Test-Score Triumphs Mount

Some of region's schools basking in success as their students make big strides

Only a few years ago, some teachers at Rio Altura School in Riverbank referred to classes full of migrant children as “ICU units” and students who had fallen far behind as the “walking wounded.”

No more.

These days, teachers are touting a 143-point gain on the Academic Performance Index, a statewide ranking of schools that was released by the California Department of Education last week.

And test scores show that the big leap forward was driven, in large part, by the very students who are often considered hard to teach — those who are learning English or come from low-income families.

Principal Ron Costa said the turnaround is the direct result of a “no excuses” policy, prompted by the API, the state’s new testing and accountability system.

“It made us take a hard look at ourselves,” he said. “We just stopped making excuses.”

It’s a similar story at six other schools around the region that made big leaps forward last year, whose scores will put them at the front of the line when the state distributes $667 million in reward money in January.

Principals from several schools said the ranking system has forced teachers to cut the fluff, get serious about academics and design programs to help every type of student.

“We feel they can learn too,” said Russell Antracoli, principal of Gustine Elementary School, which boosted its score 108 points last year. Specifically, the principals credit:

* A greater focus on reading and math, and lots of teacher training.

* New policies that put students who are learning English in classes with English speaking peers, rather than isolating them in bilingual classes.

* And plenty of work on test-taking skills, so students stay calm and focused during the exams.

These changes are just the kind wanted by Effrem Perea of Riverbank, who has two sons at Rio Altura.

He put it this way: “Forget the free time; hey, buckle down and study.”

But Lee Renner, a Rio Altura father whose wife teaches at the school, said he is wary of standardized tests, because they don’t differentiate between different types of learners.

“I’m all for accountability,” he said. “But there’s been excellence in this school long before the test.”

The API — which is based on the Stanford 9, a standardized test that is taken by students in grades two through 11 — requires schools to show progress with all students.

Schools that make the most progress with disadvantaged students have the most to gain, because the scoring system gives extra credit to schools that boost the scores of low achievers.

“That’s definitely the target zone,” said Diane Scott, principal of Sam Vaughn School in Ceres, which improved its score by 130 points this year.

All schools that met their growth targets will receive $150 per student, but administrators and teachers at schools in the bottom half of the API will get extra bonuses if they raise their scores as well.

Teachers whose students made the biggest leaps forward are also eligible for bonuses of up to $25,000.

Across the state, 67 percent of schools did well enough to win awards. Locally, the percent of schools winning ranged from 75 percent in Calaveras County, 67 percent in Tuolumne, 52 percent in Merced, 48 percent in San Joaquin and 46 percent in Stanislaus.

The API currently includes scores from the Stanford 9 exam alone, but the state plans to include high school exit exams and graduation and attendance rates in the future.

Officials say the API — the centerpiece of the state’s 3-year-old Standardized Testing and Reporting program — will be more accurate when it includes more performance measures.

While some teachers dislike having their performance measured by a single test, others have embraced the ranking system as a step in the right direction.

“It’s provided a beat by which we can all march to,” said Randy Heinrichs, a fourth-grade teacher at Rio Altura. He said many behavior problems disappeared because students feel successful.

Cathy Silva, principal of Patterson’s Northmead School, which improved its score by 106 points this year, said good scores will help change the tunes of many teachers who are leery about the ranking system.

“It’s going to help them to realize that we made the right decision in focusing all of our attention on reading and math,” she said.

Bee staff writer Susan Herendeen can be reached at 578-2338 or [email protected].



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