Schools
Sierra Madre's API Scores Still Highest in District
Newly released figures show the school making an 11-point gain over last year's scores and surpassing the 900 point mark.
Figures released Wednesday by the California Department of Education show that Sierra Madre Elementary School has again achieved the highest API score of all schools in the Pasadena Unified School District.
achieved a score of 908, an increase of 11 points over their 2010 score.
The API is a number between 200 and 1000 that reflects performance level of a school, sub group and district, based on statewide testing. Its purpose is to measure the academic performance and growth of schools. The state target is 800.
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While scored well above the state goal, the school district as a whole is still below the desired 800 mark, with a district-wide score of 759, up just one point over the previous year.
The state determines API scores using a weighted formula. The formula includes the tests administered in May, and the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE). The California Standards Test (CST) results are most heavily weighted.
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also scored highest in the PUSD in the STAR results, which were released in August.
Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) results are released each year by the California Department of Education in a program intended to assess public school students' knowledge of state academic content standards.
Despite the slow moving district-wide improvement, PUSD officials touted success in certain areas targeted for improvement and also pointed out challenges faced by the District in recent years that may have slowed improvement.
"The district has made progress in raising the overall academic achievement of its students in the last few years, particularly in areas that were specifically targeted for improvement," Superintendent Jon Gundry said in a statement following the announcement of the STAR results in August.
Gundry was appointed to the District's top position this summer following the departure of former Superintendent Edwin Diaz, who announced his retirement earlier this year.
The District also said the scores would be "used by the district and schools to guide instruction and target resources appropriately."