Sylmar students Briana Borunda and Alma Carrera.

When Principal James Lee learned that his students at Sylmar Charter High School had among the biggest jumps in state test scores in the local school district, he was thrilled but surprised, because they managed to pull it off despite a well-publicized lunchtime brawl that erupted on campus right in the middle of testing.

He credits the teachers who created their own data analysis to discover which type of questions students struggled with and then focused on those skills, as well as a new collaborative spirit that pulled the team together as they applied for and won affiliated charter status — the only LA Unified school to do so in the past two years.

• How Sylmar’s test scores stack up: See the 10 most-improved LAUSD district high schools.

“I’m delighted we are showing up as most improved, it’s just that we had a bit of an incident that was going on right in the middle of the testing last year,” Lee said. “Apparently all of the preparation and special planning we did to prepare for the testing ended up working out well, despite the incident.”

The “incident” became international news when a schoolyard brawl was caught by a cell phone camera and the YouTube video went viral. It was incorrectly characterized as a racial incident, set against a backdrop of demonstrations throughout the country and presidential rhetoric perceived as racist.

“The dispute was between athletes and non-athletes,” Lee explained, with one group predominantly African-American and the other mostly Latino. Six students were suspended, but they all were allowed to attend graduation ceremonies.

Sylmar Charter High Principal James Lee.

“I got a lot of criticism for allowing them to culminate, but for four years they were good kids,” said Lee, although the decision was ultimately made by the district. “Three were very academically strong.”

As TV crews staked out the campus for days and celebrities jumped in to talk about the incident, the school was taking the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium tests scheduled by the state. They were on the third day of testing, it was near the end of the year, and the principal couldn’t change or stop the tests if he tried.

“We did prepare a lot, and that seemed to pay off,” Lee said.

The students’ English scores rose 13 percentage points from 45 percent of the students meeting standards to 58 percent. The math scores rose 15 percentage points, to 27 percent meeting or exceeding standards. Districtwide, English scores rose to 39 percent and math to 29 percent.

“Ironically, students were SBAC testing in the midst of our highly publicized lunch altercation, town hall meeting and student walk-out,” Lee said. “Students demonstrated much focus and resiliency.”

Also, 80 percent of students enrolled in the Math Science Magnet on Sylmar’s campus met or exceeded standards in English, and 57 percent did so in math. That compares to 80 percent in English and 59 percent in math earned by Granada Hills Charter, a rival school.

The only schools in Local District Northeast that did better are Triumph PUC Charter, Arleta High and two of the Chavez Humanitas schools, district numbers show. There are 17 traditional and charter high schools in the local district. The Sylmar Magnet exceeded the scores of some local competition: Triumph, Arleta and Chavez, according to Debbie Steinert, Sylmar’s magnet school coordinator.

Sylmar’s test scores are among the highest increases of any schools that have 80 percent or more families eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Reclassification of English learners was also one of the highest, at 20 percent, compared to the district average of 11 percent.

“All of this can be credited to the hard work of teachers who worked much more collaboratively last year in the spirit of our charter petition, and having the right mindset on lifting up students regardless of socioeconomic status, a turn away from the student deficit mindset,” Lee said.

Math teacher Tony Nunez is one face behind the success stories. He identified the types of questions his students were having trouble with and focused on them, particularly the new Common Core standards that give questions in word problem formats and ask students to figure out how math applies to real-world situations.

Math teacher Tony Nunez.

“Those are the kinds of questions I like because it shows students how math applies to the world around them, but they are tougher questions,” said Nunez, who is a business technology teacher and has a degree in economics. “It’s not just filling in the bubble with multiple choices, they have to create graphs, fill in the blank or require multiple responses and do it on the computer.”

With their own data analysis, the teachers targeted the problems students had the most trouble with.

“There is happiness that we moved up, but it’s still only 27 percent meeting (math) standards and that shows that nearly three-fourths of the students don’t, and that means we have a lot of work left to do,” Nunez said.

The high school’s 15 math teachers did some unprecedented collaboration by sharing sample questions, going over problems and identifying common issues. An assistant principal who was also a math coach stepped in to help. The teachers and principal adopted strategies posed by educator Michael Fullan, used the CPM Educational Program and took advantage of some autonomies even before they officially became an affiliated charter school over the summer.

“We had been working on becoming a charter for years, so the mindset was already there,” the principal said. “Although we haven’t seen much flexibility in the funding yet, we do have some autonomy in the curriculum.”

Nunez said, “The principle benefits of being an affiliated charter gave us flexibility and autonomy for using the CPM book and not following the interim assessment plan. We decided as a group what the right direction is and what are the main benefits for success for the kids.”

The teachers also worked to get students used to taking the tests on computers, rather than with a pencil.

Briana Borunda and Alma Carrera earned top scores.

“The teachers really prepared me for the tests,” said 17-year-old Alma Carrera, a member of the Glee Club and softball team. “We did practice tests a few times, and it helped me with the concepts when we took the tests.”

Alma and her friend, Briana Borunda, also 17 and a senior, live near the school and were both witnesses to the lunchtime brawl.

