Pleasanton scores tops in achievement tests Pleasanton scores tops in achievement tests (March 12, 2004)

Trustee shows concern at differences within district
by Jeb Bing

Pleasanton public schools scored in the top ranks of state achievement tests for the 2003 base year at the same that the California Standards Test is being recognized as the best and most rigorous in the nation.

All of the city's 14 elementary, middle and high schools achieved well above the 800 mark which, on a scale from 200 to 1,000, is considered "exemplary," according to Cengiz Gulek, the school district's Director of Assessment and Evaluation.

"All of our schools scored well above the target that the state has set, with Mohr Elementary achieving the highest score at 935," Gulek said.

The other eight elementary schools in Pleasanton also achieved high test scores, with Donlon, the lowest locally, still above the 800 level for excellence by 68 points. Like the grade schools, both the city's three middle schools and two comprehensive high schools scored above the 800 mark, placing them in the state's highest Number 10 rank.

An analysis of the scores, the API results were the lowest at the high schools, which also have the largest student enrollments, with Amador Valley High School scores weighing in at 821, 4 points above Foothill's 817. Village High School, because of its small enrollment, is not part of the API annual evaluation.

The three middle schools scored in the upper 800s, with Pleasanton Middle School at 872, Hart at 869 and Harvest Park at 854.

"Look at Valley View Elementary," said School Superintendent John Casey. "It was one of our lower-scoring schools and now has a high achievement of 881. The teachers there rallied to boost the school's test scores, and look at what they did this year."

Casey said he wasn't surprised by the school's earlier problems because it has an ethnically-mixed student enrollment.

"We have Spanish students at the school who are learning to speak English and a number of English-speaking students who are learning to speak Spanish," he said. "It takes a while to move test scores up."

Looking at several of the elementary schools that appear to be moving ahead more rapidly in test scores, school board member Patrick Kernan expressed concern over the differences.

"While coming in over 800 is great, we are starting to see some spread in the numbers for different schools," he said. "This concerns me. We need to keep an eye on these numbers so that we don't start getting some specialty schools in our district."

The API figures, released by the California Department of Education, compare schools by API test scores in each school district and in statewide categories based on similar demographics. This ranking is known as the "Similar Schools Rank," which includes characteristics such as pupil mobility, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, percentage of teachers with full and emergency credentials and average class size.

"Comparison with the previously released API scores show how we are doing compared to other schools facing the same challenges," Casey explained. "Even though we are among the top 10 percent in the state, we still will strive to compare well with schools similar to ours in student population."

Gulek said that the California Standards Tests continue to gain more weight in calculating the value of API scores.

"The California standards are considered among the most rigorous in the nation," he said. "As we continue to implement the standards-based curriculum to align district-based assessments with state standards, I believe we will see improved API scores."

2

E-mail a friend a link to this story.