/or criterion-referenced achievement tests.
The tests will measure performance in one or more of the following
subject areas: language arts (including reading), mathematics, science, and social studies and shall be used to:
1.

Inform students and parents of the students’ academic progress and mastery of the curriculum;

2.

Make decisions about promotion/retention and educational
programs for students;

3.

Plan instruction in the classroom;

4.

Set and evaluate campus-level achievement objectives;

5.

Evaluate performance of administrators and teachers; and

6.

Assess secondary students in course content and include
performance in the grade reporting system for all courses in
which the state has end-of-course tests and for other courses
identified by the District.

Certain instructional programs may require additional achievement,
ability, or language testing. Special testing shall meet one or more
of the following criteria:

OPT-OUT
IMPLICATIONS

1.

Be required by state or federal law or guidelines;

2.

Be required as part of a District-approved evaluation plan;

3.

Be approved by the Assessment Review Committee;

4.

Be required for admission into special instructional programs;
or

5.

Be required as part of the District- or campus-approved activities of a program.

A parent/guardian who refuses to allow his/her child to participate
in district and/or state-mandated assessments will complete and
submit to the principal a “Refusal to Participate in Assessments”
form acknowledging the possible implications of such action. This
form is not considered to be an authorization for a test exemption
request.
If a student is present during the state test administration and
chooses not to test, a blank answer document - coded with an “S”
for scored – is submitted for scoring as required by the state. The

DATE ISSUED: 10/27/2014
LDU 2014.11
EK(LOCAL)-X

1 of 4
Packet Pg. 117

 Houston ISD
101912

K.1.a

TESTING PROGRAMS

EK
(LOCAL)
student will receive a raw score of zero and the lowest possible
scale score for the grade/subject.
If a student is absent during the entire state test administration,
they are marked absent. Such designation does not impact the
school or the district regarding performance calculations, but will
impact participation rates on the test.
Additionally, the student will be referred to the school-based Grade
Placement Committee (GPC) for an initial determination whether to
move forward with promotion or require the student to receive additional instruction during summer school.
Any student who does not participate in state-mandated assessments at the request of his or her parent/guardian will not be subject to negative consequences or disciplinary action. Additionally,
any student who does not participate in state-mandated assessments at the request of his or her parent/guardian and who is present during the time of the test administration shall have access to
appropriate grade level instructional materials in a classroom setting during the test administration.

SECURITY

USE OF CELL
PHONES AND
OTHER
ELECTRONIC
DEVICES

All District personnel shall comply with the requirements specified
in Texas Education Agency (TEA) test administration materials for
state assessments and the guidelines outlined in this local policy
for District assessment instruments, including the TEA and HISD
Student Assessment Test Security Supplements.
The use of cell phones or any other unapproved electronic devices
by students or test administrators in a testing environment shall not
be permitted. Procedures regarding cell phones during testing are
as follows:


Student cell phones and other unapproved electronic devices
shall be collected by the test administrator prior to testing and
shall be returned to the owners after testing has been completed for the day. Test administrators and campus personnel
cell phones or unapproved electronic devices shall be turned
off in any secured testing environment during the test administration.



Use of a cell phone or any other unapproved electronic device
during the administration of any test shall be regarded as
cheating, and the student’s test shall be invalidated (the test
shall not be scored) with appropriate disciplinary action to follow.



Campuses must post signs reminding students about the telecommunications rules prior to any District or state test administration.

DATE ISSUED: 10/27/2014
LDU 2014.11
EK(LOCAL)-X

2 of 4
Packet Pg. 118