Credit by Exam for Acceleration (EA), without prior instruction, allows students in grades 1-12 to be awarded individual course credit based on successful (80% or above) testing on an approved course test. The examinations for the specific courses are developed by The University of Texas at Austin. [Note: Currently, EA is not available for courses which require a STAAR End-of-Course (EOC) exam.] A student may not attempt to earn credit by examination for a specific course more than two times. If a student fails to earn credit by examination for a specific course before the beginning of the school year in which the student would be enrolled in that course in accordance with the District's prescribed course sequence, the student must satisfactorily complete the course to receive credit for the course. These tests are administered four times a year, and students must meet a registration deadline.  Contact your campus counselor to discuss this credit option.  Grades from EA will not be averaged with other grades to determine class rank [EIC(Local)]. 

Policies EHDC(Legal); EHDC(Local)

• A student in grades 1-12 who has had no prior instruction in a course may take an Exam for Acceleration(EA) by completing and submitting an application with approval of a parent/guardian, a teacher, and a principal.

• A student in grades 1-5 will accelerate one grade level if the student scores 80% or above on the criterion-referenced test for the grade level to be skipped in each of the following areas: language arts (ELAR), math, science, and social studies.

• A student in grades 6-12 will receive credit for an academic subject if the student scores an 80% or better on the criterion-referenced test for the applicable course.

• A student may only attempt acceleration two times for the same grade/subject.

• If a student fails to earn credit by examination (by taking an EA) for a specific high school course before the beginning of the school year in which the student would ordinarily be required to enroll in that course in accordance with the District’s prescribed course sequence, the student must satisfactorily complete the course to receive credit for the course.

• Grades from EA will not be averaged with other grades to determine class rank. [EIC(Local)]

• Regardless of the date an EA is taken, placement in a new course will take place at the beginning of a school year, or at the semester for a semester course.

Credit by Exam (CBE), with prior instruction, is available to students in grades 6-12 who had some prior instruction in a course. Students may gain credit through CBE by scoring 70 percent on an examination of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for the applicable course. The principal, designee, or the attendance review committee, as applicable, shall have the authority to offer a student the opportunity to demonstrate mastery in a subject or earn course credit by examination when the student has had prior instruction in a subject and when:

• The student is enrolling in the District from a non-accredited school;

• The student has failed a subject or course; or

• The student has earned a passing grade in a subject or course but has failed to earn credit because of excessive absences.

Prior to offering a student an opportunity to demonstrate mastery or earn credit by this method, an appropriate District employee shall review the student's educational records to determine whether the student has had prior instruction in the subject or course. Contact your campus counselor to discuss this credit option. Grades from CBE will not be averaged with other grades to determine class rank [EIC(Local)]. 

Policies: EHDB(Legal); EHDB (Local)

• A Credit by Exam (CBE) is available to students in grades 6-12 who had some previous instruction in a subject.

• A completed application must be submitted with approval from a counselor, who will review the student’s educational records.

• A student must score 70% or better on the criterion-referenced test for the applicable course to receive credit.

• Grades from CBE will not be averaged with other grades to determine class rank. [EIC(Local)]

• CBE tests for students enrolled at CCHS and Crossroads will be scheduled by the counselor and may be scheduled based on student need.

A parent/guardian requesting kindergarten acceleration must follow the procedures listed below:

Appeals of the committee’s decision by the parent/guardian shall be through the standard parent/guardian appeals process beginning at Level 2.

Important note: Kindergarten students must meet the age requirement by being 5 on or before September 1.

1. Submit a written request* to the campus principal seeking consideration of accelerating his/her child to first grade. The request must be submitted within the first two weeks of school or within 2 weeks of enrollment, but no later than October 1.  The child will be initially placed in kindergarten while information is collected by the school to determine if acceleration is appropriate.

2. The principal will schedule a conference with the parent/guardian, counselor, the child’s pre-kindergarten teacher (if applicable), a kindergarten teacher, and a first grade teacher to review the kindergarten and first grade curriculum.

3. If after review of the curricular expectations of first grade, the parent/guardian still desires to have their child placed initially in first grade, the parent will sign a request for individual testing.

4. Within 20 school days, the campus will complete the following:

   1. Administer formal assessments to the child

   2. Conduct observations of the student by a first grade teacher and a school counselor

5. By the end of the 20 school day period, a campus committee consisting of the student’s pre-kindergarten teacher (if applicable), a kindergarten teacher, a first grade teacher, a counselor, and a campus administrator will review available data and make a placement decision. Options available to the committee include:

   1. Placement in kindergarten

   2. Student is accelerated to first grade

CBE Test Dates