EOC testing will begin next week, and this year marks the first time the tests will be online, due to a House Bill passed by the 87th Texas Legislature.  

“I believe we were told around May of last school year,” testing coordinator Emily Bryson said. “We have been communicating more to students about making sure their iPads are up to date. But the [equipment needed] has been in place for a while now [as] some campuses have already had all of their [EOC’s] online.”

A study was conducted by the Texas Education Agency in 2020 to ensure that transitioning to an online format was the best idea. This study consisted of statewide surveys comparing other states and their experiences, as well as practice tests for students. 

“It saves me a lot of time and stress because I will not have a lot of physical material to sort through,” Bryson said. “I think our students are more accustomed to doing things digitally [because a large amount of our work is online].”

Along with this shift to online testing for both the fall and spring semester tests, the test material will also be updated for the spring semester EOC, including new question formats and response types. All online tests will include tools designed to mimic the format of the paper test, including character limits for the writing portion of the English EOC.

“They’re changing [the test format] for the spring [EOC],” Bryson said. “There are going to be more student entry responses, et cetera. In the U.S. History test, they’ll be sorting questions where you have to put [events] in order.”

Though there will not be a drastic difference in testing this fall, teachers are still preparing their students for the new switch in format.

“Normally we give students the 26 lined paper and have them practice their handwriting so that [graders] can read it when it is scanned into a computer,” English department chair Donna Friend said. “When we practiced the STAAR writing [this year], we did it in our classes and had students submit it online so they can understand what it feels like to work with a text box and character limit.”

Bryson said this transition may be a challenge for students who like to be able to write on their packets for math equations. 

“I prefer [the EOC] on paper,” sophomore Andrea Ospina said. “But online is also beneficial because it gives students and teachers more time. You [may be able to] get your grades back faster and reflect on your grade to see what you got wrong. [At the same time], online tests can also have some glitches. Even though online testing can improve accuracy, technology can always mess up.”

With this change, Bryson said she wants to reassure students who may be anxious about the new testing style.

“[My worry is] that it causes [students] anxiety now that the test is online,” Bryson said. “[They worry whether] their iPad dies or the internet goes off. How that process proceeds is how we adults [reassure our students]. [Reassuring students] that if the internet goes down then that’s not their fault, and they’re going to be OK because it’s just a test.”