Thread: Scores by Escondido's English learners a concern

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/08 ... _16_06.txt

Last modified Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Scores by Escondido's English learners a concern

By: PAUL EAKINS - Staff Writer

ESCONDIDO ---- The key to bringing up standardized test scores in Escondido schools rests largely with the city's Latino students, especially those still learning English, school officials say.

Many of these students are still scoring below grade level in math and English on standardized tests, according to a report released this week.

On Tuesday, the California Department of Education released its Standardized Testing and Reporting program, or STAR, containing state, county, district and school results.


The report tells what percentage of students were at grade level, indicated by a score in the proficient or advanced categories, in math and English on standardized tests.

Students in second through 11th grades take the tests every spring, and the results directly affect later state and federal school accountability reports, to be released this month.

Opinions of district officials about the results reflected those expressed Tuesday by state Education Department officials, who lauded statewide student improvements, but also said they were concerned about the ever-present achievement gap between minority students and their peers.

"It still shows that there is a significant gap between the English learners and the other students in the district, but it also shows that there is growth across the board," said Brenda Jones, assistant superintendent of educational services for the Escondido Union School District, the city's large elementary district. "To me, what I want to see is growth. The critical piece is growth."

Escondido's students improved over last year in most elementary and middle school grades, with most proficiency percents in the 30s or 40s on the California Standards Test, the primary test that determines the state report's results.

One high point was the eighth-grade algebra I proficiency that jumped from 33 percent in 2005 to 55 percent in 2006.

But groups such as Latinos and English learners lagged.

And in a district where more than 60 percent of the 18,400 students are Latino and almost half don't speak English as their first language, according to Department of Education statistics, the success of these students on standardized tests is critical to the district's success, officials said.

The percent of Latino students who scored proficient or advanced in English was mostly in the 20s. Math scores were mostly higher, with scores in the 30s and even 42 percent in second grade, although sixth and seventh grades were 17 percent and 25 percent, respectively.

Among the district's English learners, most of whom are Latino as well, scores were much lower in most cases, with the lowest proficiency scores in middle school math and English.

Only 5 percent of sixth-grade English learners, and 6 percent of the seventh- and eighth-graders, scored proficient or advanced in English, the report said.

The city's 8,100-student high school district faces similar challenges, although this time around, it didn't have the marked overall improvements that the elementary district did.

More than half of the high school district's students are Latino, though only about 18 percent are English learners, Department of Education statistics asserted.

Since 2002, Escondido's English scores have been mostly flat, with only ninth-graders showing a significant gain of 9 percent to reach a score of 43 percent proficiency in the 2005-06 academic year.

"Overall, it's the same or close to the same," Sharon von Maier, director of curriculum and assessment for the high school district, said when comparing the 2005 scores with the 2006 scores. "There's just shifts at certain grade levels. A little bump up or a little bump down."

Algebra I scores have improved over the last three years, from 14 percent proficiency among ninth-graders in 2004 to 26 percent proficiency in 2006.

The 2006 report also said that Latino high school students had a proficiency percent mostly in the teens and 20s for English and math, but English learners struggled much more, with only 6 percent of ninth-graders, 2 percent of 10th-graders and 1 percent of 11th-graders in proficient or advanced categories.

All of these proficiency scores, not only of the overall student population, but also of groups such as Latinos, blacks and English learners, affect whether schools excel on upcoming state school accountability reports that expect schools to show improvement.

The proficiency scores also determine whether elementary and middle schools meet federal requirements under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.

Schools that receive federal money for low-income students could face sanctions if they fail to meet the requirements.

"The most critical subgroup element that ultimately determines that for our district is how the English learners are doing," Superintendent Jennifer Walters of the elementary district said.

Von Maier said that she expects the high school district to improve enough to meet its state requirements.

Meanwhile, the one-school San Pasqual Union School District just east of Escondido was more successful, according to the report, with proficiency percents in the 60s or 70s in most grades in math and English. The 575-student district is about 29 percent Latino with approximately 100 of them learning English.

