Golden Meadows El, Garland TX - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Golden Meadows El

Golden Meadows Elementary sits in Garland, a mature, built-out North Texas city east of Dallas where manufacturing, distribution, and retail anchor the local economy. The school serves pre-K through fifth grade in a neighborhood with older tree-lined streets and mid-century ranch homes mixed with newer planned-community builds. Housing in the area is relatively affordable for the Dallas-Fort Worth market, though property values have edged down slightly year-over-year. The school sits within Garland ISD, which has undergone significant change in recent years: the district closed and consolidated several elementary campuses due to declining enrollment, and voters approved a bond in 2023 to modernize aging facilities and a tax rate increase in 2025 to close a budget gap and fund operations. Freeman Elementary students moved to Golden Meadows' location in 2024-25 as part of this consolidation.

The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial share of students from Black and Asian backgrounds and a small white enrollment. An overwhelming majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the school's location in an economically under-resourced community. The school's enrollment is small to moderate for its grade band, with the largest cohorts in upper elementary and relatively smaller groups in pre-K and second grade.

Academic performance across Golden Meadows shows mixed results. In math, students in grades three and four reach the proficiency threshold at roughly equivalent rates, while fifth graders show somewhat lower performance. In English language arts, third graders fall below proficiency, fourth graders perform at a similar low level, and fifth graders show notably stronger results, reaching above the proficiency mark. Science proficiency, measured only in fifth grade, is quite low. Across all tested areas, the school's overall proficiency index ranks in the top quartile among districts in Dallas County, a position that reflects strength relative to many peer schools facing similar economic conditions, though it does not mean every individual student is meeting grade-level benchmarks. The school's aggregate performance suggests some students advance with solid skill development while others do not meet proficiency—a pattern worth exploring with the school directly about instructional support, assessment practices, and intervention programs.

The district has adopted an explicit, structured curriculum framework aligned to state standards and uses STAAR interim assessments alongside i-Ready diagnostics to track progress. These moves indicate a focus on systematic instruction and frequent assessment, which may be visible in classroom routines and parent communication.

The school offers the standard elementary program. Details on specialized offerings such as enrichment tracks, accelerated pathways, or language immersion were not available. Parents wanting to understand available programs and supports, including services for students not yet at proficiency, would benefit from contacting the school directly. Golden Meadows fits families seeking an economically integrated, neighborhood-based elementary with a predominantly Latino peer environment in an affordable area of the Dallas metro, provided they can ascertain the school's specific instructional and support model matches their child's needs.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 360%

School 60% · District 30% · ▲ 30 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 460%

School 60% · District 21% · ▲ 39 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 553%

School 53% · District 52% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 340%

School 40% · District 54% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 445%

School 45% · District 39% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 563%

School 63% · District 62% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Science

Grade 530%

School 30% · District 26% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

This schoolGARLAND ISD, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 5Lower-income47%Higher-income60%13 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income60%Higher-income50%10 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income53%Higher-income86%33 pp gap