The sections a student is required to take are not the same each year. For instance, a student is not required to write an essay each year. However, math and a reading/writing section are always part of the exam. It is stated that the TAKS test is not timed. However, students are required by many schools to turn in their tests after about ten hours of testing. Sections including essay or short answer portions are taken in February to allow extra time for grading. Students in the 11th grade must pass a section each of Math, English Language Arts (or ELA, a combination of reading/writing), Science, and Social Studies. In fact, from grades 9 to 11, students follow the same regimen, except that no essay is required in 9th grade. The math and science tests allow the use of calculators along with formula charts that contain various formulae
According to a Nov. 27, 2006 article in the Houston Chronicle, lawmakers are considering doing away with TAKS during the January 2007 legislative session (probably for 2009-2010, according to some news reports) and substituting state-wide End Of Course tests in the upper grades instead.