SAUSD 2010 STAR Test Results show improvement but are weak compared to nearby districts

By Arturo "Art" Pedroza, MBA

SAUSD 2010 STAR Test Results show improvement but are weak compared to nearby districts, in Garden Grove and Anaheim.

The results are in for the latest round of testing. Click here to see the full summary of results for the Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD).

Here is a recap of the SAUSD test results:

Only 38.8% of SAUSD students are proficient or advanced in English, in Grades 2-11. That means over 60% of our students lack English proficiency. By far the worst results were in Science, in Gardes 5,8 and 10, where only 24.3% were proficient or above. This bodes extremely ill in our new economy, which is moving more and more into advanced technology and science. Companies are begging to be allowed to bring in Asian immigrants to do such work + because our school districts like the SAUSD are dropping the ball.
42.3% of our students are proficient or above in Math, in Grades 2-7 and end-of-course. Interesting! Our students aren't stupid + math is a universal language. Topics like history and science are tougher for them, when they lack English proficiency. Only 31.8% were proficient or above in History, in Grades 8, 11, and end-of-course. What does this all mean? Well, let's take a look at how the SAUSD test results looked in 2009:

35.8%, in Grades 2-11, were proficient or above in English.
38.9%, in Grades 2-7, and end-of-course, were proficient or above in Math. And 34.9%, in Grades 5, 8 and 10, were proficient or above in Science. So our students advanced, a bit, in English proficiency. They likewise advanced in Math proficiency. But they took a giant leap backward in Science. For the record, they did however show some improvement in History, which was at at 28.2% proficiency in 2009.

What about other Orange County School Districts? Let's see how the Garden Grove Unified School District fared, by comparison.

54.1%, in Grades 2-11, were proficient or above in English.
56.6%, in Grades 2-7, and end-of-course, were proficient or above in Math. And 58.9%, in Grades 5, 8 and 10, were proficient or above in Science. How about the Anaheim Union High School District?

48.2%, in Grades 2-11, were proficient or above in English.
31.2%, in Grades 2-7, and end-of-course, were proficient or above in Math. And 53%, in Grades 5, 8 and 10, were proficient or above in Science. To check out other school districts' test results, click here.

Go to this site to check out all the links in this article: http://fixthesausd.com/2010/08/18/sausd-2010-star-test-results-show-improvement-but-science-scores-plunge/.