ANAHEIM : Mixed Test Results for Magnolia Pupils

Magnolia School District pupils scored slightly lower on a standardized test of reading, writing and math skills than they did just a few years ago but continued to perform substantially better than other students statewide, the district reported this week.

The lower scores in the annual California Test of Basic Skills are part of a trend that began at the elementary school district about four years ago.

The report said Magnolia’s first- through sixth-grade pupils scored slightly lower than they did in 1990 in 10 of a possible 18 categories on the test, which was given to the district’s pupils last spring.

They scored the same in four categories and improved slightly in four others. In general, those in Magnolia’s higher grades scored better than those in its lower grades when compared to pupils statewide.

Despite the slide, the skills of the average Magnolia student are still one or two grade levels above the California average, according to the report.

Assistant Supt. Rick Turrentine said the district’s average score has dropped because the number of students for whom English is their second language is increasing.

The district paid $10,000 to the two private firms that give and scored the exam. The Magnolia pupils were grouped by grade level, and their overall scores were compared to those achieved by students in districts statewide for the last six years.

For example, last spring’s sixth-graders had Magnolia’s best overall showing on the test. Those children on average had the skills of an eighth-grader, which was better than 73% of sixth-graders tested statewide.

The district’s worst showing was by last spring’s second-graders. Those children had the skills of an average third-grader, which was better than 59% of the second-graders statewide.

Other grade levels showed similar drops this year--and none compared as favorably statewide as Magnolia students did in 1988. That year, both Magnolia’s sixth- and second-graders scored better than 75% of their peers statewide.