STAR test scores decline for first time in a decade
The percentage of students scoring proficient or meliorate on the 2022 Standardized Testing and Reporting assessment fell for the first time in more than than a decade in results released Thursday.
The decline in STAR examination results was slight, an average of less than one percentage point for all tests in all grades, but is noteworthy because there accept been gains every yr since 2003.
Nearly of the California standards tests are being phased out starting this yr due to the switch to Mutual Core State Standards. The new assessments for Mutual Core will begin in 2014-fifteen and are existence developed past the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, in which California has a lead role. Only those standardized tests required under the federal No Child Left Behind law will be given to California students this coming yr.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson downplayed the down plow, saying the scores show "remarkable resilience" following some $20 billion in cuts and 30,000 teacher layoffs in recent years, a bleed that is merely now turning around due to voter approving of Proposition 30 in November. The initiative will raise millions for schools through temporary increases in sales and income taxes.
"While nosotros all desire to see California's procedure keep, these results show that in the midst of modify and doubtfulness, teachers and schools kept their focus on educatee learning," Torlakson said in a statement.
"Overall, students held their basis," concurred Dean Vogel, president of the California Teachers Association. "Some schools have lost entire support systems in that counselors are gone and libraries have closed. We have some of the largest grade sizes in the nation and rank near the bottom in per-pupil funding."
Scores however remain higher than in 2002, the first year STAR tests were fully aligned to state standards. At that time, 35 percent of students scored good or above in math, scientific discipline and English language arts and 29 percent were proficient or better in history and social science.
Source: California Department of Educational activity
Well-nigh 4.7 meg California students took the 2022 exams and 51 pct of them scored skilful or better in math, while 56 percent scored proficient or above in English language arts, 59 percent in science, and 49 percent history and social science.
Even though the percentage of students scoring in the highest levels continued to rise until this year, those increases became smaller in recent years. In 2009, the average gain was four.25 points. It has fallen every twelvemonth since and so, dropping to an average gain of iipoints in 2012.
Retired test publisher Doug McRae has been analyzing the STAR results annually and has developed a grading system based on the GPA or Grade Indicate Average scale. He gave this year's results an F.
"It'southward the sort of stuff that when yous looked at it four or v years ago, it was pretty minor," he said, referring to the slowdown in the per centum of students achieving proficiency in recent years. "Just over time information technology'south become significant."
Doing the math
One subject area that McRae singles out for a closer look is algebra. A land-initiated plan to identify more eighth course students in Algebra I classes has been very successful, based on the number of students taking the Algebra I STAR test. That number jumped from about xvi percent in 1997 to more than than ii-thirds this year. Even with more students taking the class, proficiency rates for eighth graders increased by xv.5 percentage points during that time.
11th class math question from Smarter Counterbalanced practice test.
Education consultant John Mockler, one-time executive director of the State Board of Educational activity and chief architect of Proposition 98, the schoolhouse finance programme, called the participation gains in Algebra I "the well-nigh impressive part of California's testing system."
However, Algebra I volition be eliminated from the eighth course curriculum nether Common Core, as EdSource Today reported, and the Algebra I standards test volition no longer be given. Mockler said it'southward very possible that fewer students will take and do well in algebra equally a result, but without a country test to mensurate it,"we just don't know."
The STAR results also evidence that the accomplishment gap hasn't abated for African American, Hispanic, depression-income and English learner students. In math, for instance, Asian students overall increased their proficiency rates by one percentage signal, to 78 pct. White students remained the same, at 62 percent. Proficiency rates among low-income; Hispanic and African American students are 43, 42 and 35 percent respectively. Unchanged from last yr are rates for depression-income and African American students. Proficiency rates are down by i percent point for Hispanic students.
Torlakson cited the transition to Common Core as a 2d reason that scores savage this year, only analysts dubiety that had any affect.
"I'grand a little skeptical that Common Core is a big cistron, for a couple of reasons," said Paul Warren, a enquiry acquaintance at the Public Policy Plant of California and a old annotator with the state Legislative Analyst's Office. "Offset, (the country Department of Education) institute that California's standards are very similar to Mutual Core's. Second, scientific discipline standards barbarous and Common Core doesn't cover science." The same goes for high school math.
5th grade math question from Smarter Balanced practice examination.
Sunset sunrise
There is concern over how well students will do on the first few rounds of Common Cadre tests, particularly after New York country'due south dismal performance earlier this week. Even though land officials there warned the public that the first time wouldn't be pretty, folks were generally outraged when fewer than a third of students in grades iii through eight met or exceeded proficiency standards in English language arts and math.
In the spring of 2014, Smarter Balanced will conduct a field examination of its assessment involving about twenty pct of participant schools in all member states. California hasn't even so determined how the field test schools will be selected. The cess is computer adaptive, which uses a programme that adjusts the difficulty of questions based on whether a student correctly answers the previous question. There will also be a traditional pencil-and-paper version available.
Next spring is also when California's STAR testing program officially ends. Many exams are already riding into the sunset and will no longer be given. Those include:
- English language arts in grades 2, 9 and ten
- History/social science in grades 8 and eleven
- Algebra I for grades ix-11
- Algebra Two for grades 9-x
- General mathematics for form 9
- High schoolhouse summative math in grades 9-11
- Geometry in grades 9-xi
- Integrated math, all levels, for grades nine-eleven
- Globe history, biological science, chemistry, earth science, physics and integrated/coordinated science
As of now, the just Mutual Cadre standards set to go are in math and English language arts; history is in the works. Split up science standards are being developed based on the Adjacent Generation Science Standards.
At a Sacramento news conference Thursday morn, Torlakson was asked if he'll miss the STAR testing programme. "It had its value," he answered, "simply I'm not pitiful to run across it go."
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Source: https://edsource.org/2013/star-test-scores-decline-for-first-time-in-a-decade/36992
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