LAUSD hits new low on API
L.A. Daily News 3/28/07
The LAUSD's elementary and middle school students made steady progress on tests that measure math and English-language skills, but still were well below the statewide averages, according to a California Department of Education report released Tuesday.
In a telephone interview from Washington, D.C., where he is lobbying for more federal money for education, Superintendent David Brewer III said the high-school score reflects the stubborn achievement gap between white and minority students.
"Seventy-two percent of our population is Latino and about 8 percent is African-American and nationwide (they) are underperforming in math and science," Brewer said. "That's a reflection of that population."
Brewer also noted that growth of Los Angeles' public elementary schools continues to outpace that of the state, and that middle-school scores rose faster than the state for the first time since the test was implemented.
"That demonstrates that the programs are now taking effect in middle schools, but at the high-school levels we clearly have some tough work to do."
Other Los Angeles Unified officials attributed the decline in high-school scores to changes in how the results were analyzed, noting that science, history and social-science tests were given more weight in calculating the averages.
But that didn't explain why the statewide average rose from 680 to 693 from 2005 to '06, while it dropped from 622 to 602 for high-school students in Los Angeles Unified.
Esther Wong, the district's assistant superintendent of planning, assessment and research, suggested that the drop could be related to the number of new high-school campuses that opened last year.
"They're brand new and haven't had a chance to work with their group of students," Wong said. "And the rigor of the API continues to increase what our students are expected to know and it's getting harder and harder to move up."
Brewer and other Los Angeles Unified officials expressed optimism that students will benefit from the creation of more than 300 "small learning communities" that allow students to receive more personalized attention.
"I think with these scores, it reinforces what we know: we have serious challenges in the secondary level," school board member Monica Garcia said. "These efforts tell the public the school district is aware of the challenges and we're moving forward aggressively."
A total of 115 of the more than 600 Los Angeles Unified schools met or exceeded the state benchmark of 800, up from 96 in the 2005 testing, and from 68 in 2004.
By comparison, about 40 percent of the schools in neighboring Ventura County posted scores of 800 or better, up from 33 percent last year.
"I am confident that the staff, students and parents of our Ventura County schools will continue in their efforts to help all students succeed," said Charles Weis, Ventura County's schools superintendent.
A spokeswoman for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, whose administration has made education reform its No. 1 goal, said the lagging LAUSD scores affirm the need for change.
"Only with a real sense of urgency and a commitment to excellence and accountability will these low test scores start to improve and our schools start to compete," spokeswoman Janelle Erickson said.
API scoring
The Academic Performance Index shows how each school performs academically compared with other schools. It is used to determine whether California schools are meeting federal benchmarks set by the No Child Left Behind Act, President George W. Bush's education-reform initiative.
Scores range from 200 to 1,000 points, with 800 being the goal of all schools, as well as for all subgroups within each school, including minority, disabled and disadvantaged students, and English-language learners.
In previous years, target scores for the subgroups were lower because the students were already struggling to achieve proficiency. This year, however, the goals for the subgroups were as rigorous as for the overall student body: 5 percent of the difference between a subgroup's score and the target of 800, with improvement of at least five points each year.
"While our schools are showing steady overall progress, I am deeply concerned that significant gaps exist between the API results for different subgroups of students," state Superintendent Jack O'Connell said.
"I have begun an intensive effort to find ways to close the gap that exists between successful students - who are often white or Asian and financially well off - and struggling students - who are too often poor, Hispanic, African-American, English-learners, or with a disability."
Brewer said he also hopes that No Child Left Behind will be amended to give districts and individual schools more flexibility in meeting the subgroup targets, particularly with English-language learners.
"Children are not machines," he said. "We have to make sure we give them enough time to get up to speed ... without having to call them failures."