“It was a strange time, I feel like the whole thing was over-exaggerated,” said Briana, who is also involved in many extracurricular activities and on the volleyball team. “People kept talking about it, but the teachers emphasized how important the tests were and calmed us down. I was worried about the math test.”

Both Briana and Alma were in the highest-achieving percentiles on the tests. Briana received a perfect score on her English test.

Both girls hope to attend UCLA, and few family members have been to college. According to Sylmar’s magnet school internal statistics, only 10 percent of their parents graduated from college and 37 percent of the parents aren’t high school graduates.

“I feel more self-motivated, but it also came from my teachers,” said Briana, who is leaning toward a career in criminology.

Alma, who aspires to be a pediatrician, added, “I feel pretty proud of myself and the skills I have, and I think it’s great that we did as good as Granada Hills.”

Sylmar Spartans see Granada Hills Charter Highlanders as competition in many ways. They battle for students, and even though this is the first year Sylmar has added “charter” to its name, the school population dipped to about 2,000 students.

“I think the lunchtime incident last year scared some of the new students away,” Lee said. “That is a shame.”

Nunez started teaching at Sylmar seven years ago when the student population was nearly 3,000. He recalled how the school faced major issues after losing grants and major funding. Then Lee was transferred to the school, and they started working in smaller learning communities.

“It was a high-stress time with a lot of changes,” Nunez said. “But now we are working together with a lot of collaboration and looking at data to see how we can improve. Ideally, we want to get 100 percent to be meeting standards. That’s a goal, I don’t know how realistic it is with limited resources, but it is a goal we are striving toward.”

English teacher Ires Moxley at Sylmar Charter High.

Ires Moxley noted how her 16 fellow English teachers have a greater sense of collaboration in the three years she has taught at the school. Their regular meetings and sharing best practices helped with the improved test scores.

“I was very excited and very happy when the scores came out,” Moxley said. “We laid the foundation for the students, and I’m elated that it paid off.”

They are teaching students how to write using the Toulmin Method, and that helped in the essay part of the exams.

“We increased the opportunities to write and that helped with the testing,” Moxley said. “As soon as they come in to class we encourage academic discussions and if they can speak academically you can write it.”

Teachers incorporate writing with science, math, history, language and other classes. “With our emphasis on writing, it helps develop reading and listening and creates the building blocks so they can learn on their own,” Moxley said.

When the brawl happened, Moxley treated her students like a strict mom. She wanted to know if any of the students were distracted or bothered by the incident, but she talked it out with them and shut the door to the disturbances outside and got them focused.

“The kids just wanted normalcy, and the SBAC got them focused again,” Moxley said. “They were truly resilient and knew that this was important to them and their future. And we’re all on board with that.”

Principal Lee has a daily meeting with a school team to discuss issues.

Every morning, the principal holds a meeting with his team of assistant principals at 8:30 in his office to discuss issues around the campus. The administrators are involved with three different committees involving teachers, students and parents that are working on the marketing and promotion of the school and its programs.

“I never thought I would be involved in the marketing of the school, but that is something we are learning to do now,” Lee said. Their school is now open to enrollment throughout the district, but they want to make the school attractive to their feeder schools too, and not lose too many students to independent charters or private schools.

Sylmar’s first-ever promotional event is taking place this Saturday, Oct. 15, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. billed as a Town Hall and Resource Fair. It will offer a chance to connect with the local Neighborhood Councils and Neighborhood Watch groups, and the school will be all out to promote its programs.

Next year, Lee’s teachers plan to increase their test scores again.

Would another lunchtime “incident” help?

“Oh no, no please, not that again!” Lee smirked. “It would be nice to know what our test scores would do without something like that going on in the middle of the testing.”

Photo: SF Examiner
State Superintendent of Public Education Tom Torlakson

Under pressure from the federal government, California is expanding a field test of computer-based assessments to test students in both math and English language arts, rather than just one subject area. A law recently signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, AB 484, (see story here) requires testing in only one subject.

The change, announced yesterday by State Education chief Tom Torlakson, came in response to concerns that the US Department of Education would withhold as much as $45 million dollars in funding, as well as additional Title I funds if the state did not comply with long standing federal rules that students in grades three and eleven be tested annually in both subjects.

The news was welcomed by LA Unified, which had planned to test in both subject areas anyway, at a cost of $2 million.  In applauding the decision, Superintendent John Deasy said in a statement it “brings more equity to the assessment transition process” as the state shifts to the Common Core State Standards curriculum. The cost of administering the added test will be paid for by the state.

“We are glad that this decision will relieve us of the obligation to pay for the second test, saving us vital funds,” Deasy said. “We continue to prepare for the transition to Common Core State Standards in instruction and testing, which is why we are working to ensure there are adequate computers or tablets on every campus so students can access the computer adaptive Smarter Balanced assessments.”

Torlakson also said California is applying for a “double testing” waiver from the federal government, which would allow students to avoid taking both the field test and a separate end-of-year state test.

AB 484 ended most of the assessments that had comprised the state’s Standardized Testing and Reporting program for the past 15 years. It required students to be tested in one subject area but did not preclude the state from requiring tests in both.

