Texas 2026 STAAR Results Analysis and Takeaways for the 2026-2027 School Year

For school administrators across Texas, reviewing state assessment data is a familiar exercise; however, the Spring 2026 State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR®) results offer an important look at where students are making progress and where challenges remain. Understanding the trends behind the numbers is especially important as Texas prepares to transition from STAAR to the new Student Success Tool (SST).

Before diving into the underlying trends, here is a high-level snapshot of some of the most notable shifts in this year’s Spring 2026 STAAR and EOC results:

1. The Secondary School Surge: High Schools Are Recovering, But Are Younger Grades?

High school EOC results showed some of the strongest gains in 2026, outpacing elementary and middle schools in overall progress.

Texas High school End-of-Course (EOC) exams showed impressive gains across multiple subject areas:

• Biology: Met expectations reached 71%, representing a substantial jump from 63% in 2025 and 57% in 2024.
• Algebra I: Rose to 54% proficiency, up from 47% in 2025 and 45% in 2024.
• English II: Held steady at a robust 60% meeting expectations.
• English I: Rose to 55%, representing a steady climb from 51% in 2025.

State Education Commissioner Mike Morath publicly speculated that these notable secondary-level gains might be linked to classroom catalysts like the statewide implementation of school cell phone bans, which aim to restore high-yield instructional time.

The natural next question after seeing these results is: are middle and elementary schools experiencing the same recovery? The data suggests the recovery has been less consistent in the younger grades.

While high schoolers are regaining their footing, results in the younger grades point to areas where students may still need additional support. To address these gaps, districts must look closely at what is holding elementary and middle schoolers back and implement targeted, developmentally appropriate interventions.

2. The Early Literacy Bottleneck: Digging Into the Elementary Lag

While middle school reading showed encouraging gains with Grade 8 reading reaching 59% proficiency, foundational early literacy remains a persistent bottleneck. Grade 3 reading slipped by 1 percentage point to 49%, highlighting the continued challenge of building strong foundational reading skills before students move into later grades.

What might be contributing to this lingering lag in elementary literacy? One factor to consider is the ongoing transition toward the “Science of Reading.” Following the mandates of HB 3, educators have been undergoing intensive Reading Academies to overhaul how reading is taught, moving away from older approaches and toward systematic phonics. However, systemic change takes time. The students taking the 3rd-grade STAAR in 2026 also experienced disruptions during some of their earliest years of school.

The Strategic Action for Districts:

To support this shift and address the early literacy issue, it is not enough to simply offer more “reading practice.” Elementary schools need targeted, evidence-based phonics content. The overall approach has shown to be effective in other states, but the changes take time to show benefits. Districts should consider integrating supplemental resources that focus heavily on phonemic awareness, decoding, and systematic phonics instruction in Kindergarten through second grade, ensuring students build the foundational decoding skills required before they reach the high-stakes 3rd-grade benchmark.

3. Adapting to the New K-12 Science TEKS: Encouraging Signs of Progress

The Spring 2026 science results show notable gains, with science seeing some of the strongest year-over-year growth.

This success coincides with the implementation of the redesigned K-12 Science TEKS, implemented during the 2024-2025 school year. The updated standards shifted science instruction to “Three-Dimensional Learning,” requiring students to integrate Scientific and Engineering Practices (SEPs), Recurring Themes and Concepts (RTCs), and Core Ideas.

The 2026 results show encouraging progress as students and teachers continue adapting to this instructional shift:

• Grade 8 Science: Rose to 54% of students meeting expectations, up from 46% in 2025.
• Grade 5 Science: Rose to 36% of students meeting expectations, up from 29% in 2025.

The Strategic Action for Districts:

These gains reinforce the importance of equipping teachers with instructional resources built for the nuances of the updated standards. To maintain this momentum, districts should ensure their benchmark tools do more than just test rote memorization of vocabulary. Progress Learning supports this 3D learning approach by providing content specifically authored to mirror the new TEKS, targeting SEPs and RTCs so students practice applying scientific concepts rather than just memorizing them.

4. The 7th-Grade Math Anomaly: Exploring the Impact of SB 2124

Local media headlines highlighted a steep drop in 7th-grade math scores (showing a Meets rate of 29%), which understandably raised concerns. But what exactly happened here?

