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Lower school scores jump, high falls
by Brian Simon
Center Street School and El Segundo Middle School recorded identical scores of 854 in the recently released Academic Performance Index (API). Center Street improved five points over last year while Middle School jumped 28 points.
Both schools compared favorably with their South Bay counterparts. Only three of 23 South Bay middle schools — in Manhattan, Hermosa and Palos Verdes — scored higher than El Segundo’s.
El Segundo High School dropped 11 points to 776.
Richmond Street School did not qualify for API ranking because it opened a year ago and the index is based on multi-year comparisons.
The API measures academic performance on a scale of 200 to 1,000. Scores are based on results from the spring 2000 and 2001 Stanford 9 tests. The state has set 800 as the target for all schools. Schools that didn’t reach 800 last year were given growth targets.
Superintendent Wendy Doty said she was extremely pleased with the scores.
"Our teachers did a great job of aligning the curriculum to state standards and their focus produced outstanding results," she said.
Though Doty would like to have seen the high school reach the 800 mark, she said she wasn’t overly concerned with the slight drop.
With few exceptions statewide, high school scores are lower than middle schools, she pointed out.
"I think this is due to an anomaly in the tests," Doty said. "Different people wrote the tests for the 9-11 grades and the scoring system is not the same as what is used for the 2-8 grade students. It does not allow for a smooth transition."
Stanford 9 tests have been the only measuring criteria for the API so far. Next year, the state will factor in results from the California Standards English Test and may also eventually incorporate high school exit exams. ER