“This move to up-to-date new assessments marks a major step forward in California’s work to ensure that every student graduates equipped to succeed in college and careers,” Torlakson said in a press release. “These field tests simply make good sense, and expanding them to include both subjects for most students makes even better sense—in contrast to ‘double testing’ students, which makes little sense at all.”

Field tests serve as “tests of the tests,” allowing experts to gauge the accuracy and reliability of individual test items before finalizing the assessments for full-scale use. As such, no field test scores will be produced or reported. The vast majority of students will be tested in both subjects this spring.

All students in grade three through eight and grade 11, as well as a small sample from grades nine and 10, will participate in the Smarter Balanced field test.

“Expanding the field test for hundreds of thousands of students to take both sets of assessments will mean more hands-on experience for them and their teachers, as well as more opportunity to identify any technological needs,” said Mike Kirst, president of the State Board of Education. “All of that means that California will be starting from a solidly built foundation when these assessments become operational next school year—and that’s good for our students, our schools, and our state.”

Ninety-five percent of the students will take a sampling of test items for both content areas, plus one performance task from one content area. The remaining five percent of students will focus on one subject or the other. The field test will take place between March 18 and June 6, 2014. The new assessment system goes operational in the 2014-15 school year.

The new assessments will be computer-based, allowing for a much broader range of test questions than the multiple-choice exams given under the previous statewide tests. They will emphasize critical thinking, reasoning and problem-solving, modeling the kind of teaching and learning needed to prepare all students for the demands of college and the workplace.

In LA Unified, students will take the tests either on iPads or school-based computers.

Previous Posts: Brown Signs AB 484, Ending Old Standardized Tests in California; Coalition Calls on Gov. Brown to Veto Testing Bill, AB 484; Torlakson Rebuts Duncan, Defends State Testing Bill

For LA Unified students, the annual Academic Performance Index (API) shows a three point increase over last year, to 749 from 746, as the state score dropped to 789 from 791.

“For the second-largest school district in the nation to outpace nearly all urban districts in California in the API is an extraordinary accomplishment,” said Superintendent John Deasy. “I’m tremendously proud of our administrators, students, and teachers for achieving this result while the District remained in the throes of a devastating budget crisis” according to a press release issued by LAUSD.

API scores range from 200 to 1,000 points, with a goal of 800 for every student. The scores are based on the results of several standardized state tests, including the California Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program and the High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE).

Despite the gain for LA Unified, other numbers betrayed the upward trend.

In all, only 247 schools – about 36 percent of the district’s total — hit the target 800, about the same as the year before. The large majority, 222 schools, are elementary schools, leaving just 16 middle and 9 high schools that met targets. That’s better than year when only 6 high schools reached 800.

Despite the strong performance of 46 percent of LAUSD elementary schools meeting the target, it still feel short of the statewide level of 56 percent.

The 3-point gain for LA Unified was smallest in 10 years, breaking a five-year streak of double-digit advances. Combined with the state performance, the district drew as close as it has ever been to the statewide score, still lagging behind by 40 points.

The 2013 results showed other notable gains for LAUSD. Scores for English learners jumped 28 points, the highest gain in history for the district, and 27 points above the statewide figure. Scores for students with disabilities grew by 17 points, versus 5 points across California. Economically disadvantaged students improved 8 points in the District, compared with 5 points statewide.

For the first time ever, API scores decreased for Asian and white students by 2 and 4 points, respectively. At the same time, African-American students improved by 1 point and Hispanic students saw a 4 point gain.

LA Unified’s improvement was second biggest among California’s urban school districts, traling only San Diego Unified, which grew 9 points.

The Santa Ana Unified School District, formerly lead by Thelma Melendez, Mayor Eric Garcetti’s education czar, dropped 13 points, to 742 from 755.

Previous Posts: LAUSD’s Big API Gains

But the greater uncertainty could lie ahead.

The plan is for all students to be tested on a new curriculum — the Common Core State Standards — in 2015. Those tests will be administered on computers. But what about 2014? The State Assembly hasn’t quite made a decision on that front, but 2014 could be a lost year in terms of meaningful testing data.

Assembly Bill 484, which has been approved by the Assembly and is currently being debated in a state Senate committee, would eliminate all of the California Standardized Tests that high school students would have taken over the 2013-2014 academic year — tests in subjects like history, algebra, chemistry and physics. Some students will take the new Common Core tests, and students in grades 3 through 8 would still take the CSTs for Title 1 purposes.

“The tests will be irrelevant,” said John Mockler, an education consultant who served briefly as interim California Education Secretary and was one of the architects of Proposition 30. “Some kids are going to take these new Common Core tests, some kids are going to take the old STAR test. Either one of those or both will be invalid, because they test different things. They can’t be used for accountability purposes.”

If AB 484 doesn’t pass, most students would take the CSTs for one final year.

Either way, California testing will face, in 2015, the same sort of rocky results that New York is facing this year, when transition to the Common Core caused their scores to plummet.

Previous posts: Slim Gains, Slight Drop in English for LA Unified in CA Test Scores; California’s 2013 Testing Results to be Released Thursday; LAUSD Shows Improvement In State Tests