Newport-Mesa boosts API scores

Deirdre Newman

NEWPORT-MESA -- Harbor View Elementary School earned the county’s

highest Academic Performance Index score for the second year in a row and

a majority of district schools improved by a substantial margin, with at

least one Costa Mesa school posting gains of 12%.

“Obviously we’re absolutely thrilled,� said Harbor View Elementary

parent Michelle Mutzke, upon hearing of the school’s impressive showing

among elementary schools.

The API scores, officially released Monday, are based on the Stanford

9 test taken last spring, which covers language arts and math. The API is

a numeric index ranging from a low of 200 to a high of 1,000. As the

foundation of the statewide accountability system, the scores will be

converted into statewide rankings within the next few months.

In addition to gaining academic cachet, schools that post a certain

amount of growth are also eligible for financial awards. Financial

assistance is available for some low-performing schools as well.

Peggy Anatol, the district’s director for assessment, applauded the

double-digit growth that many of the schools displayed but said there is

also room for improvement, especially among subgroups such as Latino

students and economically disadvantaged students.

Harbor View posted a county-best score of 936. The next highest was

Canyon View Elementary in Irvine at 928, followed closely by Corona del

Mar’s Andersen Elementary at 923.

In Newport-Mesa, 71% of the elementary schools increased their

academic performance, along with 50% of middle schools and 75% of high

schools. Statewide, 75% of schools saw an increase in their API scores.

Wilson Elementary School received the honorable distinction of

experiencing the most growth -- API scores there jumped by 56 points, or

about 12%, from 479 to 535.

Candy Sperling, Wilson’s principal, attributes the success to careful

analysis and tweaking of curriculum.

“It means hard work pays off,� Wilson said. “Our staff worked

extremely hard this past year looking at tailoring our program so it was

exactly what the kids needed.�

One new strategy Wilson teaches are employing is Project GLAD --

Guided Language Acquisition Design -- which delivers lessons in a

visually exciting manner.

“It’s based on brain research and gives multiple inputs to the kids so

they can access the curriculum in ways that are appropriate for them,�

Wilson said.

At Ensign Intermediate School, growth dropped 22 points, but the

average API score remained high at 739. Principal Mike McGuire attributed

the decrease to the school’s focus on teaching state standards, which the

Stanford 9 test is not completely aligned with.

“In terms of comparing ourselves to other like schools, we’re happy

with� our scores, McGuire said. “But we’d like to do better. I think the

more we teach to the contents standards, the more the likelihood of

seeing a drop in scores.�

Forty-five percent of district schools are eligible for cash awards,

which is mainly based on meeting their schoolwide growth target.

Three schools, however, qualified for a state intervention program,

which provides financial assistance because of their low API scores --

Pomona Elementary, as well as Estancia and Costa Mesa high schools. The

program is intended to help increase student performance and levies

sanctions against schools that don’t meet their growth targets after

three years.

Pomona Principal Julie McCormick said she has already filled out an

application for her school.

“Every ounce of help we can find, we will go after it,� McCormick

said.

* Deirdre Newman covers education. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .