CALIFORNIA LEARNING ASSESSMENT SYSTEM SCORES : About the Tests

The Times today is publishing key scores from The California Learning Assessment System (CLAS) tests, which were designed to measure students’ knowledge and abilities against objective standards. To do that, CLAS establishes six performance levels in each of the three subject areas covered by the test--reading, writing and math--and every student scores at one of those levels.

For example, students who performed at Level 1 in reading understood only single words or phrases in the assigned reading passage and were unable to take away a “coherent meaning” from what they read.

Students at the highest level, Level 6, were able to “demonstrate insight” as they wrote about the passage and showed an ability to “explore complexities in depth” and “expand on the possible meanings of a text.”

In math, students who scored at Level 1 made major mathematical errors or provided little or no explanation of how they solved problems. Exams scored at Level 6 provided clear and logical explanations of solutions and made effective use of mathematical language, diagrams and graphs.

On the writing exams, Level 1 essays were brief and disorganized and included major errors in grammar, punctuation, capitalization and spelling. Essays graded at Level 6 presented a complex range of ideas, supported with logical reasons and detailed answers, and were written in a distinctive style.

Exams scored at the other four levels rated between those two extremes. Level 6 is considered “advanced” understanding of the subject matter; Level 5 is “proficient,” and Level 4 is considered “basic” understanding. Students who scored at Level 3 or below, in effect, failed to demonstrate the understanding that would merit a passing grade on a conventional test.

The tests were scored by specially trained evaluators, whose work was periodically reviewed by teachers who had trained them.

The scores reported for individual schools reflect the percentage of students performing at each level, in each subject. Theoretically, the best result would be for 100% of the students to achieve at Level 6. The worst would be if 100% of the students were at Level 1.

This year, the state has also released a composite score--the combined percentage of students scoring at Levels 4, 5 or 6 at each school--to make it easier to compare schools to one another.

The tests were given to students in the 4th, 8th and 10th grades.

HOW TO READ THE SCORES

* Find your school district under the appropriate grade. The districts are listed alphabetically. Find your school under the district name.

* The Times today is reporting scores for individual schools using the composite figure provided by the state--denoting the percentage of test-takers who achieved a passing score. So, each figure listed indicates the percentage of students at that school who scored 4, 5 or 6 in a given skills area, reading (R) , writing (W) or math (M) . An asterisk indicates that a school had too few students take the test to produce a reliable aggregate score.

* Main story, A1.

Additional Information on the Scores

California Learning Assessment System scores for individual schools, districts or the entire state may be obtained in several ways:

* On the ‘Net: Use an Internet service to contact the California Department of Education “gopher” server at “goldmine.cde.ca.gov”.

* Using a modem and a computer: Download files from the Department’s computer at (916) 657-4881 or (916) 657-5371. CLAS files can be found from the main menu with the following commands: type F, for file menu; type L, for list of available files and type 7 to select the CLAS file area. The files are in a compressed format and may be viewed only when downloaded and decompressed.

* Locally: Scores are available from your local school district or from your county office of education. Call your local school district for more information.

Grade 10

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Statewide 35 39 14 -- -- -- Ventura County 35 37 17 -- -- --

Fillmore Unified

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 32 37 10 -- -- -- Fillmore Community High 0 0 0 25 29 7 Fillmore Senior High 36 41 11 30 32 9

Ojai Unified

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 45 52 21 -- -- -- Nordhoff High 45 52 21 40 46 18

Oxnard Union High

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 34 32 13 -- -- -- Frontier High (Cont.) 3 3 0 22 22 6 Camarillo High * * 25 45 51 22 Channel Islands High 36 40 11 31 35 10 Hueneme High 33 34 7 29 32 8 Oxnard High 46 31 16 34 38 13 Rio Mesa High 32 32 11 35 38 12

Santa Paula Union High

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 18 19 5 -- -- -- Santa Paula High 18 20 5 29 34 9 Renaissance High (Cont.) 0 * 0 16 18 4

Simi Valley Unified

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 27 26 15 -- -- -- Apollo High (Cont.) 12 0 0 18 21 5 Royal High 25 29 15 38 43 17 Simi Valley High 29 24 16 38 43 17

Ventura Unified

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 32 43 15 -- -- -- Buena Vista High (Cont.) 0 0 0 34 39 13 Pacific High (Cont.) 11 0 0 18 22 6 Ventura Islands High (Cont.) 0 0 0 21 25 6 Buena High 39 48 19 42 47 20 Ventura High 25 41 11 38 43 16

Conejo Valley Unified

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide * * * -- -- -- Conejo Valley High (Cont.) * * * 10 12 2 Westlake High 60 * * 50 55 27 Newbury Park High * * * 47 52 24 Thousand Oaks High * * * 49 54 26

Oak Park Unified

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 72 66 45 -- -- -- Oak Park High 76 71 47 54 57 31 Oak View High (Cont.) * * 17 44 46 23

Moorpark Unified

Results 100 Comp. R% W% M% R% W% M% Districtwide 30 36 14 -- -- -- Moorpark Community High (Cont.) * 0 * 33 37 14 Moorpark High 30 37 14 47 51 22

How to Read the Scores

Find your school district. The districts are listed alphabetically. Find your school under the district name. The score recorded for each school reflects the percentage of its students scoring at Levels 4, 5 or 6--in effect, those who demonstrated at least “basic” understanding of the subject matter in three basic skill areas. An asterisk (*) indicates that a school had too few students take the test to produce a reliable score.