LA HABRA : Educators Vow to Raise CAP Scores

Teachers, administrators and school board members say they have recommitted themselves to helping students raise their California Assessment Program test scores.

District students placed near the bottom of the list on recent CAP tests when compared to other Orange County districts.

“I don’t think we should ever be below the 50th percentile,” said school board president Nancy Zinberg. “We should have a stated goal of the 75th percentile, or better.”

Almost 1,300 La Habra students in grades three, six, and eight were tested in the areas of reading, writing, mathematics, science and history/social science.

While scores achieved by third graders were in the top 25% of statewide rankings, scores for older students were lower. Eighth-graders fared worse in 1989 than in the previous year in three of four categories.

A series of strategy meetings is being conducted to intensify efforts to prepare students for the tests, officials said.

In October, the board expressed disappointment with low scores on tests taken last April.

“Considering the special efforts of teachers and administrative staff towards each student doing well on the CAP tests, these results were completely surprising and unexpected,” Supt. Richard Hermann said.

“The specifics do not include a major curriculum overhaul, rather a re-focusing and realignment of CAP skills with the academic outcomes and expectations of each major subject,” Hermann explained.

“One of the things we are working on is development of test-taking skills,” said Rosemary Herendeen, director of staff development and curriculum. “We need to put more emphasis on accuracy rather than speed.”

Although Hermann pointed to apparent inconsistencies between the low CAP scores and what he described as better than average scores on other tests, such as the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills, he emphasized: “We will not make excuses. Rather, we will re-focus our efforts and look to this year’s tests as an opportunity to show major improvement.”

According to Gary Mantey, principal at Washington Middle School, “We’re asking our teachers to work smarter, not harder.”