Lubbock ISD reports mixed STAR 2.0 results, outlines targeted supports for middle‑school math and reading

Lubbock ISD staff reported mixed results on district assessments Wednesday and described a set of immediate and longer‑term steps to boost student performance, with particular focus on middle‑school math and writing.

District staff said some grades and subjects showed solid gains compared with last year and between the first and second nine‑week benchmarks, but that changes tied to STAR 2.0 item types and recent shifts in science standards complicated direct comparisons. Kim Callison, a Lubbock ISD staff member, opened the presentation by noting the district’s “North Star goal is to have 80% of our students in A and B campuses by 2026.”

The district emphasized two sources of measurement difficulty: new STAR 2.0 item types (including paired passages and text‑entry/math items) and changes to science standards and curriculum. Callison said the paired passage format — two texts that students must answer about individually and together — “is very difficult to do,” and she cited that change as a likely factor in some lower third‑ and fourth‑grade reading percentages. She also told trustees that “Writing continues to be a struggle and revising and editing.”

On math the presentation highlighted steady work with Eureka, the district’s adopted elementary math materials, and growing use of Star 2.0‑style items that include constructed and text‑entry responses. Chris (staff member) said district instructional coaches are running after‑school “Eureka networking” sessions, internalization work in PLCs, and SWaP (student work analysis protocol) sessions to help teachers analyze student work and target interventions. He described the district as “year 1, in Lubbock ISD” for district‑wide Eureka implementation and praised campus coaches for supporting teachers’ internalization of lessons.

Middle‑school math emerged as the highest area of concern. Robin (staff member) summarized the pattern: after concerted focus and gains in 6th‑grade math, 7th‑grade on‑level scores slid. “We ran to the fire of 6th grade math, and we saw gains… but while we were working so hard and diligently in 6th grade math, our 7th grade math suffered,” she said. Staff identified a set of highly tested 7th‑grade standards (proportionality and multi‑step equation work among them) where many students demonstrate gaps. Short‑term district actions include targeted “micro‑teaching” PLCs, lesson rehearsal at each middle school before the February content co‑op, focused coaching visits and an IXL usage push (district staff said campuses where students completed more IXL practice tended to show better middle‑school outcomes).

Staff described other actions across grade levels: expanded calibration and mini‑lessons for RLA with a focus on extended constructed responses (ECRs), targeted review trainings ahead of STAR, the launch of an HQIM ambassador program to build campus curriculum champions, continued partnership with Region 17 ESC and LASSO/Learning Acceleration supports, and additional training for teachers on new Savvas science materials. The district said some grades face “crossover” content this year — standards moved between grades — and that teachers and students are still learning how those changes map to assessments.

Trustees asked about parent access to resources such as IXL. Callison and staff confirmed IXL can be used at school or at home and said some campuses already share access information; staff committed to broader communication so families know how to access programs. Staff also said a minimum IXL usage goal correlated with growth: “students need to do at least a minimum of 15 questions a week” on IXL to see reliable impact, and some campuses are incentivizing higher use.

The district also signaled it is exploring longer‑term structural options: a formal review of middle‑school math curriculum (noting Carnegie Learning is currently in use) and outreach to vendors on materials on the State Board of Education’s IMRA list (including Bluebonnet and other SBOE‑reviewed curricula). Robin said those conversations are in a fact‑finding stage and that any adoption decisions would follow teacher consultation and additional review.

Staff emphasized that these steps are a mix of classroom coaching and system changes: “We’re changing our weekly schedule to go where we are most needed,” Chris said, and principals and coaches will intensify support on campuses with the greatest need. The presentation concluded with a list of near‑term PD and coaching moves ahead of the spring STAR administration.

District staff said they will continue to report benchmarks to the board and to monitor benchmark‑to‑STAR growth by cohort as part of their ongoing progress measures work.