The No Child Left Behind act was passed by congress in 2001. The law requires that public schools set uniform, monitored standards that every child will be held accountable to through the usage of standardized testing. The law uses monetary incentives to encourage schools to meet the standards set by state education agencies, and experience high percentages of passing scores among the students enrolled in public school.
The TEAMS test, an acronym standing for Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills is the standardized test that was in place prior to 1990. This test was meant to measure the competency of students in the core subjects of reading, writing, math and science, and schools were expected to tailor their own curriculum to insure students learned necessary skills.
The TAAS test, an acronym standing for Texas Assessment of Academic Skills, replaced the TEAMS standardized test in 1991, and was utilized until 2002, when the passage of No Child Left Behind implemented new laws and expectations in public schools. Passing this test was a requirement for a student to pass the 11th grade and be eligible for graduation in the state of Texas.
The TAKS test, or Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, is the test drawn from its predecessors and put into place in compliance with the No Child Left Behind law. The test is meant to measure a student's understanding of requisite math, science, social studies, reading and writing skills as deemed appropriate by the state of Texas. Questions and material on the TAKS test are developed by the state of Texas Education Agency, school teachers and Pearson Education, and is required for public school students between the third and 11th grade.