About half of Houston ISD schools saw their state-issued accountability rating jump by one or more letter grades this year, a dramatic improvement in scores following a turbulent first year under state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles.

HISD released its projected campus accountability ratings Monday, though the grades remain preliminary because a Travis County judge issued a temporary restraining order last week blocking the release of the Texas Education Agency’s official 2024 ratings.

Out of HISD’s roughly 265 schools with ratings, 149 improved their A-through-F scores by one or more letter grade, while 87 saw no change and 29 saw their score slip, according to data released by the district.

“We are incredibly proud of what we’ve been able to achieve in one year,” Miles said in a press release. “Across the district, schools delivered significant improvements in student achievement on state assessments. … We will continue to provide high-quality instruction that builds on this growth.”

For the second consecutive year, some Texas districts have challenged the legality of the state’s scores, this time arguing a new automated grading tool on the state’s standardized tests contributed to low reading scores.

The TEA generates its grades through a complicated formula based largely on standardized test results, and families often use the grades as shorthand to gauge school effectiveness. Supporters of the state’s accountability system say it provides a valuable resource to families, highlights successes and puts pressure on education leaders to fix long-struggling schools. Opponents argue the grades result in too much emphasis on standardized tests, unfairly favor students in wealthier neighborhoods and hurt the image of low-rated campuses.

HISD said it used the state’s methodology to calculate its scores, and chose to release them despite the wider legal challenges. In early August, HISD released its preliminary scores in aggregate form, but did not publish individual campus scores until Monday.

The new grades show that some historically low-performing schools saw significant increases under an overhaul model Miles rolled out last year that includes new curriculums and fast-paced lessons. While overall test scores remain relatively low at those schools compared to the rest of Texas, many showed significant growth that allowed them to boost their accountability grade.

Of the 84 overhauled schools, 67 scored an improved letter grade, while six fell by at least one letter grade. Wheatley High School, which triggered the appointment of Miles and a new school board after it received a seventh straight failing grade in 2019, improved from a D to a B.

Still, some HISD community members argue the increases in scores don’t justify Miles’ turnaround program, which they say focuses too narrowly on test preparation at the expense of assignments that can grow students’ love for learning, such as research projects and full-length novels. Overhauled schools have no librarian and several classes each day require quizzes and worksheets.

“It feels like the worksheets are just to keep us busy. I would learn more if I was learning with my teachers, because I can't teach myself everything,” Askew Elementary School third-grader Rose Hurley said during an August board meeting. “Everyone in my class wants the library back.”

Miles argues the overhaul model is necessary to close equity gaps between affluent and low-income students, and improve academic performance at schools that have historically struggled.

The A-through-F grades reveal some other key takeaways:

• About 195 schools grew their numerical rating by one or more points, while 79 schools saw no change or slipped. Schools’ numerical ratings generally range from 50 to 100, and they’re then then converted into an A-through-F grade that follows the traditional scoring system for letter grades.

• Three elementary schools — Hobby, Hilliard and Wainwright — improved from an F to A rating.

• Seven overhauled high schools — Furr, Kashmere, Madison, North Forest, Scarborough, Wheatley and Yates — improved their scores by two or more letter grades.

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