County’s Students Show Small Gains in Writing

Los Angeles County high school seniors from the Class of 1990 made some strides in writing achievement compared to their 1989 counterparts, according to California Assessment Program test scores released today.

But the average gains for high schools countywide were smaller than those statewide. The same was true for scores of seniors in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

On average, California seniors scored 256 on the writing exam administered last winter, up six points from the 250 posted by the Class of 1989, the first 12th-graders to take the essay-type test.

Seniors in schools throughout Los Angeles County averaged 233, up three points from those who took the test the previous year, while those in Los Angeles Unified averaged 206, two points better than the 204 earned by 12th-graders the year before. The scores can go to around 400.

State Supt. of Public Instruction Bill Honig noted Wednesday that scores varied markedly from district to district within the county.

“Los Angeles (County) is very, very spotty--some of the districts are going way up, others are down, some are stuck in the same place as a year ago,” Honig said.

“My sense is that those schools that decided to get organized and put an emphasis on writing skills are the ones that are really shooting up,” Honig added, citing the Torrance Unified, El Monte Union and the ABC Unified (Cerritos area) school districts as among those that made impressive gains in just one year. While the El Monte district remains below the state average with an average score of 222, its 17-point improvement shows it is making excellent progress, Honig said.

“It is not just the score that is important but also whether (a school or district) is making progress. You have to look at where they started,” he added.

Among the local districts whose seniors have yet to demonstrate improved writing abilities are the Alhambra City High and Montebello Unified districts, which lost ground over the past year. The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified District tumbled to 256 this year, down 29 points from its 1989 score of 285. However, because only 85% of its Class of 1990 took the writing exam, its scores for this year may not be a true representation of the 12th-graders’ skills, the state’s educational testing statisticians said.

Several other Southern California counties made a much stronger showing than Los Angeles. San Diego, Orange and Riverside counties led California’s 25 largest counties in posting the biggest gains--of 14, 13 and 13 points, respectively--while Ventura County came in fifth with an average improvement for its students of 11 points.

But just as important as the improvement in scores is the evidence that having students do more composition work correlates strongly with improvement in performance, Honig said. A survey of students who took the test last year showed graduated increases in scores as the number of writing assignments went up. For example, there was a 30-point difference between the scores of students who completed one writing assignment a week and those who did 11 or more.

In the writing exam, part of a series of annual CAP tests administered to California students at various grade levels, students are required during a class period to write one of six types of essays--autobiographical incident, evaluation, interpretation, reflective, controversial issue or observational writing. The essays are graded for thinking and writing skills as well as for basic mechanics, such as spelling and grammar.

Like other CAP tests, the writing exam is designed to measure the progress of schools and districts, and not youngsters individually.

The writing exam, which also is administered to eighth-graders, represents the state’s best effort to date to move away from much-criticized tests with multiple choice answers and into more “performance-based” kinds of assessments.

“Writing is a complicated, sophisticated task; it requires strong language and thinking skills and is a very fair indicator of the quality of an educational program,” Honig said.

While improvements were registered by all major ethnic groups in the state, the performance of those students who are not fluent in English dropped five points this year. As in other CAP test results, there also was a strong correlation between the socioeconomic status of a school’s students (as measured by the parents’ level of education) and its test scores.

A growing number of students who are not fluent in English and a considerable proportion of children who suffer the effects of poverty, overcrowded schools and serious financial problems were cited by Honig as possible explanations for the Los Angeles district remaining well below state averages on this and other CAP test scores. For instance, 6.4% of the district’s Class of 1989 were not fluent in English; for the Class of 1990, that increased to 10%. The California average is 7%.

Yet Honig said he believes the district’s real problem is that it has “not yet come up with a comprehensive program for improving achievement. . . . L.A. has to learn how to focus an accountability system that gets right down to the school level.” He added that he hoped a system for improving achievement, which the Board of Education is scheduled to discuss next week, and the district’s shift toward granting more decision-making authority to individual schools might be solutions.

