The NES is not unique in principle. Networks like Uncommon Schools, Success Academies, KIPP, and Achievement First have proven for years that frequent formative assessment cycles work. Public districts like Boston, Charlotte-Mecklenburg, and Denver have piloted similar models.
What’s different now is scalability. HISD proves the model can work at the scale of a massive urban district. Success Academies prove it can sustain excellence over time. And modern platforms prove it can be practical to implement at any school.
Texas Passes HB 8 Banning Interim Assessments
Texas has been taking notice of HISD’s gains. The Legislature has also been listening to educators and parents who are concerned by the amount of useless testing their students are subjected to.
In 2025, House Bill 8 (HB 8) was passed, effectively banning district-mandated interim assessments. The law aims to curb over-testing and restore instructional time. But it has also spotlighted the elephant in the room: interims alone were never sufficient for real instructional improvement.
For districts that built their data strategy on interims, HB 8 has created a void. But it has also created an opportunity to finally embrace the part of the Driven by Data cycle that was most often ignored—daily formative checks.
