Costa Mesa test scores make giant leap

Danette Goulet

NEWPORT-MESA -- While two Newport Beach schools earned the highest

statewide rankings in the county, it is the leaps and bounds by which

many Costa Mesa school scores improved that have district officials

cheering.

“Isn’t it great?” cried trustee Martha Fluor. “We’re doing something

right. Those principals and their staffs are doing something right. There

were some major, major, major gains.”

The Academic Performance Index (API) is the system mandated by Gov.

Gray Davis’ Public Schools Accountability Act of 1999 that ranks each

public school based on student performance.

Statewide, 6,209 schools received a score between 200 and 1,000, based

on the results of the Stanford 9 test taken by students in spring.

The state has set a target score of 800 for every school. Each school

ranked below 800 is required to improve their score by a fixed percentage

each year until they reach 800. Schools that receive 800 or higher are

expected to maintain or improve each year.

When the first API rankings came out in January, only six of

Newport-Mesa’s 26 schools were at or above that target, leaving 20

schools with a set number of points by which to improve this year.

Of the district’s 20 elementary schools, five remained above 800,

three failed to improve by the required amount and the remaining 12 met

or, in most cases, far exceeded their expected growth.

Both Ensign Intermediate and TeWinkle Middle School also improved

their ranking well beyond their assigned target.

The four high schools, however, were split. Two exceeded their target

growth and two fell far short.

“We need to focus on the fact that there might be a segment of the

population that might need more attention academically,” said Supt.

Robert Barbot of the drop in scores at Newport Harbor and Costa Mesa high

schools.

While district officials are conferring on the high school failings,

they are celebrating Harbor View Elementary School’s victory as the

highest-ranking school in the county, with Andersen Elementary a close

second.

But their real cause for elation are the heavily scrutinized schools

on Costa Mesa’s West Side, which improved by double, triple and in one

case, 10 times the required number of points.

With a set goal of improving by nine points, Sonora Elementary School

took the challenge head on and improved its ranking by 90 points -- one

of the biggest leaps in the county.

“We were very excited,” said Lorie Hoggard, principal of Sonora. “We

were expecting to see a lot of growth because we saw a lot of growth on

test scores. But we were surprised to see how much that translates into.”

The marked improvement is less surprising when Hoggard relates her

secrets of success, which included her personal knowledge on a daily

basis about every child’s reading level.

“We implemented a lot of intervention,” Hoggard said. “We didn’t want

any kids to slip through the cracks, and since we are a small school --

kindergarten through third grade -- we made a commitment that no kids

would slip through the cracks.”

Although Sonora improved by the most points, it was by no means alone

in surpassing expectations.

Rea Elementary School exceeded its goal of improving by 16 points and

jumped 83. Whittier Elementary ignored its needed 15-point gain and

increased its ranking by 73 points.

The list goes on and on.

The index measures performance on four or five content areas. For

students in grades two through eight, 40% is based on mathematics, 30% on

reading, 15% on language and 15% on spelling.

For grades nine through 11, performance is based evenly on the five

content areas of math, reading, language, history/social science and

science.

The purpose is to determine which schools are doing well and deserve

rewards, and which are not meeting students’ academic needs and are

eligible to participate in the state interventionprogram.

Schools that exceeded the target increases will be eligible for up to

$150 per student in additional state funding and other recognition awards

from the state.

Last year, Whittier was among 430 schools that volunteered to take

part in the $96-million intervention program.

This year, College Park Elementary in Costa Mesa is one of hundreds of

schools eligible to apply for the intervention program.

By applying, schools are stating that they need financial help to

improve test scores.

In return, schools face strict penalties if they do not improve. These

schools, along with any school that does not increase its score annually,

will face serious sanctions, including closure.

QUESTION

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