Higher Test Scores Pay Off at 109 Schools

When the state announced last year that it would give cash awards totaling $14.4 million to schools that raised their test scores, some local educators privately expressed the fear that average scores would fall because more low-achieving students would be taking the exam.

To their surprise, the opposite has occurred.

In Los Angeles County, 12th-grade scores improved on the California Assessment Program test of basic skills, and although the rise is slight, it brought a sizable financial payoff.

One hundred and nine county high schools have won a total of $3.7 million in bonus money. Awards ranged from $111 for Ellington High School in Los Angeles to $140,818 for Rowland High in the east end of the San Gabriel Valley. Schools qualified for the cash awards if at least 93% of their seniors took the exam and the scores were better than those oflast year’s seniors.

Statewide Scores Up Too

Statewide, 12th-grade scores in reading, writing, spelling and mathematics also rose this year compared to last year, even though many more high school seniors took the test than before.

“There was a lot of discussion around here about what would happen with the scores” because of the cash incentive, state Department of Education consultant Sue Bennett said from her Sacramento office. “Apparently, they (12th graders) took the test with better preparation. Or they took it more seriously.”

At many high schools, administrators made a special effort to get at least 93% participation in the voluntary exam. Some schools staged rallies, some promised hamburger vouchers and others offered pep talks to 12th-grade classes.

“They did whatever they thought would work,” said Bill Turner, testing consultant to the county superintendent of schools. “And in the main it worked.”

The incentive program backfired at one high school in Chico, where four seniors persuaded many of their fellow 12th graders to deliberately fail the test when the administration refused to let them use a portion of any bonus funds earned for a beach trip. No such cases were reported in Los Angeles County, however.

County Seniors Improved

Test scores for the county’s high school seniors rose from 59.4% to 60.1% in reading, 59.8% to 60.5% in writing, 68.0% to 68.3% in spelling and 64.3% to 65.3% in mathematics.

The scores were slightly below the state averages. The average scores statewide are 62.9% in reading, 63.2% in writing, 69.7% in spelling and 68.3% in mathematics.

Turner attributed the county’s below-state-average scores to the high number of non-English-speaking immigrants entering county schools. According to county officials, 228,000 of the county’s 1.2 million students in kindergarten through 12th grade have limited proficiency in English because it is not their native tongue.

The scores in the accompanying list reflect the percentage of correct answers given by the 12th graders to 31 questions, and they allow comparisons between individual schools and to the district and state averages. State officials caution that fluctuations of a few points in individual school scores are not statistically significant.

Because the test is meant to provide a snapshot look at achievement levels, scores are computed for districts and schools only; individual pupil scores are not released.

Twelfth graders took the exam last December. Third, 6th and 8th graders will take the test this month, and their scores will be released in the fall.

There were no surprises in the county’s 12th-grade scores, Turner said. “Out of 82 districts, one can almost guarantee that some will go up a little, and some will go down a little,” he said.

The scores generally reflect the socioeconomic realities for the students in various regions of the county, Turner said. Schools with a majority of students from poor families and whose parents have little or no college education tended to score lower than schools whose students come from wealthier, better educated families.

“Overall, the trend (in scores) is upward,” Turner said. “So parents can conclude we are making progress.”

At El Monte High School, close to 95% of the senior class took the exam, compared to only 63% the previous year, and the average scores rose 1% to 3% in the four test areas. As a result, the school earned $35,298, roughly $104 for each senior who was tested.

Despite the windfall, El Monte High Principal Dave Sandell was reluctant to credit the cash incentive program for the school’s gains. “Our scores did go up. But whether ‘Cash for CAP’ had anything to do with it, I’m not sure,” he said, noting that this year’s seniors have maintained good grades throughout their high school years.

At South High School in Torrance, 94% of the class of ’85 took the basic skills test, compared to only 85% last year, and average scores rose one to four points, earning the school $80,776 in bonus money. Principal Joseph Rotcher said “money was mentioned” to faculty and seniors when the test was announced, but that the higher scores “had to do with our concern with raising our scores,” not with the lure of a monetary reward.

Some educators, including Turner, are critical of the cash incentive program, arguing that it is ethically wrong to motivate students to learn--or take a test--in return for money.

But others said they welcomed the cash bonus plan. “It was a good motivation,” said Palisades High Principal Douglas Beamish, whose seniors earned $61,262 for their school. “We look forward to spending the money.”

