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UIL CSR "straight ones"

Posted by band on 4/9/2026, 8:40 am

Morning all,

First time HS director with a SNV band, have taught MS for a while. I know that the rubric changed recently and I'm hearing from other NV/SNV high school directors in my region that what used to sound good enough for "straight ones" is no longer the case. Have heard it is now more common to receive 2s mixed in with 1s. I know the group I took this year got overall 1's on stage/SR with some single 2's mixed in. I thought they played great and I expected the kids to be content but I heard grumblings from some (and parents) about it not being straight ones like in the past.

I'm hearing that it is somewhat of a trend where HS non-varsities that used to play grade 4s and 3s are now playing more grade 3s and 2s to counter the stricter standards.

Just wanting to see if this is actually a trend throughout the state or just an exaggeration ...

I personally like the strict standards (and detailed feedback on judge sheets) and enjoy the challenge of finding music that will simultaneously challenege the director/kids but is not beyond their capabilities (easier said than done!), but the pressure from a community that is used to straight ones is definitely eating at me

Thanks for reading and any honest opinions

Re: UIL CSR "straight ones"

Posted by Curious on 4/10/2026, 9:55 am, in reply to "UIL CSR "straight ones""

I'm not going to sit here and critique directors for choosing lower grade PML pieces (I don't think you are, either). If working up a 3 and a 2 will allow the kids to play at the standards required for a first division, then maybe that's what they need to play. If I was a judge, and I am not, I would rather hear bands play pieces that they can play well instead of straining for a more challenging piece that they aren't ready for yet.

Re: UIL CSR "straight ones"

Posted by eh on 4/10/2026, 8:20 am, in reply to "UIL CSR "straight ones""

I am close with someone who judges a lot. Hes one of the "old dogs" and what he has told me is that he feels like the new system does not allow judges to give the benefit of the doubt, or go back and adjust something before submitting. His opinion was that it's hard to be subjective when sometimes it is necessary and that he thinks there will be more 2's in the mix.
I think the other side of that would be that this makes the system a little more uniform and forces the judges to address each criteria whereas before things often got ignored. In time, I would imagine judges will get the feel for it and still use their judgement as they typically do in many cases.

Re: UIL CSR "straight ones"

Posted by Hmm on 4/9/2026, 6:46 pm, in reply to "UIL CSR "straight ones""

Rubric didn't change. Judges must address all areas of the rubric though. There are 15 total topics to address. I think they will lead to more judging scrutiny.

Re: UIL CSR "straight ones"

Posted by DesertJazz on 4/9/2026, 10:26 pm, in reply to "Re: UIL CSR "straight ones""

I predicted this when the system began being used like that. It's not a bad thing, but it forces a judge to identify every individual descriptor now, whereas before you just had Tone/Technique/Musicianship (? - I may not be accurate on the boxes) with the plus or minus you may or may not have used. There was not a clear impact on the rating.

Now it selects a rating for you on the screen. You can move it one higher if you wish, but the good thing is you can't move it lower without changing your descriptors. (I consider that part a positive for justifying lower ratings)

The other piece of the puzzle you may be experiencing is that with the retired group from pre-COVID, I think there are some disconnects with the post-COVID situations that evolved. We're finally seeing some normalcy in our sixth graders, but reading and everything has been lower in the 7th-9th grade group. That's had an impact in music reading/skills too!

Re: UIL CSR "straight ones"

Posted by Respectfully on 4/13/2026, 7:40 am, in reply to "Re: UIL CSR "straight ones""

Just wait. This year's 5th grade is out of control - they're the ones who had virtual kindergarten, and they never learned how to get along or learn in a school environment.

And it shows.

Re: UIL CSR "straight ones"

Posted by help on 4/13/2026, 3:56 pm, in reply to "Re: UIL CSR "straight ones""

I agree. My 5th grade is unlike any group I have taught and I have been teaching 20 plus years.

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