Latino proficiency scores ranged from 36 percent to 58 percent by grade in English, and 37 percent to 78 percent in math, the report says. Scores by English learner ranged from 17 percent to 45 percent in English, and from 41 percent to 61 percent in math.

-- Contact staff writer Paul Eakins at (760) 740-5420 or peakins@nctimes.com.

They have some interesting comments at the end of the articles on the nctimes web site.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/08 ... _15_06.txt

Escondido students struggle with math, English proficiency

By: PAUL EAKINS - Staff Writer

ESCONDIDO ---- Most of Escondido's students did not meet state goals in math and English last school year, but elementary and middle school students appear to be improving, according to a state report released Tuesday.

In the city's 18,400-student elementary district, less than half of the students in almost every grade had passing math and English scores based on standardized tests, the report states. But most grades did have increases over last year in the percentage of students who are meeting the state requirements.


"Anytime where there's a gain in student achievement, it lets us know that our improvement plans and all the hard work of our employees are paying off," Superintendent Jennifer Walters said.

The Standardized Testing and Reporting program, or STAR, is a report based on standardized tests that students in grades two through 11 must take each spring.

All students are tested on their proficiency in English and math skills, and students in certain grades also are tested in other areas such as science and history.

The report shows the percentage of students considered to be performing at or above grade level in each subject area, a measure that directly affects other state and federal school accountability reports to be released later this month. The proficiency scores will largely determine whether some schools end up facing federal sanctions under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

The test scores are reported as a percentage of students who exceed state-defined educational standards (advanced), meet the standards (proficient), are close to meeting the standards (basic), not meeting the standards (below basic) and not even close (far below basic).

The North County Times looked specifically at three grade levels from elementary, middle and high school in order to take a snapshot of how area districts compare to others. The English and math results from fourth, seventh and tenth grade were examined, in part because the fourth- and seventh-grade tests included a writing section for the first time.

Comparing the scores each year reveals little about the improvement of individual students because the student makeup of each grade changes every year. But the scores provide an overall snapshot of the schools' performance.

This year, that snapshot has improved for Escondido's elementary district.

For example, in fourth grade, 43 percent of students scored proficient in English, an increase of 3 percentage points from last year, and 48 percent scored proficient in math, an increase of 2 points from last year, the report says. Seventh-graders scored 41 percent in English, the same as last year, and 37 percent in math, an increase of 4 points.

One of the lowest scores in the district was the third-grade English proficiency of 28 percent, still an increase of four points over last year, the report says.

And the district still needs to raise the scores of struggling students such as those still learning to speak English, Walters said. By seventh grade, just 6 percent of students learning English as a second language earned proficient scores.

"We still have a long ways to go in terms of closing our achievement gap and getting all of our students to be proficient," Walters said.

Students didn't fare as well in the 8,100-student Escondido Union High School District, where most scores were below 50 percent and some saw decreases from last year.

While 43 percent of ninth-graders scored at grade level in English, this was a drop of 2 percentage points over last year, and was still far higher than the 34 percent and 33 percent English proficiency achieved by 10th-graders and 11th-graders respectively, the report says. Since 2002, these scores have fluctuated, with ninth-graders showing an increase from that year of 9 percent, 10th-graders dropping 2 points since 2002, and 11th-graders increasing proficiency by 3 percent.

Math scores are more difficult to compare at the high school level because students take a variety of standardized math tests depending on what level they have reached in school.

Although ninth-graders who are on track for college should take geometry, according to officials at the San Diego County Office of Education, only 17.5 percent of the district's students tested in geometry. Of those, 47 percent scored proficient or above.

Far more ninth-graders ---- about 60 percent ---- tested in Algebra I, which is generally an eighth-grade course, with 26 percent scoring proficient or above.

Karen Rizzi, assistant superintendent of educational services, said decreases in the percentage of students at grade level isn't what district officials want, but that a few percentage points change can be simply a statistical anomaly.

-- Contact staff writer Paul Eakins at (760) 740-5420 or peakins@nctimes.com.