School Board President Jackie Goldberg said she believes Honig’s assessment is fair. She said she expects that the district will have achievement-improvement goals by the end of the month and agreed that it needs to find ways to tie staff performance evaluations to student achievement.

But Goldberg added that the district needs additional financial resources to help “break the connection between low income and low achievement. . . . All our scores reflect is that we have a lower income and low achievement. . . . All our scores reflect is that we have a lower-income district than most of those in the state.”

The district’s Program Evaluation and Assessment Branch, in a report for the Board of Education, noted that only 83% of the district’s eligible seniors took the test this time around. The report made several recommendations for improving writing skills, including requiring students to complete “numerous and varying” writing assignments each week, encouraging students to read for “both classroom assignments and pleasure,” and having teachers in all subject areas incorporate writing techniques and assignments into their lessons whenever possible.

HOW TO READ THE SCORES These are the Los Angeles County school-by-school results of the California Assessment Program’s writing exam administered last winter to high school seniors throughout the state. During one class period, students are required to write an essay from one of six general categories: autobiographical incident, evaluation, interpretation, reflective essay, controversial issue and observational writing. Each essay is graded for thinking and writing skills as well as for basic mechanics, such as spelling and grammar.

The CAP program is designed to measure the progress of schools and not youngsters individually. The grades are combined into a single scaled score, ranging from 1 to more than 400.

The statewide average was 250 for the Class of 1989 and 256 for the Class of 1990. The average score for Los Angeles County was 230 in 1989 and 233 in 1990.

Results are listed by school district and by individual high school so that parents can compare the performance of youngsters in their community with that of students in the rest of the county. (Schools are listed alphabetically by district.)

* State Rank shows how the school or district did in relation to all others in the state. The range is from 1 to 99, with 99 being best.

* Relative Rank provides a way to compare a district or school with others whose students are similar in terms of ethnic makeup and socioeconomic level and in their ability to speak English fluently, as well as in how often those students move from school to school.

For example, seniors at Arcadia High School, with a score of 282, did better than 73% of others in California. But they did better than only 20% of other students with similar backgrounds. San Marino High School students, on the other hand, did almost as well when compared with similar students as when compared with students statewide. With their score of 354, San Marino students earned a statewide ranking of 98 and a relative ranking of 95.

California Assessment Program Test Scores LOS ANGELES COUNTY

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. ABC Unified 252 50 44 267 63 51 Artesia 223 30 45 202 14 22 Cerritos 264 61 23 251 46 5 Gahr 218 25 7 270 62 59 Whitney 403 99 99 433 99 99

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Alhambra City 234 34 79 231 29 71 Alhambra 262 60 88 247 42 75 Mark Keppel 203 17 56 222 24 72 San Gabriel 236 39 82 220 23 63

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Antelope Valley Union 260 57 64 250 45 35 Antelope Valley 271 68 75 226 26 5 Palmdale 265 62 78 238 35 24 Quartz Hill 246 47 19 291 78 69

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Arcadia Unified 273 70 23 282 75 20 Arcadia 276 72 23 282 73 20

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Azusa Unified 207 16 42 217 20 44 Azusa 215 24 54 206 15 20 Gladstone 200 16 30 227 27 62

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Baldwin Park Unified 243 42 97 235 34 77 Baldwin Park 258 57 99 228 29 72 Sierra Vista 221 27 81 251 46 86

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Bassett Unified 177 1 25 214 17 60 Bassett 181 7 26 214 20 60

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Bellflower Unified 237 38 54 237 35 49 Bellflower 248 49 70 253 48 65 Mayfair 249 50 45 246 41 42

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Beverly Hills Unified 303 91 58 276 71 14 Beverly Hills 303 88 58 276 67 14

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Bonita Unified 268 63 70 268 64 35 Bonita 294 84 89 266 58 29 San Dimas 256 55 33 271 63 42

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Burbank Unified 281 75 88 301 85 94 Burbank 272 69 67 315 89 95 Burroughs 292 83 96 286 75 92

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Centinela Valley Union 197 4 23 215 18 54 Hawthorne 196 14 19 212 19 58 Leuzinger 197 14 26 217 22 49

