The State Board of Education has met just twice this year — in April and in July — after the naming of a new chairman by Gov. Perry in March. A summary of actions taken by the board follows, listed under the board’s major responsibilities of curriculum, textbooks and Permanent School Fund.

As part of its duty to provide oversight of curriculum and accountability measures, the SBOE set passing standards last November for the new Texas Assessment of Knowledge & Skills. This TAKS test, which replaces the TAAS test used since 1989, is more closely aligned with the essential knowledge and skills curriculum used by public schools in Texas than previous tests have been.

Passing standards established in November will be phased in gradually so by the third year of TAKS administration (Spring 2005), students in grades 3-8 will be expected to correctly answer about 65 percent of reading, writing and math items. Science and social studies passing percentages for grades 10 and 11 were set somewhat lower, because testing items cover a curriculum that spans several years.

Results from Spring 2003 TAKS testing indicated Texas students performed well on the new test, particularly among third-graders, who for the first time must pass the assessment to be promoted to fourth grade. Concern exists, however, about TAKS performance at the secondary level — particularly in science — as scores were better than predicted, but not acceptable in terms of mastery of the subject matter.

The SBOE took action in July to ensure that passing standards will gradually increase as planned and not be held artificially low, with the goal that students should work toward meeting the higher expectations for their grade level and be adequately prepared for the subsequent year’s instruction.

With revenue shortfalls projected in Texas, the Legislature has reduced the spending it allows the SBOE for textbooks. Although social studies books will be purchased for all grade levels this fall as planned, next year only half the books scheduled — high school biology and ESL grades 3-5 — will be allocated for purchase by the state. One public hearing remains for these textbooks before their adoption by the SBOE in November.

Biology books have drawn the most attention this year, as the board must ensure the textbooks under consideration are accurate, up to date, and adequately cover strengths and weaknesses of scientific theories. The treatment of evolution in textbooks has drawn much public comment. I would invite interested constituents to provide their written statements on the subject to me by Sept. 1.

Permanent School Fund

As the fiduciary for the PSF, the SBOE oversees investment activities of the $18 billion fund. Since the early 1900s, interest income from the fund has been used to purchase textbooks, hence its reference as the “Children’s Textbook Fund.”

The SBOE has taken action this year to rid the PSF of costly external money managers who have underperformed their market benchmarks. Resources will be reallocated to improve the portfolio’s performance, as well as reduce costs.

Preservation of capital is particularly important in PSF investing, as the fund must provide equitably for today’s generation of schoolchildren, as well as tomorrow’s.

One concern that stands to affect adversely the PSF is Amendment 9 on the upcoming Sept. 13 constitutional ballot. Through a change in spending procedures, the amendment would no longer protect the principal or corpus of the PSF and could allow the Legislature to spend far too much from the fund than would be prudent. The Bond Guarantee Program that benefits numerous school districts across the state also could be threatened if this amendment is passed.

Rather than using PSF interest income for textbook purchases, revenues could be used for other purposes named by the Legislature. I urge a “No” vote on Amendment 9 to help preserve the protections against overspending of PSF monies that have been in place since 1876.

Having a role in the development of policies for the betterment of Texas public education is a responsibility I cherish. Although my term on the SBOE has been filled with challenges, I am committed to meeting those rather than sidestepping them. Please feel free to contact me. I seek the input of constituents so I can better represent the interests of students and parents in our goal of educational excellence in Texas.