SBCSS News and Press Releases

County Schools Make Record Gains On State Accountability Report

2009-09-15

SAN BERNARDINO - A record number of additional schools from San Bernardino County - 40 - reached the state standard of 800 and the number of 900 schools countywide doubled this year from 2008, according to results released today by the California Department of Education in its annual Accountability Progress Report (APR).

The number of schools countywide that have reached the state standard of 800 climbed to a record 147. These growth numbers are one component of the report as part of the Academic Performance Index (API), the state's annual accountability measurement that rates schools and districts on a scale of 200 to 1,000 with the benchmark of 800 that all schools and districts are looking to exceed. The state accountability report also includes federal Adequate Yearly Progress and federal Program Improvement data.

For API growth countywide, schools grew 17 points, the second-highest growth rate since the statewide testing began in 1999. With an overall API score of 734, county schools have increased 126 points since 1999 and have shown growth in nine of the last 10 annual reports.

"Certainly, these reports show that outstanding progress is being made, and I want to congratulate our districts, schools, teachers, student and staff for the gains they have made," County Superintendent Gary Thomas said.

For the first time since state testing began, county schools exceeded the state averages with 61 percent of county schools meeting all of their API growth targets. Only 58 percent of schools statewide met all their API growth targets. High schools in the county made the biggest improvement in making their API growth targets, improving 16 points - nearly double the passage rate from 2008.

Also for the first time, county schools also bettered the statewide averages for those that showed overall API growth with 80 percent of schools in the county increasing their API scores. Statewide, 76 percent of schools showed growth. Again, high schools showed the most improvement, increasing 13 points to 80 percent showing API growth, well ahead of the state average of 73 percent.

"These are truly remarkable results, and I am pleased to see the growth taking place, particularly with our high schools," Thomas said.

The top individual schools in the county that showed the most API growth this year are:

• Public Safety Academy (a charter school) in the San Bernardino City Unified School District, 97 points of API growth;
• Henry Elementary, Rialto Unified, 92 points;
• (tie) Euclid Elementary, Ontario-Montclair, and Alder Middle, Fontana Unified, 80 points;
• Joshua Tree Elementary, Morongo Unified, 79 points.

There were 10 more schools countywide that for the first time reached 900 in API growth, matching the total number of schools that have reached that standard in the previous 10 years of testing. The new 900 schools are:

• Sixth Street Prep (938 API growth), Galileo Academy (912) and Endeavour School (901), Victor Elementary School District;
• Stork Elementary, Alta Loma, 918;
• Grapeland School, Etiwanda, 917;
• Butterfield Ranch Elementary (913) and Wickman Elementary (912), Chino Valley Unified;
• Pepper Tree Elementary (910), Valencia Elementary (907) and Magnolia Elementary (904), Upland Unified.

There continues to be a disconnect between the number of schools in California that meet the statewide API standards, but do no make the federal AYP. Nineteen percent of schools countywide that met API standards, but did not meet AYP. That compares to 16 percent of all California schools.

Next year, AYP's Annual Measurable Objectives - performance targets for English language arts (ELA) and math - will rise again about 11 percentage points and continue to increase until 2014 when 100 percent of students need to be proficient in both ELA and math. As the AYP performance targets continue to increase, the gap between schools making statewide growth in API compared to those reaching AYP targets figures to widen even more.

That also was reflected this year in Program Improvement (PI), where 29 more county schools entered Year 1, more than double from last year.

"It's troubling, especially as we go forward, as more and more of our schools and districts move into Program Improvement," County Superintendent Thomas said. "On one hand, we are seeing gains and progress made in the state's growth model, but we are seeing the opposite take place in terms of PI where more and more of our schools undoubtedly will enter into federal intervention program for failing schools."

More than half the districts (17) in the county are now in Program Improvement, including four new districts this year. Among them is the Cucamonga Elementary School District, which doesn't have any of its four schools in PI, and yet it is in PI as a district.

Among individual schools this year, five county schools exited PI this year. Three of those schools were in Year 4 (Hinkley Elementary in Barstow Unified and Roosevelt Elementary in San Bernardino City Unified) and Year 5 (Crestline Elementary in Barstow). Crestline becomes the first county school to ever exit Year 5 of Program Improvement and one of only four schools statewide to exit from Year 5 this year. In addition, there were only seven schools statewide that exited PI in Year 4, including the two from San Bernardino County.

Other highlights for county schools in this year's state accountability report:

• Hispanic and African American subgroups increased their API growth scores. Hispanic students improved 3 points to 76 percent meeting API growth targets. African American students improved 5 points to 65 percent meeting their API targets.
• There also was improvement for both socioeconomically disadvantage students, as well as English learners. Socioeconomically disadvantaged students improved 4 points to 76 percent meeting their API targets. English learners jumped 10 points to 76 percent meeting their API targets.
• Fontana Unified had the most schools hit the state standard of 800 for the API for the first time with seven achieving the goal. Prior to this year, Sierra Lakes Elementary was the only 800 school in the district.
• Upland Unified and Victor Elementary School District had their first three 900 schools this year. With 18 schools in the county with API growth scores of 900 or better, Chino Valley has the most 900 schools in the county with six. The district is home to the school with the county's largest API, Edwin Rhodes Elementary, with an API of 965, an improvement of 22 points from 2008.
• The county's API growth of 17 points was the second-largest in 11 years the state has done testing. The biggest increase was 22 points in 2001.

To see individual school, district and county results for API, AYP and PI, visit the California Department of Education's Web site at www.cde.ca.gov.

2008-09 Accountability Progress Report (APR) Statewide Accountability: Academic Performance Index (API) 2009 Growth Results.