The latest Texas Education Agency news from The Texas Tribune.
A proposal under consideration by the Texas State Board of Education would allow private foundations to pay for elected officials on the 15-member board to visit out-of-state charter schools whose applications they approve. Full Story
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Surpassing the 5 million mark, student enrollment in Texas public schools has hit a new record, according to the Texas Education Agency. And Hispanic enrollment continues to mark the majority. Full Story
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Federal and state officials are in talks to work out a conflict in testing requirements under the state’s new high school graduation standards and federal education law that could mean "double-testing" eighth-graders. Full Story
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As six charter schools face automatic closure under a new Texas law, the state is facing questions over the guidelines used to decide which schools to close. Full Story
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Citing new federal guidelines and recent violent incidents, a coalition of interest groups has asked the Texas Education Agency to prohibit the use of “less lethal” weapons, like Tasers and pepper spray, in public schools. Full Story
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Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis is calling on her likely Republican opponent in the governor's race, Attorney General Greg Abbott, to quit defending the state's school finance system and reach a settlement instead. Abbott said Davis was focused on the past. Full Story
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The State Board of Education voted Friday to drop an existing requirement that all students at Texas public schools take algebra II to graduate. It also approved two high-level math courses that students can take as an alternative. Full Story
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A new direction for standardized testing, expansion for charter schools, No Child Left Behind jettisoned and the aftermath of a cheating scandal: 2013 was a significant year for Texas public education policy. Full Story
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Texas will shut down campuses at six charter schools under a new law that includes heightened financial and academic performance rules. Full Story
When schools turn to private entities for management, the arrangement can raise questions about how best to ensure financial accountability. Full Story
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Texas public school students continue to lag behind the national average in reading scores, according to the National Assessment of Education Progress scores released Thursday. Full Story
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In a new web ad, Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Pauken criticizes what he calls "an elitist educational system pushing everybody to go to a four-year university." Full Story
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As No Child Left Behind awaits congressional reauthorization, the tutoring industry is energetically pushing federal policymakers to preserve public funding for tutoring. This is the fourth story in a series on the program. Full Story
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Few companies that sprang up in Texas to take advantage of federal funding for tutoring under No Child Left Behind offer a better window into the obstacles to the program’s success than Austin-based Tutors with Computers. This is the third story in a series on the program. Full Story
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After hundreds of millions in federal dollars were spent on No Child Left Behind tutoring in Texas, it is difficult to find anyone willing to call the program an unqualified success. And there is disagreement on why the program didn't meet expectations. This is the second story in a series on the program. Full Story
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A Texas Tribune investigation of a No Child Left Behind tutoring program has uncovered years of inaction by state officials while money flowed to tutoring companies, delivering few academic results. This is the first story in a series on the program. Full Story
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Under a federal waiver that was announced Monday, only the lowest-performing 15 percent of Texas public schools will be subject to a series of federally prescribed interventions. Full Story
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We have liveblogged each of the sessions from The 2013 Texas Tribune Festival's Public Education track, which featured panel discussions on early childhood education, charter schools, innovations in teaching and public education reform. Full Story
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Key charter school legislation would not have passed during the last legislative session without a provision removing much of the State Board of Education's authority in approving applications, state Sen. Dan Patrick said Wednesday. Full Story
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A past Texas State Board of Education chairman and outspoken creationist urged his former colleagues on Tuesday to approve high school biology textbooks he said would "strike a final blow to the teaching of evolution." Full Story
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