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Charter Oak Unified 211 17 2 252 46 29 Charter Oak 214 23 2 252 47 29

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Claremont Unified 300 89 56 305 88 51 Claremont 300 87 56 310 87 53

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Compton Unified 164 1 13 176 1 18 Centennial 168 4 13 189 8 26 Compton 184 7 19 187 8 24 Dominguez 148 3 8 156 2 6

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Covina-Valley Unified 246 46 58 281 74 81 Covina 225 31 15 277 68 76 Northview 227 32 27 273 65 88 South Hills 294 84 93 291 78 77

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Culver City Unified 220 20 8 284 76 81 Culver City 220 26 8 286 75 81

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Downey Unified 255 52 60 256 50 53 Downey 249 50 55 249 44 48 Warren 264 61 66 263 56 57

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Duarte Unified 225 25 57 226 27 50 Duarte 225 31 57 226 26 50

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. El Monte Union 205 16 51 222 23 66 Arroyo 245 47 84 230 30 70 El Monte 193 12 40 218 23 66 Mountain View 192 11 39 209 17 53 Rosemead 190 10 18 225 26 68

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. El Rancho Unified 231 28 87 250 45 94 El Rancho 234 37 88 255 49 95

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. El Segundo Unified 265 60 38 267 63 20 El Segundo 270 67 39 267 59 20

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Glendale Unified 271 69 72 256 50 46 Crescenta Valley 291 82 58 260 53 8 Glendale 275 72 88 263 56 65 Hoover 256 55 55 247 42 47

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Glendora Unified 279 74 51 302 85 57 Glendora 290 81 54 308 87 59

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Hacienda La Puente Unified 248 49 61 254 49 62 La Puente 218 25 66 201 13 40 Los Altos 270 67 46 301 83 78 Puente Hills 215 24 45 199 12 4 Wilson 249 50 9 249 44 5 Workman 250 50 98 262 54 95

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Inglewood Unified 185 1 6 196 3 12 Inglewood 188 9 6 195 10 11 Morningside 186 9 5 202 14 14

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. La Canada Unified 337 98 90 328 96 73 La Canada 337 97 90 328 93 73

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Las Virgenes Unified 317 96 78 318 94 70 Agoura 321 94 80 331 95 78 Calabasas 318 94 78 315 89 59

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Long Beach Unified 223 24 37 222 23 37 Avalon 216 24 24 293 79 97 Jordan 206 19 26 189 8 7 Lakewood 214 23 24 197 11 7 Millikan 194 13 8 216 21 9 Polytechnic 253 52 73 267 59 87 Wilson 236 39 25 232 31 21

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Los Angeles Unified 204 15 27 206 16 22 Banning 193 12 33 171 4 5 Bell 164 4 11 198 12 37 Belmont 162 3 10 172 4 14 Birmingham 223 30 2 236 33 11 Canoga Park 192 11 7 193 10 4 Carson 189 10 3 209 17 4 Chatsworth 231 35 3 237 34 4 Cleveland 185 8 1 219 23 10 Crenshaw 145 2 2 183 6 10 Dorsey 170 5 7 185 7 6 Downtown Business 226 32 65 232 31 38 Eagle Rock 234 37 30 218 23 14 El Camino Real 254 53 23 256 50 7 Fairfax 225 31 18 207 17 1 Francis Polytech 213 22 48 157 2 1 Franklin 189 10 35 215 21 61 Fremont 137 1 4 149 1 4 Gardena 186 9 3 200 12 11 Garfield 195 13 44 201 13 40 Granada Hills 259 58 11 261 54 9 Grant 230 33 19 215 21 10 Hamilton 215 24 6 243 39 33 Hollywood 165 4 12 206 15 49 Huntington Park 174 5 17 163 3 10 Jefferson 148 3 8 140 1 2 Johnson 100 1 1 --- --- --- Jordan 119 1 1 158 2 7 Kennedy 204 17 11 228 29 20 Lincoln 171 5 16 171 4 13 Locke 148 3 8 155 1 5 Los Angeles 182 7 28 186 7 13 Manual Arts 130 1 2 163 3 10 Marshall 200 16 21 192 9 11 Monroe 194 13 10 174 5 2 Narbonne 222 29 29 254 48 66 North Hollywood 210 21 11 209 17 25 Palisades 261 59 9 271 63 10 Ramona 219 26 78 --- --- --- Reseda 200 16 5 177 6 4 Riley 201 16 38 192 9 11 Roosevelt 177 6 21 176 6 18 San Fernando 146 2 6 187 8 24 San Pedro 213 22 23 228 29 30 South Gate 210 21 65 211 18 56 Sylmar 198 15 32 205 15 35 Taft 242 45 8 280 71 46 University 279 75 40 246 41 2 Van Nuys 193 12 16 267 59 80 Venice 217 25 34 202 14 13 Verdugo Hills 190 10 14 205 15 19 Washington 148 3 3 186 7 11 Westchester 235 38 6 221 24 1 Wilson 185 8 32 193 10 31