Some schools, including Palisades and El Monte, are discussing ways to use part of the cash award to defray their 12th graders’ graduation-related expenses, such as cap-and-gown rentals and senior prom tickets.

Twelfth graders at most of the winning schools will not be present to enjoy the fruit of their labor, however. Graduation is a month away, and most of the high schools have yet to decide how to spend the money. Several principals said their schools probably will invest in materials and equipment--computers were frequently mentioned--that would not be purchased in time for the senior class to use.

Downey High School Principal Moses Chavez said that may be why some schools, including his own, received no bonus money. It is hard to “motivate a student to do well for the sake of someone else,” he said.

High School Scores for 12th Graders How to Read the Scores

The 12th grade scores of the California Assessment Program are the mean percentage of correct answers and may be compared with scores in other schools and to district and state averages.

Dashes indicate that tests were not given or that scores were unavailable. State, County Averages STATE OF CALIFORNIA

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 63.1 63.0 69.5 67.7 83-84 62.2 62.6 69.4 67.4 84-85 62.9 63.2 69.7 68.3

LOS ANGELES COUNTY

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 60.7 60.6 --- 64.9 83-84 59.4 59.8 68.0 64.3 84-85 60.1 60.5 68.3 65.3

Beverly Hills UnifiedDISTRICT AVERAGE

82-83 70.2 72.4 74.1 79.0 83-84 67.8 72.0 72.7 76.8 84-85 68.8 72.8 74.4 78.4

BEVERLY HILLS HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 70.2 72.4 74.1 79.0 83-84 67.8 72.0 72.7 76.8 84-85 68.8 72.8 74.4 78.4

Culver City UnifiedDISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.6 65.9 71.4 69.1 83-84 62.8 62.9 72.2 67.1 84-85 62.7 63.7 68.7 70.6

CULVER HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.6 65.9 71.4 69.1 83-84 62.8 62.9 72.2 67.1 84-85 62.7 63.7 68.7 70.6

Los Angeles Unified DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 57.5 57.4 65.6 61.7 83-84 56.4 56.6 65.8 61.3 84-85 57.3 57.4 66.7 62.3

FAIRFAX

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 60.6 62.6 --- 64.9 83-84 59.0 60.1 69.1 64.8 84-85 59.3 61.4 70.3 65.7

FAIRFAX MAGNET

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 63.0 70.0 73.3 67.7 84-85 63.0 65.2 72.1 64.2

HAMILTON

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 58.3 58.0 --- 61.4 83-84 54.5 52.6 64.0 56.1 84-85 58.7 58.1 65.9 60.7

HAMILTON HUMANITIES

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 66.5 71.4 73.4 69.8 84-85 74.0 65.5 72.1 71.1

HOLLYWOOD

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 50.7 52.2 --- 60.2 83-84 50.5 51.1 60.7 58.4 84-85 51.2 50.8 65.3 56.8

HOLLYWOOD MAGNET

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 65.3 64.4 70.5 63.2 84-85 67.0 63.0 72.6 66.5

LOS ANGELES C.E.S.

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 61.4 60.6 --- 60.0 83-84 62.5 69.3 69.7 70.6 84-85 67.1 69.2 77.3 71.2

PALISADES

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 67.7 68.3 --- 72.4 83-84 65.9 66.3 70.4 70.1 84-85 67.8 67.0 73.5 72.2

UNIVERSITY

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.1 65.2 --- 70.3 83-84 64.7 65.3 70.9 72.2 84-85 64.7 67.3 70.6 72.3

VENICE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 59.4 58.7 --- 63.2 83-84 59.8 60.8 68.7 65.9 84-85 60.8 61.6 68.3 65.7

WESTSIDE ALTERNATIVE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 68.3 63.7 --- 65.0 83-84 59.0 54.4 69.1 67.9 84-85 61.0 64.5 65.0 58.2

Santa Monica Unified

DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.3 66.6 70.1 70.3 83-84 64.2 66.3 71.1 70.0 84-85 65.0 67.7 69.6 71.1

SANTA MONICA HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.2 66.6 --- 70.2 83-84 64.0 66.2 71.0 69.9 84-85 64.9 67.7 69.6 71.1

SM-MALIBU OLYMPIC (Less than 10 tested)