Graduation Checklist
Reach your Goal
- Keep track of your high school credits to be sure you will meet all local and state requirements by the end of your senior year.
- Consider taking Advanced Placement or dual enrollment course to earn college credit while still in high school.
- Begin keeping a list of the awards and honors you receive (handy for scholarship applications) as well as extracurricular activities.
- During your sophomore year, begin researching the universities or colleges you are interested in attending. Check what prerequisites are required for admittance and any time lines required for applications.
- Explore your interests and take advantage of Career Day opportunities.
- If you are not sure what college or university you are interested in,
- attend the college nights hosted by your high school. While you have the opportunity, be sure to talk with school representatives about what
- types of financial aid may be available.
- If possible, take the Preliminary
- SAT/National Merit Scholarship
- Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT)
- in your sophomore year for
- practice,but in your junior year,
- take the PSAT for eligibility for the National Merit Scholarship
- Competition. Students who take
- the PSAT tend to score higher on
- the SAT than those who do not.
- Check with your counselor’s office to learn about available scholarships.
- Be sure to begin applying early and
- for as many scholarships as possible.
- Do not limit yourself just to local scholarships.
- Sign up and take the ACT and/or
- SAT test, preferably in your junior
- year but no later than the fall of your senior year.
STAAR End - of - Course Requirements
- Each EOC assessment will be scored on a scale of 0 - 100
- Students must score at least 60 for the score to count towards their cumulative score.
- Students scoring below 60 must retake the assessment each time it is administered.
- Students scoring below 70 will receive accelerated instruction.
- Any student may retake an EOC assessment for any reason.
- A student’s cumulative score is determined using the student’s highest score on each EOC assessment.
- Student is not required to retake course as a condition of retaking assessment.
- School district shall provide accelerated instruction to each student who fails to perform satisfactorily.
Purpose:
To measure students’ academic performance in core high school
courses and become part of the
graduation requirements.
Excellence Every Day
- Freshmen Class of 2011-2012 is the first group to have EOC as a graduation requirement
- A student’s score on each EOC assessment will be worth 15% of the student’s final grade for that course
- EOC assessments include special
- purpose questions to measure:
- College readiness
- Readiness for advanced coursework
Implementation:
In 2007, Senate Bill 1031 was passed requiring the phase out of high school
TAKS and replacing it with State of
Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) end-of-course assessments rather than a grade
specific test covering four subject
areas for secondary-level courses in:
Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry,
Chemistry, Physics, English I,
English II, English III, World
Geography, World History, and
United States History.
Minimum Graduation Plan:
For students on minimum graduation
plan ~
- Cumulative score is based on number of courses taken for which an end-of-course assessment exists
- Cumulative score requirement may vary by subject area
Recommended High School Program:
In addition to meeting cumulative
score requirement in each of four
core content areas, students on recommended high school program
have to perform satisfactorily on ~
- Algebra II assessment
- English III assessment
Distinguished Achievement Program:
In addition to meeting cumulative
score requirement in each of four
core content areas, students on distinguished achievement program
have to perform satisfactorily on
college-readiness component of ~
Algebra II assessment
English III assessment
GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
Plan for phase-out of HS TAKS and phase-in of EOC assessments
