When compared to similar schools in the state, 12 local schools
rank at or below the 30th percentile of statewide achievement,
according to statistics recently released by the California
Department of Education.
Of 23 schools in the county, 14 were compared to similar schools
statewide and 12 were given a rating of 1 or 3, translating to the
lowest 10th and 30th percentiles. Eight schools ranked in the
lowest 10th percentile.
When compared to similar schools in the state, 12 local schools rank at or below the 30th percentile of statewide achievement, according to statistics recently released by the California Department of Education.
Of 23 schools in the county, 14 were compared to similar schools statewide and 12 were given a rating of 1 or 3, translating to the lowest 10th and 30th percentiles. Eight schools ranked in the lowest 10th percentile.
The highest ranked schools were Marguerite Maze Middle and San Benito High schools, which each receiving a ranking of 5.
All schools that receive APIs are ranked in deciles by school type when compared to schools with similar characteristics. A rank of 10 is the highest and 1 is the lowest. Each decile in each school type contains 10 percent of all schools of that type. All elementary schools in the Hollister School District were ranked 1.
The rankings were part of the 2002 Academic Performance Index Base Report which used scores from the 2002 Standardized Testing and Reporting test (STAR) and the 2002 California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE). California schools were given targets to meet on this spring’s standardized testing and 2002 ranks statewide and compared to other similar schools.
Characteristics used to determine similar schools include pupil mobility, pupil ethnicity, pupil socioeconomic status, percentage of pupils who are English Language Learners and percentage of teachers who are fully credentialed.
Anita Franchi, director of educational services for the Hollister School District, attributed the low similar school rankings at the district’s elementary schools to a low number of responses to surveys that attempt to determine a school’s characteristics. The parent responses to the surveys were very low, Franchi said.
“I think the state needs to look at that,” she said. “I can’t think of anything else (that would make the similar school rankings so low).”
R.O. Hardin Elementary School received the poorest in the county, scoring a 1 in both rankings. The school has a high number of low-income students and migrant education population, according to Franchi and principal Donald Knapp. About 67 percent of R.O. Hardin students are considered low income.
“It’s a challenge, especially with particular attendance areas,” Knapp said. “But, we still need to overcome it.”
The same type of ranking is done for schools of the same type – elementary, middle and high – across the state. The highest rank in the county was an 8 – at Bitterwater-Tully Elementary, Cienega Elementary and Southside Elementary schools. These schools have student enrollment less than 150, so the scores and ranks are less reliable. R.O. Hardin ranked the lowest in the county among other schools in the state with a 1.
SBHS and Maze Middle schools ranked in the 50th percentile in both categories.
Also, many school rankings in both categories dropped compared to last year’s rankings. Sunnyslope Elementary went from a 6 and 3 in the statewide and similar school rankings last year to a 4 and 1 this year. SBHS dropped from a 6 and 7 to a 5 and 5, compared to statewide and similar schools, respectively.
2003 targets for schools
Also released in the API Base Report were the 2003 API targets for each school. The API is based on a scale of 200 to 1,000. It is based on the performance of students on the Stanford 9 as measured through national percentile rankings and on the California content standard tests as measured through performance levels in English/language arts, mathematics, and history/social science. CAHSEE results are summarized on a pass/no-pass basis.
A school’s growth target is calculated by taking 5 percent of the distance between a school’s 2002 Base API and the statewide target of 800. For any school with a 2002 Base API of 781 to 799, the annual growth target is one point. Any school with an API of 800 or more must maintain an API of at least 800.
While some schools in the county have a growth target of one point such as Cienega and Bitterwater-Tully Elementary, others have double digit targets, such as Calaveras Elementary with 10 and R.O. Hardin Elementary with 12.
The county’s 2003 API targets range from 572 at R.O. Hardin Elementary to 799 at Bitterwater-Tully Elementary.
The important thing for educators is to make sure schools are moving toward the 800 mark.
Jackie Munoz, superintendent of the Aromas-San Juan Unified School District, said the district needs to focus energy on Latino students to help increase the district’s schools rankings.
“The bottom line here is that our schools are overall meeting the needs of our white students and those socio-economically disadvantaged, but we’re not doing as well with out Latino students,” Munoz said. “… We’re all high, but 800 is the target.”
The district has put interventions into place this year to target lower-performing students, including after-school tutoring at Anzar High School twice a week and at the elementary schools. Kindergarten classes have after-school tutoring that can be an extended day. The district also has literacy review teams at school sites where every student is discussed and team members ask what services the student is receiving and where do they need improvement, Munoz said.
HSD officials are targeting students not doing well on the state test, including those with low socioeconomic status, low income, migrant education status and English Language Learners. To improve these scores, officials are focusing categorical money on English Language Learners, while implementing programs that offer more intervention, additional help outside of the school day, more materials and that focus on increasing parental involvement, Franchi said.
SBHS has also implemented programs to target areas needing improvement. They moved seventh period classes to zero period so that more students could attend after-school tutoring, said Superintendent Jean Burns Slater.
A new standard
This year, the API scores are weighted differently to focus more on the California content standard scores. For grades 2 through 8, the 2002 API base and the 2003 API targets are based 20 percent on the norm-referenced test (Sat-9, CAT 6 beginning this year) and 80 percent on the California Standards Test. This was previously 40-60, respectively. For high schools, the two are based 12 percent on norm-referenced tests, 73 percent on the California Standards Test and 15 percent on the CAHSEE. Last year, the percentages were 29 percent, 56 and 15 percent, respectively.
“I’m pleased with the change. Before, the (API) only used one test – the SAT-9, a national test,” Slater said. “Now, we’re testing what we’re teaching.”
The adjustment also encourages schools to adopt state academic standards more quickly.
“The growing emphasis on standards-based tests for accountability provides schools with a more complete picture of how well their students are learning what is being taught in California classrooms,” said Jack O’Connell, state superintendent of public instruction.
Comparative rankings
SchoolStatewide rank 2002Similar schools rank 2002
Aromas Elementary61
San Juan Elementary43
Anzar High43
Calaveras Elementary21
Cerra Vista Elementary51
Gabilan Hills Elementary31
Ladd Lane Elementary51
R.O. Hardin Elementary11
Sunnyslope Elementary41
Marguerite Maze Middle55
Rancho San Justo Middle63
Spring Grove Elementary41
San Benito High55
Southside Elementary83
All schools that receive APIs are ranked in deciles by school type when compared to schools with similar characteristics and by comparison to other schools in the state. A rank of 10 is the highest and 1 is the lowest.
Source: California Department of Education
