Point Reyes Light - August 23, 2001

West Marin students near top in state test

By Marian Schinske

Most students in West Marin performed well above the national average on standardized tests taken last spring by students around the country. So said the state Department of Education in releasing scores this week.

Introduced in 1998, the Stanford 9 exam – which is part of the so-called STAR test – was taken by most students nationwide in Grades 2 through 11. The exam is one of many standardized tests that attempt to measure a student’s academic performance.

"The state of California has mandated Stanford 9 testing in order to gather information about how students are performing throughout the state, regardless of which of the state’s 1,054 districts they attend," said Mary Jane Burke, county superintendent of schools.

In West Marin, elementary students in the Bolinas-Stinson School District on average scored in the top percentiles for reading, math, language, and spelling. Lagunitas School District pupils performed nearly as well in these subjects while Shoreline School District students tested less strongly.

That being said, it may be inaccurate – and unfair – to compare student test scores amongst these districts because the results are based on the average performance of students in each grade. In addition, each district has a unique student body population and different mixes of students who speak English as a second language.

(Note: The Light’s analysis is based upon the Stanford 9 test results for grades 4, 8, and 11 within three of West Marin’s seven school districts. Test results for Nicasio, Union, Lincoln, and Laguna school districts were not available because of their small size.)

The good news for students and parents here is that Marin County schools have among the highest test scores in the state.

"Countywide, our students are achieving at the highest levels – if not the highest – in the state of California," said Supt. Burke. "In Marin County, the scores continue to go up."

Test scores also rose in West Marin. On average, most children here received higher scores in 2001 than they did in 2000. However, test scores dipped generally for fourth graders, especially those within Shoreline School District’s Tomales Elementary and West Marin schools.

The national average for the Stanford 9 tests on all subjects is 50 points. If a school’s fourth-grade class scored 76 in math, for example, that means they did as well or better than 76 percent of fourth-grade math students nationally. Here are West Marin’s results:

• Bolinas-Stinson School District pupils in Grades 4 and 8 this year tested about the same range as pupils in those grades last year. The district’s average national percentile ranking for fourth graders in various subjects for 2000-2001 are as follows: reading 74%, last year 77%; math 64% this year, 64% last year; language 62% this year, 70% last year; spelling 72% this year, 64% last year. Compared with students nationwide, Bolinas-Stinson eighth graders were in the 91 percentile for reading, last year 81%; math 84%, last year 84%; language 85%, last year 78%; spelling 72%, last year 55%.

Overall, students in the district are doing "exceptionally well," said Michael Juric, a specialist in test assessment. "They’re well above the national average ,and they’ve got strong scores even for this county, which has the strongest scores in the state."

Juric, who will become the assistant superintendent of educational services for the county’s education office next month, suggested that all West Marin parents remember two things while reviewing scores:

• The tests are a "snapshot" in time. The best way to derive any meaning from these tests, Juric said, is to track your child and the group of students he’s with over a span of time, say, three years. For example, you might want to compare scores from this year’s fourth-grade class to scores from last year’s third-grade class and the scores from the second-grade class two years ago. More likely than not, the scores are for the same batch of kids.

• Your child and his classmates are doing fine if their scores remain within a 10-point range over time, Juric said. For example, if your teenage girl scored 76 in math last year, but dropped to 68 this year, she’s still on track.

• In Lagunitas School District, pupils in Grades 4 and 8 scored well, coming within the same 10-point range as pupils in those grades last year. Compared to the scores of students nationwide, fourth graders in Lagunitas School District this year scored: in the 75th percentile for reading, last year 84%; math 63%, last year 65%; language 63%, last year 73%; spelling 64%, last year 67%. The district’s national percentile averages for eighth graders were: reading 76%, last year 72%; math 68%, last year 64%; language 75%, last year 84%; spelling 61%, last year 55%.

Lagunitas School’s fourth graders this year scored in the 77th percentile for reading, last year 94%; math 66%, last year 71%; language 64%, last year 83%; spelling 65%, last year 76%. In the eighth grade, the scores were reading 76%, last year 72%; math 68%, last year 64%; language 75%, last year 84%; spelling 61%, last year 55%.