A closer look suggests this decline may be influenced by a significant change in the group of students taking the Grade 7 Math STAAR following the implementation of Senate Bill (SB) 2124. Passed to expand access to advanced math, SB 2124 mandates that school districts automatically enroll any student scoring in the top 40% of their Grade 5 STAAR math assessment into an accelerated middle school math track.

In Spring 2026, the early effects of this policy became striking. An estimated 32% of all 7th graders in the state took the Grade 8 Math STAAR, representing a massive jump from just 16% in 2023. With more high-performing 7th graders accelerated into the Grade 8 math test, the group of students taking the Grade 7 assessment changed significantly, which likely contributed to the lower Meets rate.

The Strategic Action for Districts:

While this policy aims to expand the advanced math pipeline, school systems are navigating the logistical strain of suddenly increasing their advanced course capacity. To support this influx of accelerated middle schoolers, districts might consider exploring diagnostic-driven practice materials to help teachers adapt to individual student needs.

5. Navigating the Evolving A-F Accountability Landscape and the CCMR Shift

After recent changes to  this accountability framework, College, Career, and Military Readiness (CCMR) now represents a staggering 40% of the Student Achievement domain for high school campuses.

This makes the EOC high school gains particularly critical, as they directly impact a school’s standing. However, the accountability landscape continues to evolve. The state has recently introduced changes to CCMR accountability measures, requiring districts to adjust their college, career, and military readiness strategies. Furthermore, the CCMR Outcomes Bonus program pays districts annual bonuses for qualifying graduates who exceed the state’s readiness threshold, making successful preparation a potential financial incentive.

The Strategic Action for Districts:

Rather than waiting for the state to finalize rating calculations, forward-looking districts are taking control of their data. Implementing robust, standards-aligned growth tracking in non-STAAR-tested subjects and integrating dedicated practice for the ACT® and SAT® can help students work toward CCMR benchmarks as accountability requirements evolve.

6. Transitioning to a Through-Year Model: The End of the STAAR Era

Perhaps the most important long-term takeaway for Texas school boards and superintendents is that the state’s approach to annual assessment is about to change significantly.

Under the provisions of House Bill 8 (HB 8), the state is transitioning to an entirely new statewide assessment model called the Student Success Tool (SST) starting in the 2027-2028 school year. The SST will replace the single, high-stakes Spring STAAR exam with three shorter, streamlined assessments given throughout the school year:

• Beginning of Year (BOY): September window.
• Middle of Year (MOY): January/February window.
• End of Year (EOY): May window.

This makes the 2026-2027 school year an important planning year. Districts can begin shifting their curriculum calendars, professional development, and assessment strategies away from “spring test prep” and toward a continuous, year-round diagnostic model.

To learn more about the differences in testing windows, adaptivity, and results turnaround between these two models, read our complete guide on the SST assessment transition.

How Progress Learning Promotes Student Mastery in Texas Classrooms

As Texas school systems manage the logistical challenges of SB 2124 advanced math tracks, adapt to updated Science TEKS, and prepare for the through-year SST transition, Progress Learning offers a comprehensive platform with resources designed specifically for Texas schools.

Unlike generic national platforms that provide patchwork alignment, Progress Learning is custom-built for Texas:

• Texas HB 1605/IMRA Approved: Progress Learning is approved by the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) through the IMRA process for supplemental mathematics in grades 3-8, Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry.
• Support for the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA): Progress Learning meets the requirements for the TIA program. Our platform provides robust pre-test and post-test growth measures, giving districts the reliable, year-long growth data they need to support and reward high-performing educators.
• Proven Efficacy and Compliance: Progress Learning’s effectiveness is backed by ESSA Tier 2 Moderate Evidence from independent studies.
• Targeted Phonics and Intervention: For younger students struggling with early literacy, and for grades 2-8 students requiring structured support, our adaptive intervention product uses built-in diagnostics to automatically generate personalized, standards-aligned learning paths. Beyond reading, Texas schools and districts can also receive adaptive, TEKS-aligned intervention for math and science in the same product.
• Consolidation and Predictable Pricing: Progress Learning allows districts to consolidate ELA, Math, Science, Social Studies, and CCR practice into a single platform.

Rather than waiting until the end of the year to identify learning gaps, Progress Learning gives Texas educators assessment, practice, intervention, and progress-monitoring tools they can use throughout the year.