High Desert School Scores Produce Mixed Results
By Emily Berg, Staff Writer
VICTORVILLE - High Desert schools produced mixed results in student achievement, falling short of other California schools on the state's annual performance index, but meeting federal requirements at a rate higher than state schools overall, according to state and federal benchmarks for schools released Tuesday.
The California Department of Education released its Academic Performance Index that rates schools on a scale of 200 to 1,000 based on standardized tests and the federal Adequate Yearly Progress.
The federal benchmark considers graduation rates, whether a school met the API and whether all subgroups - ethnic, socio-economic, special education and non-English speaking students - reached "proficient" in English/language arts and math.
Nearly a third of local schools' scores dropped on the state rating compared to scores the year before.
Only 56 percent of High Desert schools showed improvement, compared to 64 percent statewide.
The state's average dropped significantly from the previous year, when 90 percent of California schools showed improvement, according to the state.
Local schools performed just below the county level, where 57 percent of schools showed improvement, according to the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools office.
Local schools did meet their federal requirements at a higher rate than the state, however. About 66 percent met all the components under the federal system compared to 64 percent statewide, according to the state.
In the county, 59 percent of the schools met the federal requirements, according to county schools.
Adequate Yearly Progress is part of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Schools that are not on track to have all students "proficient" in English/language arts and math by 2014 are placed on "program improvement" status.
Schools on "program improvement" status must implement changes. They also must notify parents of the status and allow students to transfer to another school.
Results can be confusing
The results of the two systems can be confusing because they don't always match. A school can improve greatly on the state API system and still not meet federal requirements.
Victor Valley Union High School District is an example.
All of the district's schools improved at least 15 points on the state rating, but only two passed all of the federal components, according to the state.
"Our APIs are really excellent," said Diana Asseier, the assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction.
Cobalt Middle School increased 48 points on the state system, giving it the highest score in the district, but it didn't pass the federal requirements.
The school's African-American subgroup of about 107 students didn't meet the proficient level in math. At least 16 percent had to meet the proficient level, Asseier said.
"It's kind of weird because (the schools') scores are really good," she said.
Victor Valley and Silverado high schools didn't meet the federal requirements for the special-education students, Asseier said.
Special-education students will go to school longer this year, with an extra period to give them the help they need, Asseier said.
In contrast, the Adelanto School District saw a decrease in most of its schools' state scores, with a total district drop of four points, but many met the federal requirements, according to the state.
All of Lucerne Valley Unified School District's schools' scores dropped this year. Overall, the district's score dropped 11 points to 594 on the state system.
The district started new reading, spelling and math programs last year to help the students, and officials aren't sure why the scores dropped, said Jim Wheeler, the superintendent.
"Obviously something is wrong," Wheeler said.
Some of the schools were under the wrong category, but Wheeler didn't know if that affected the results.
The schools are small, which makes it easy for results to vary. Lucerne Valley Middle School only has about 60 students in each grade, Wheeler said.
"When the sample gets small, it gets skewed very quickly," he said.
Helendale School District, also a small district, saw great gains at its two schools. It also has the highest district-wide score in the High Desert, increasing 29 points to 760, according to the state.
High-scoring schools
Snowline Joint Unified School District has the highest-scoring school in the area. Heritage School in Phelan - a kindergarten through eighth-grade school - scored 874 on the state's rating.
The district is also home to the school that showed the most growth in the area. Chaparral High School, a continuation high school in Phelan, increased 126 points on the API, from 499 to 625, according to the state.
"We certainly didn't anticipate that," said Jim Canter, the assistant superintendent of curriculum, instruction and personnel services for the district.
Chaparral High School has a large number of students that transfer in and out. The teachers have consistently used curriculum that aligns with the other schools' standards-based curriculum, Canter said.
The district saw good results in attaining federal requirements, with 10 of its 13 schools meeting all the components, Canter said.
It also had the highest-scoring middle school in the High Desert. Quail Valley Middle School scored 764 on the API, according to the state.
The Academy for Academic Excellence, the charter school at the Lewis Center for Educational Research in Apple Valley, had the highest score of High Desert high schools. It increased its score by 29 points, to 755, according to the state.
Emily Berg can be reached at emily_berg@link.freedom.com or 955-5358.
Used with permission by the Daily Press, Freedom Communication, 2004