Shoreline School District

Most students from around Tomales Bay attend schools in Shoreline School District, which includes West Marin-Inverness schools, Tomales Elementary School, and Tomales High School.

Compared to students nationwide, Shoreline’s average national percentiles for fourth graders were: reading 47%, last year 54%; math 29%, last year 49%; language 42%, last year 44%; spelling 35%, last year 44%. The district’s eighth-grade test results were: reading 67%, last year 67%; math 55%, last year 58%; language 70%, last year 65%; spelling 54%, last year 45%.

Like the rest of students nationwide in Grades 9 to 11, Shoreline’s older students did not take the spelling test. They did, however, take tests in science and social studies. The district’s national percentile averages for 11th graders were: reading 49%, last year 37%; math 57%, last year 46%; language 51%, last year 46%; science 68%, last year 45%; social studies 68%, last year 59%.

Effect of demographics

When asked why the fourth graders as a whole scored below the national average, Shoreline School District Supt. Stephen Rosenthal said that the test results were probably affected by the district’s demographics.

"I think our second-language learners [from Latino families] are always a factor in test results, as well as our small number of students," Rosenthal said. "For example, at Tomales Elementary only 14 students took that test. If one or two students did not do well, that will significantly pull down the score."

For this reason, he said, Shoreline District schools should not be compared with schools in other Marin County districts, which have larger populations of students from higher socio-economic backgrounds.

Shoreline similar to Sonoma County

It would be better, he said, to compare Shoreline schools to some Sonoma County schools. For example, he said, Tomales Elementary School compares well with Richard Crane Elementary School in the Cotati-Rohnert Park School District, which has a similar makeup. (Thirty-two percent of all kids at Tomales Elementary School are economically disadvantaged, he said, and 27 percent are English-language learners).

Similarly, he said, Elsie Allen High School in Santa Rosa’s high school district score about the same as Tomales High School (where 32 percent of students are economically disadvantaged, and 17 percent are English-language learners).

When compared this way, he said, Tomales’ students had a "stronger performance" on the Stanford 9 than students from Richard Crane and Elsie Allen High schools.

Test specialist Juric agrees with Rosenthal’s comparisons. The best way to "get a handle" on a school’s performance, Juric said, is to compare it with schools around the state with similar student populations and racial groups. Happily, he said, each year the state Department of Education issues an "Academic Performance Index," which, among other things, compares schools on a demographic basis.

Work with 4th graders

Shoreline. Supt. Rosenthal said he and other district staff will work to help all their students, especially those who are struggling, improve their scores. "We’ll be looking into what’s going on with the fourth graders," he said, "as well as at school programs and instruction at both Tomales Elementary and West Marin schools."

Meantime, he said, he’s pleased that overall, Shoreline students in Grades 2 to 11 improved their scores. Here are the test results from some of Shoreline District’s schools:

• Tomales Elementary School’s fourth graders received scores in the 58th percentile in reading, last year 56%; math 47%, last year 55%; language 57%, last year 55%; spelling 43%, last year 43%. The school’s eighth graders scored: 69% in reading, last year 62%; math 63%, last year 58%; language 78%, last year 70%; spelling 59%, last year 47%.

West Marin School’s fourth graders scored in the 41 percentile nationwide in reading, last year 50%; math 20%, last year 42%; language 33%, last year 28%; spelling 30%, last year 39%. The school’s eighth graders scored: reading 65%, last year 72%; math 44%, last year 59%; language 55%, last year 54%; spelling 47%, last year 41%.

Tomales High School’s 11th graders scored in the 49th percentile nationwide in reading this year, last year 39%; math 57%, last year 47%; language 51%, last year 47%; science 68%, last year 45%; social studies 68%, last year 61%.

County’s impression

What’s the final word on the Stanford 9? "It’s just a test," said county schools Supt. Mary Jane Burke. "Students’ success will be based not only on academic achievement but on their ability to develop emotionally and socially in order to become productive citizens."

In other words, the test doesn’t measure a child’s intelligence or behavior. It doesn’t tally up, say, how many goals were scored on the soccer field, how many web sites were built, or how many favors were done for a friend.

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