The Texas Education Agency released preliminary results for the spring of 2025 STAAR end of course exams, and for the most part, San Antonio high schoolers did not fare much better than they did last year.
Most school districts in San Antonio did see small improvements in Algebra I and Biology, but other test scores dipped, particularly in English I and English II. For the most part, U.S. History scores remained steady or dropped for local high schoolers.
Overall, STAAR performance in San Antonio fell short of the state’s average performance, though it followed many of the same trends.
Across Texas, Algebra I performance saw a slight increase in scores, going from 45% of students meeting grade level last year to 47% meeting grade level this year. This performance is still 15 percentage points aways from how well students were scoring before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The STAAR also went through a redesign implemented for the 2022-23 school year so some say the scores can’t exactly be compared “apples to apples.”
But there are a couple of outliers when it comes to how the students performed. San Antonio Independent School District saw the biggest improvement in Algebra I with 34% of its students meeting grade level this year compared to 28% of students in 2024. However, before 2020, nearly half of Algebra I test takers at SAISD had scored on grade level or better.
Alamo Heights ISD saw one of the steepest declines in Algebra I test scores, going down seven percentage points from this year to last year. In the spring of 2019, more than 70% of the district’s test takers scored on grade level or higher.
The highest performing Algebra I scores came from Somerset ISD, a largely rural district on the far southwest side with less than 5,000 students. This spring, 68% of Algebra I test-takers were on level, slightly better than 2024 and a whopping 18 percentage points better than in 2019.
Despite the small increases in math, education experts are worried about the slow rate of progress in getting back to pre-pandemic STAAR test scores.
“You can’t talk about readiness if students aren’t achieving at grade level in Algebra I,” said Gabe Grantham, a policy adviser at the education policy think tank Texas 2036. “These results make it clear, we must do a better job supporting and accelerating middle and high school math achievement.”
More noticeable progress was seen on the Biology end of course exam, with state performance increasing by five percentage points in the number of students who met grade level standards.
All school districts in San Antonio, except for Judson ISD whose performance declined by 3%, saw bumps in the number of students achieving on grade level or higher.
Most notably, East Central ISD improved student performance in Biology by 12 percentage points, with half of its students scoring on grade level or higher this year compared to 38% last year.
Over at Somerset ISD, performance improved by 13 percentage points with 60% of students scoring on level or higher this year.
Compared to pre-pandemic scores, student performance on the Biology test have largely remained the same.
History, English scores stagnate or decline
Across the state, English I and English II scores declined, a trend followed largely by San Antonio school districts.
In all but one school district in the area — Judson ISD saw a 2% bump in students who scored on grade level or higher — English I scores declined or stayed the same as last year.
Only Somerset ISD saw improvements in English II scores, increasing grade level and higher performance by 4% from last year to this year.
The largest school districts, including San Antonio ISD, Northside ISD and North East ISD, all saw a drop in English scores across the board.
Overall, English scores have generally improved since the pandemic, with more students steading testing on grade level or higher in the years following 2020 than in 2019.
While U.S. History scores usually fare better compared to other test subjects, performance dipped slightly across the state by 1% in the number of students that scored on grade level or higher.
Two school districts in San Antonio did see minimal improvements in History. San Antonio ISD’s performance went up by 1% in students who scored on grade level and Judson ISD’s went up by 2% compared to last year.
Only Northside ISD kept a steady performance compared to last year, with 74% of History test takers scoring on grade level or better in 2024 and 2025.
The steepest drops in performance on History exams were seen by Harlandale ISD, Somerset ISD, South San ISD and Southside ISD, which saw a decline between 5% and 13% in students who scored on grade level or higher.
Results for STAAR assessments in grades 3-8 will be made publicly available by the Texas Education Agency next week, on June 17.
