Watch a Texas Tribune conversation on how new laws are affecting public education in Texas

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At a Texas Tribune panel Tuesday discussing the effects of recently-passed state laws affecting public education in Texas, four panelists shared their perspectives on how resources can be funneled to best set up students and teachers for success.

The panel featured Gabe Grantham, a policy analyst with the nonprofit think tank Texas 2036; Jennifer Cavazos Saenz, senior director of communications and policy at the nonprofit E3 Alliance; Gonzalo Salazar, superintendent of Los Fresnos Consolidated Independent School District; and, Sharla Horton, a former teacher and assistant principal at Crowley ISD who is now a director at the nonprofit Education Resource Strategies.

Importance of math skills

Last year, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 2124, which automatically opts sixth graders into accelerated math courses if they meet certain scores on state and local tests. Previously, schools chose which students entered the advanced track through various criteria, from teacher recommendations to test scores.

The speakers emphasized the importance of math for students’ success. Research shows that math proficiency is a better indicator than reading for whether students will find occupations with sustainable wages, according to the panelists.

“If we’re wanting to really set our kids up to be successful in this 21st century workforce, we need to make sure that they are on track to be able to enter college,” Grantham said. “Math is such a strong predictor of that.”

By standardizing the requirement to enter higher-level math courses, the bill helps make the classes accessible to all students.

“You remove implicit bias,” Cavazo Saenz said. “You remove inconsistencies across the state.”

Cavazo Saenz said the lack of norms contributed to disparities: Less than 40% of Black students were enrolled in higher-level math courses, compared to 95% of their white or Asian peers, even when they scored the same on standardized tests.

Adoption of statewide instructional materials

Last summer, legislators passed House Bill 1605, which invested nearly $800 million to produce high-quality instructional materials that teachers can use across the state. Whether a student has a new teacher or lives in a district lacking resources, the lesson templates help all kids receive satisfactory instruction, Horton said.

“One of the greatest disadvantages was, I was in a district that didn’t have a curriculum,” Horton said, adding that having standardized materials “really helps to ease the burden of planning and preparation that teachers face, particularly novice teachers.”

Salazar cautioned that the scripted curriculums should only be temporary support as teachers customize their lessons.

“I have learned through lived experience that it is in lesson planning where we differentiate curriculum for the students who are in our classroom, not what someone determined at one point in time,” Salazar said.

Civic involvement 

In response to a question about what individuals can do to support school districts, panelists pointed to civic engagement on a local and state level. Although the speakers agreed that no single policy could be a silver bullet in fixing the education system, they recommended contacting legislators as important for amplifying the voices of teachers and students. Some also mentioned the importance of voting in local elections.

“Oftentimes, people don’t realize that your local elections are more impactful on your family and your student than our larger federal elections,” Cavazo Saenz said.

The conversation, which was held in the Tribune’s Studio 919, can be watched above.

Disclosure: The Texas Tribune is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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