Strong API scores show district’s up to the challenge

In a way, we have a lot of empathy for school district officials.

We know what it is like to have your work come under scrutiny each

and every day.

With the advent of standardized test scores like the Academic

Performance Index, the scrutiny for school officials is as intense as

ever.

This year’s index revealed a mixed bag of results for the

Newport-Mesa Unified School District.

The district did make a strong showing, with 62% of its schools

meeting targeted goals of achievement compared to 53% of schools

statewide accomplishing that same goal.

Indeed, 11 district schools exhibited growth in all areas, making

the district eligible for the Governor’s Performance Award program,

no easy feat.

College Park Elementary in Costa Mesa saw an astonishing 75 point

increase over its projected growth of 9 points. That total of 84

points pushed its overall score from 627 last year to 711 this year.

Middle College High School at Orange Coast College and TeWinkle

Middle School also saw strong growth in achievement this year.

In contrast, however, 10 schools saw a decline in scores, most

notably at all four district high schools, with Estancia falling off

its target by 26 points. And other schools that had shown tremendous

growth previously, saw that growth reversed, if only by small

portions.

Those drops would be alarming if it weren’t for some predictable

reasons. District officials suspect the addition of the state’s

English/Language Arts standards, instead of solely the Stanford-9

Achievement Test, may be the reason for the lower scores.

With the large population of non-English speaking students in

Costa Mesa schools, there is little doubt that district officials

have their hands full in trying to get these students up to state

standards.

We have opined often that district officials are well aware of the

challenges faced by limited or non-English speakers, and they need to

quit using that as an excuse and instead find ways to fix the

problem.

And they have done just that. The work of principals Sharon

Blakely at Whittier and Carol Lang at College Park stand out, as well

as district administrators and leaders who have taken an active

approach toward improving the performance of those non-English

speakers.

As these new scores show, there is still work to be done, but

there’s evidence to believe these scores are merely understandable

shifts in the numbers rather than a trend.

We are growing ever confident that the district is ready to meet

the challenges it faces in improving scores over the long haul and

prove itself to all those who pay close attention.