Dallas ISD is hosting orientation for 800 new teachers this week. Dallas ISD's first day of school is August 12.
Superintendent Stephani Elizalde says Dallas ISD has cut the number of campuses graded "F" from 24 to three. She says the number of campuses with an "A" has increased from 30 to 60.
"Everything shouldn't rest on assessents because each and every one of us and every one of our students is way more than a test score, but the truth is tests are important, and they do play a role," she told teachers.
She said African American, bilingual and low income students are scoring better than the state average in 80 percent of categories.
A new teacher from Jamaica who will be teaching dual language classes says she still remembers teachers she had as a kid and hopes to have the same impact on others.
"Eighty years later, somebody might say, 'You taught me to do this,'" she says. "You can't remember, but the fact they always remember what you did for them is amazing. Students may not remember what you say or what you do, but they always remember how you made them feel."
She says she looks forward to a cultural exchange to take back to Jamaica.
"You don't just learn the customs, you learn the culture. You learn the different nuances," she says. "Texas is like the place to be. People here are friendly and excited to meet new people."
Elizalde says the district is also preparing for changes to state law that require the Ten Commandments to be posted in each classroom and a ban on cell phones among students.
"The laws have been written, and we are absolutely going to ensure we are always in compliance with the laws," she says. "That's one of the interesting things about public education is we get to have an opportunity to discuss what freedom of speech is. Whether you agree or disagree with any given law does not mean you don't support it."
On cell phones, Elizalde says some schools in Dallas had already started trying out bans.
"There is a lot of credible research that talks about the dangers of social media and how cell phones play a role," she says. "The cell phone itself isn't the issue, it's the accessibility to that social media on their cell phones."
Dallas ISD has a total of 139,000 students in 228 schools.