TELPAS Participation Requirements

All students enrolled in Texas public schools and open-enrollment charter schools, including virtual schools, are required by federal and state law to participate in the Texas Assessment Program. EB students enrolled in kindergarten through grade 12 who are not over the age of 21 are required to be assessed annually with an English language proficiency assessment until they are determined to be proficient by meeting the EB student reclassification criteria available on the Bilingual and English as a Second Language Education Programs webpage. This includes students classified as emergent bilingual (EB)/English learner (EL) in the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) whose parents have declined bilingual or ESL program services (PEIMS code C). Refer to the LPAC Decisions Educator Guide on the Assessments for Special Populations webpage for more information. 

In rare circumstances a student receiving special education services may not be required to participate in one or more TELPAS language domains for reasons associated with the student’s particular disability. The reason for not assessing the student must be determined by the ARD committee in conjunction with the LPAC and must be well supported by documentation in the student’s IEP by the ARD committee and in the student’s permanent record file by the LPAC. Participation decisions must be considered individually for each student on a domain-by-domain basis. 

For information on EB students who enroll in a district before or during the administration window, refer to the Student Mobility page of these Coordinator Resources.