What is the redesigned STAAR English I assessment, how is it structured, and what changed from the old format?
The redesigned online format: what the STAAR redesign changed for English I (online delivery, integrated reading and writing, multiple choice capped at 75 percent, cross-curricular passages), how the assessment is structured, when it is taken, and how it is scored into performance levels.
What the redesigned STAAR English I assessment is: online delivery, integrated reading and writing, multiple choice capped at 75 percent, cross-curricular passages, when it is taken, and how raw points convert to performance levels (Approaches, Meets, Masters). What the STAAR redesign changed.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
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What this skill is asking
Understanding the redesigned STAAR format is the first exam-strategy skill, because the redesign (first fully in place for spring 2023) changed how English I is delivered, structured, and scored. The test is now online, integrates reading and writing, caps multiple choice at 75 percent of the points, and uses cross-curricular passages. Knowing these features tells you what to practice and what to expect on test day. This page covers what the redesign changed, how the assessment is structured, when it is taken, and how it is scored into performance levels. The transferable skill is preparing for the test that exists now, not the old separate reading and writing papers.
What the redesign changed
The redesign reshaped the test around digital, integrated, evidence-based assessment.
Each change has a preparation consequence. Online delivery means practicing the digital tools; integration means studying reading and writing together; the multiple-choice cap means drilling the new item types and constructed responses; cross-curricular passages mean trusting your reading skill on any topic. Preparing only for bubble questions misreads the redesigned test.
Structure, timing, and scoring
The redesigned test is one integrated assessment with performance levels.
The performance levels matter because they frame your goal: most students aim for Meets, which signals readiness, while Masters reflects thorough mastery. Knowing that points come from reading questions, constructed responses, and revising/editing together tells you to prepare across all of them rather than over-investing in one.
Orienting to the format
Try this
Q1. Name the four key changes the STAAR redesign made to English I. [Recall]
- Cue. Online delivery, integrated reading and writing, a multiple-choice cap (75 percent of points), and cross-curricular informational passages. Each shifts preparation toward digital tools, evidence-based writing, and the new item types.
Q2. Why must you prepare writing as well as reading for STAAR English I? [Short explanation]
- Cue. The redesigned test integrates writing: short constructed responses (0 to 2), one extended response essay (0 to 5), and revising/editing questions. With multiple choice capped at 75 percent, the writing items carry real points, so reading and writing must be prepared together.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of TEA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
STAAR English I (format, style)2 marksName three changes the STAAR redesign made to the English I assessment, and explain why each matters for how you prepare. (Knowledge of the redesigned format.)Show worked answer →
- Online delivery: the test is taken on a computer with new item types, so practicing the digital tools matters. 2) Integrated reading and writing: the writing (constructed responses) is woven into the reading test rather than a separate paper, so you prepare reading and writing together. 3) Multiple choice capped at 75 percent: up to a quarter of the points come from technology-enhanced and constructed-response items, so you must practice those formats, not just bubble questions.
A fourth change is cross-curricular informational passages. Each change shifts preparation toward the digital tools, evidence-based writing, and the new item types.
STAAR English I (format, style)2 marksA student says 'STAAR English I is just a reading test, so I do not need to practice writing.' Why is this wrong under the redesigned format? (Rescoped to a 2-mark task.)Show worked answer →
It is wrong because the redesigned English I assessment integrates writing into the test: it includes short constructed responses (scored 0 to 2) and one extended constructed response essay (scored 0 to 5), plus revising and editing questions. Writing is no longer a separate test, but it is still assessed.
Because constructed responses and revising/editing make up a meaningful share of the points (multiple choice is capped at 75 percent), neglecting writing leaves points on the table. Reading and writing must be prepared together under the redesign.
Related dot points
- The new technology-enhanced item types: what each redesigned STAAR item type is and how it works, multiselect, inline choice (drop-down), hot text, drag-and-drop, hot spot, and multipart, plus the short and extended constructed responses, and how scoring differs from a single multiple-choice point.
The redesigned STAAR English I item types and how each works: multiselect, inline choice, hot text, drag-and-drop, hot spot, and multipart, plus the short and extended constructed responses. Many allow partial credit, unlike a single multiple-choice point.
- Navigating tech-enhanced items: practical strategies for answering technology-enhanced items on the computer, reading the instructions for how many responses are needed, using on-screen tools (highlighter, typing box, drag handles), avoiding partial-credit losses, and reviewing flagged items before submitting.
Practical strategies for technology-enhanced items on STAAR English I: reading how many responses are needed, using on-screen tools (highlighter, typing box, drag handles), avoiding partial-credit losses by completing every part, and reviewing flagged items before submitting.
- Pacing the assessment: budgeting time across the reading questions, the short constructed responses, and the extended constructed response essay, leaving time to plan and proofread the essay, and using strategies (flagging, not over-investing in one question) to finish the whole test.
How to pace the STAAR English I assessment: budgeting time across reading questions, short constructed responses, and the extended response essay, reserving time to plan and proofread the essay, and using flagging and not over-investing in one question to finish the whole test.
- Reading the task and rubrics: reading a constructed-response prompt precisely to identify what it asks (the mode, the source, the required moves), and using the SCR 2-point rubric and the ECR 5-point rubric to write deliberately toward what scorers reward.
How to read constructed-response tasks and use the rubrics on STAAR English I: identifying what a prompt asks (mode, source, required moves), and writing toward the SCR 2-point rubric and the ECR 5-point rubric. Knowing the rubrics is the highest-leverage exam-strategy skill.
- Reading cross-curricular passages: approaching informational passages with topics drawn from science, social studies, or the arts, understanding that the questions assess reading skill rather than subject knowledge, and handling unfamiliar terminology, data, and graphics in a STAAR passage.
How to read cross-curricular informational passages on STAAR English I: science, history, or arts topics where questions assess reading skill, not subject knowledge. Handling unfamiliar terms, data, and graphics. STAAR tests this with multiple choice, hot text, and graphic-based items.
Sources & how we know this
- STAAR Redesign — TEA (2023)
- STAAR Reading Language Arts Resources — TEA (2025)