Education in Texas



Brief History

Texans have always been concerned about the education of their children and youth. The very first Anglo American law for public schools was brought into existence in 1840. Through the law, 17,712 acres of land were set aside for the purpose of public schools. Approximately half a decade later, the state constitution of 1845 said that one tenth of the state's annual revenue, generated through taxes, be set aside for funding free public schools. Later the same year, a new law confirmed $2 million, taken from US indemnity bonds, as funds for public schools. As time progressed, a series of new laws gave more authority and freedom to cities for the administration and development of schools. This went on to form independent school districts. By the year 1900, 526 school districts existed and today, there are 1039 (ritter.tea.state.tx.us).

The motion for improving public schools gained significant momentum in 1949 by the passing of the Gilmer-Aikin laws. The laws granted funds and reorganized the mechanism of administration. Through the law, State Board of Education was created with an appointed commissioner. In the 90s, numerous court battles have been seen with respect to how much funding each school had been receiving. Many schools were judged as property poor, whereas their counter parts were considered part of wealthy school districts. In an effort to create equality among all, legislation was passed in 1993, target towards leveling funding for schools in Texas. Today, students hailing from Texas must go through accountability standards via tough curriculum and even tougher graduation requirements. In addition, there is a great emphasis on statewide assessments for students as young as third graders (ritter.tea.state.tx.us).

Major Milestone

Schools often complain of inadequate funding. This is a valid concern since the number of enrollments in public schools is quite overwhelming. Furthermore, salaries cannot be compared to the high amounts offered at private schools and retention of professional certified teachers becomes a hassle. Students are often robbed of facilities, programs and services because government funding is being shared amongst hundreds and thousands of other schools in the state. A milestone for the system can be seen in the rewriting of laws in 1884, followed by revisions almost 100 years later. In 1884, the state superintendent office was recreated; valorem tax affirmed along with the Permanent School Fund was invested in the county. In 1983, Voters from Texas approved a constitutional amendment that guaranteed school district bonds from the Permanent School Fund. Because of the decisions taken in 1983, school funding is estimated to be approximately $765 million annually (ritter.tea.state.tx.us).

Reforms

Numerous have been seen throughout the history of Texan Public Education. The following are some of the most important reforms. In 1984, House Bill 72 was passed, bringing enormous reforms. It affectively increased salaries for teachers, improved the system to funnel more finances to schools considered to be property poor and greatly increased academic achievements from students (ritter.tea.state.tx.us).

Another major reform to the system was seen in ...