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LAKE COUNTY – The majority of the county's school districts showed improvement in the latest round of Academic Performance Index (API) tests, with Middletown Unified leading the county's districts in performance improvement and overall scores.
California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell released the statewide results last month as part of the 2008-09 Accountability Progress Report.
The API is the state's accountability system, while the federal government requires the Adequate Yearly Progress and Program Improvement. O'Connell's office reported that both the API and AYP are based upon statewide assessment results from the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program and from the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE).
Students go through the API testing in the spring.
“Our accountability report confirms that most California schools are continuing to make solid gains in academic achievement,” O'Connell said. “For the seventh year in a row schools at every level have made real progress toward the statewide API target of 800, and almost half of our elementary schools have met or exceeded this goal.”
The API is a numeric index that ranges from a low of 200 to a high of 1000 with a statewide target of 800.
The testing tracks subgroups including racial/ethnic subgroups, socioeconomically disadvantaged students, English learners and students with disabilities, which must meet growth standards for a school to meet its API growth target.
O'Connell reported that the API results also show “a slight narrowing” of the achievement gap between Hispanic or Latino and African American students and their white or Asian peers.
According to the report, 42 percent of all California schools are now at or above the overall statewide target API of 800, up six percentage points from the year before. This includes 48 percent of elementary schools, 36 percent of middle schools and 21 percent of high schools.
Statewide, all student subgroups demonstrated between 11- and 15-point improvement, O'Connell reported. African American, Hispanic or Latino, and socioeconomically disadvantaged students increased their API this year by 15 points, while the API of white students increased by 14 percentage points and the statewide increase for all students was 14 points.
Overall, Lake County's districts showed improvements. The school with the single highest API score growth was Konocti Unified School District's Blue Heron Opportunity School, which rose by 127 points to reach 582 points. The district as a whole grew by four points.
Middletown Unified School District made impressive gains for the year in its API testing. The district's overall growth was 34 points, with Middletown High School improving by 61 and Lake County International Charter School gaining 100 points.
The majority of the district's schools have API scores of 800 or above, and Cobb Mountain Elementary has the highest API score in the county – 881.
Superintendent Korby Olson noted that the API scores of Middletown High School, Middletown Middle School and Cobb Elementary School not only make them the highest performing schools in Lake County, but place them among the top performing schools in Lake, Mendocino, Napa and Sonoma counties.
Olson said all of the district's schools made continued growth on the API thanks to the consistent efforts of the staff and administration.
He said the teachers in Middletown have had a focus on the state standards for more than 10 years,with the focus in the last several years centering on instructional strategies to deliver the standards.
In Lakeport, where scores improved districtwide by 26 points, Superintendent Erin Hagberg said staff use achievement data to drive their instruction methods in order to meet the performance requirements.
Hagberg said teachers spend time in collaboration meetings at grade levels in order to share best practices and make sure they're on the same page, while looking at achievement data and adjusting their approach when necessary.
“I think the results of that are seen in our great scores,” Hagberg said.
Hagberg said the district is continuing to focus on closing the achievement gap for its subgroups – economically disadvantaged students and English language learners, groups which she said are of concern at districts around the county.
She credited those subgroups' improvement to the hard work of both staff and students.
“I'm extremely proud of them,” Hagberg said.
The scores for the counties districts and API testing schools follow. The most recent year's API scores are listed, followed in parentheses by the school's 2008-09 growth number.
Kelseyville Unified School District Overall growth: -4 Kelseyville Elementary, 755 (-24); Riviera Elementary, 813 (1); Mountain Vista Middle School, 735 (7); Kelseyville High School, 688 (-13).
Konocti Unified School District Overall growth: 4 Burns Valley Elementary, 711 (-1); East Lake Elementary, 717 (-7); Lower Lake Elementary, 729 (-22); Pomo Elementary, 718 (0); Oak Hill Middle School, 660 (-2); Lower Lake High, 665 (38); Richard H. Lewis Alternative, 706 (-37); Blue Heron, 582 (127); Carle Continuation High School, 678 (-17).
Lake County Office of Education Overall growth: 18
Lakeport Unified School District Overall growth: 26 Lakeport Elementary, 783 (32): Terrace Middle School, 801 (30); Clear Lake High School, 757 (10); Lakeport Alternative (Home School), 717 (23).
Lucerne Elementary School District Overall growth: 7 Lucerne Elementary, 729 (5).
Middletown Unified School District Overall growth: 34 Cobb Mountain Elementary, 881 (30); Coyote Valley Elementary, 813 (25); Minnie Cannon Elementary, 728 (2); Middletown Middle School, 810 (13); Middletown High School, 780 (61); Lake County International Charter School, 839 (100).
Upper Lake Union Elementary School District Overall growth: -5 Upper Lake Elementary, 699 (1); Upper Lake Middle School, 666 (-12).
Upper Lake Union High School District Overall growth: 3 Upper Lake High School, 701 (17); Clover Valley Continuation High School, 551 (No valid API base for 2008).
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