13% of O.C. Schools Rise in Rankings

More than half of Los Angeles Unified School District’s elementary campuses raised their state achievement rankings last year, far outpacing the rate of improvement of other elementary schools in the region, data released Thursday showed.

Still, Los Angeles Unified elementary schools have a long way to go: On average, they remain in the bottom half statewide. The district’s middle and high schools did not show as much improvement.

Only 13% of schools in Orange County improved their standings in the rankings released Thursday by the California Department of Education. In Ventura County, 15% did so. Officials attributed that in part to the difficulty in raising scores that are already high.

Orange County education leaders noted that although about 21% of the more than 500 campuses in the county slipped a notch, test scores were generally above the state average.

Bergeson Elementary School in Laguna Niguel, for example, posted an Academic Performance Index of 836 out of a possible 1,000. The index is calculated from students’ test scores, and the state wants all schools to reach 800 eventually.

Despite its impressive score, Bergeson Elementary declined in the rankings from the top 10% to the top 20% of schools based on API numbers for 2002. Overall, a third of Orange County schools meet or exceed the 800 API benchmark; the statewide figure is 17%.

“We are very pleased with the results,” said William M. Habermehl, Orange County superintendent of education.

“There is always room for improvement, but our schools continue to make progress.”

In Los Angeles Unified, 53% of the district’s more than 430 elementary schools raised their state rank, according to a Times analysis of the state data. That group fueled the district’s average increase for elementary schools from three to four on the scale of one, the worst, to 10, the best.

In contrast, 28% of all other elementary schools in Los Angeles County showed progress last year; the average ranking for those elementary schools remained at five.

In Los Angeles Unified, Supt. Roy Romer welcomed the news about his district’s elementary schools.

“The teaching that is occurring here is the right kind of teaching,” he said.

However, L.A. Unified’s middle schools remained a two on average and high schools continued to average a three. For the rest of Los Angeles County, middle and high schools averaged the fifth rank.

L.A. Unified officials said the elementary schools’ performance shows that teachers are focusing on California’s new, tough academic standards in math, English and history that are the biggest factors in the state test scores.

“That sets a foundation,” said Principal Carmel Vela-Madady of Erwin Street Elementary, which rose four ranks since 1999, from the second decile statewide to the sixth, which is better than the state average.

The Van Nuys campus raised its achievement levels although it is overcrowded and about 80% of its 1,070 students, mainly Latino and Armenian, are learning English as a second language. Faculty there said their meetings every Tuesday -- part of the routine in L.A. Unified elementary schools -- have helped teachers collectively work on instructional strategies.

The statewide rankings, part of the Academic Performance Index, divide all California schools into 10 equal groups based on their scores on the annual tests given each spring.

New Test’s Impact

This year, results from the California Standards Tests account for 80% of elementary and middle school achievement scores and 73% of high school marks.

That represents a big change from previous years, when the accountability program relied mostly on results from the Stanford 9 basic skills test, which was not fully aligned with state standards and classroom instruction.

The Stanford 9 will be replaced by a similar test this year.

“Now we are moving to accountability, where we test what children know, not what they don’t know,” said Kelly McAmis, principal of Marshall Elementary in Garden Grove.

The school went from being average two years ago to the top 40% of California schools in last year’s testing.

In the Santa Ana Unified School District, where a majority of students are from low-income families and are learning English, 10 schools improved their rankings; only six slipped back.

“Despite the [state’s] budget difficulties, standards-based reform has a solid foundation in California,” said Kerry Mazzoni, state secretary of education. “It’s imperative to stay the course.”

L.A. Unified’s elementary school rankings “are growing faster than others,” said David Rogosa, a Stanford University statistician who studies the state’s school accountability system. “They are closing the gap to some extent.”

Gap Remains

But the gap remains. In affluent La Canada Unified, Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified, Manhattan Beach Unified, San Marino Unified and Hermosa Beach Elementary, all schools remained in the highest rank, where they’ve been for four years.

In Orange County, half of all elementary, middle and high schools were in the eighth, ninth and top ranking. In Ventura County, more than half of all campuses ranked seven or better. A majority of Los Angeles Unified schools ranked three or lower.

High schools in Los Angeles Unified remain a particular worry. Twelve of the 49 comprehensive high schools received the bottom rank of one and only five did better than the state average.

Romer said the district is targeting middle and high schools with a series of reforms.

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Times staff writers Daniel Yi, Claire Luna, Denise M. Bonilla and Jenifer Ragland; Richard O’Reilly, director of computer analysis; and data analyst Sandra Poindexter contributed to this article.