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Lynwood Unified 189 1 38 173 1 15 Lynwood 192 11 39 173 5 15

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Monrovia Unified 206 16 23 245 41 56 Monrovia 208 19 22 250 45 58

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Montebello Unified 198 4 46 184 2 19 Bell Gardens 185 8 32 171 4 13 Montebello 214 23 65 169 3 12 Schurr 212 21 47 212 19 30

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Norwalk-La Mirada Unified 204 15 22 211 17 29 Glen 181 7 26 213 20 50 La Mirada 232 35 19 236 33 24 Norwalk 207 19 22 193 10 14

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Palos Verdes Peninsula 323 97 84 315 93 66 Miraleste 339 97 92 353 98 94 Palos Verdes 326 95 84 325 92 69 Rolling Hills 320 94 80 296 81 33

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Paramount Unified 205 16 57 206 16 49 Paramount 205 18 57 206 15 49

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Pasadena Unified 231 28 22 244 40 35 Blair 225 31 18 225 26 28 Marshall 267 64 43 259 52 16 Muir 215 24 5 242 38 29 Pasadena 231 35 26 249 44 49

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Pomona Unified 213 17 60 218 21 57 Ganesha 251 50 88 244 40 78 Garey 189 10 35 198 12 37 Pomona 199 15 27 219 23 51

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Rowland Unified 252 50 71 262 58 62 Nogales 225 31 50 245 41 58 Rowland 279 75 85 278 69 64

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. San Marino Unified 354 99 97 354 99 95 San Marino 354 99 97 354 98 95

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Santa Monica-Malibu Unified 285 77 58 256 50 7 Santa Monica 290 81 60 259 52 7

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. South Bay Union 287 79 55 309 92 70 Mira Costa 309 90 65 329 94 79 Redondo 266 63 45 287 76 57

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. South Pasadena Unified 292 82 43 293 79 48 South Pasadena 292 83 43 293 79 48

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Temple City Unified 267 62 48 271 67 41 Temple City 267 64 48 271 63 41

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Torrance Unified 267 62 45 276 71 34 North 266 63 67 263 56 36 South 260 58 11 303 84 41 Torrance 268 64 43 278 69 41 West 275 72 47 274 66 19

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Walnut Valley Unified 287 79 77 283 76 58 Diamond Bar 304 89 75 298 82 42 Walnut 274 70 83 294 81 79

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. West Covina Unified 237 38 29 223 24 6 West Covina 237 40 29 223 25 6

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. Whittier Union 253 51 83 257 52 78 California 244 46 84 249 44 68 La Serna 289 80 87 288 77 58 Pioneer 226 32 53 220 23 67 Santa Fe 249 50 90 250 45 85 Whittier 263 61 86 281 72 92

1988-89 1989-90 School Score Rank Rel. Score Rank Rel. William S. Hart Union 283 76 69 269 65 26 Canyon 288 80 83 265 57 33 Hart 282 76 27 269 61 9 Saugus 285 77 80 273 65 35