Taken from: http://www.cde.ca.gov/nr/ne/yr07/yr07rel98.asp
Last modified: Wednesday, August 15, 2007 Display version

State Superintendent Jack O'Connell Releases 2007 STAR
Results Showing Encouraging, Troubling Trends

INGLEWOOD/SAN DIEGO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today released the results of the 2007 Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program that show California students are continuing to improve academically in most subjects and grades.

"This year's results offer both encouragement and reason for serious concern," O'Connell said. "We can be pleased that gains in student achievement made over the past five years are either increasing or holding steady. This progress means that hundreds of thousands of California students will have a better shot at success. But the data also show the persistent achievement gaps in our system that California simply cannot afford to accept – morally, economically, or socially."

Compared with 2003, when all the California Standards Tests (CSTs) were for the first time completely aligned to state standards, the percentage of students scoring advanced or proficient in 2007 increased by 8 points in English-language arts (ELA) or from 35 percent to 43 percent, (Table 1) and 6 points in math, from 35 percent to 41 percent (Table 5).

The percentage of students scoring at the proficient and advanced levels on the fifth grade science test has increased by 13 points since 2004; the first year the test was given (Table 10).

The percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced in grades two, four, seven, and eight have increased in ELA by double digits over the four-year span beginning in 2003 (Table 1).

The greatest improvement over the four-year period for math was made by students in grades three, four, five, and seven with the proficient and advanced percentage increasing by 12, 12, 14, and 10 points, respectively (Table 5).

O'Connell pointed out the lack of progress made in closing the achievement gap among racial groups. While all student subgroup populations have continued to improve since 2003, the gap in achievement between African Americans or blacks and whites and the gap in achievement between Hispanics or Latinos and whites remain relatively unchanged.

"Once again, these annual test scores shine a glaring light on the disparity in achievement between students who are African American or Hispanic and their white or Asian counterparts. We know all children can learn to the same high levels, so we must confront and change those things that are holding back groups of students."

This achievement gap cannot always be explained away because of the poverty that has been so often associated with low performance, he said.

"The results show this explanation not to be universally true," he said. "In fact, African American and Hispanic students who are not poor are achieving at lower levels in math than their white counterparts who are poor. These are not just economic achievement gaps, they are racial achievement gaps. We cannot afford to excuse them; they simply must be addressed. We must take notice and take action."

In response to this pressing issue, O'Connell early this year charged the statewide P-16 council – including leaders from all segments of education as well as business, labor, and community leaders – with examining factors contributing to achievement gaps and strategies for closing those gaps. He is calling on all those interested in this issue to attend the Achievement Gap Summit scheduled for November 13-14, 2007, in Sacramento.

"The intent of this working Summit is to create an inclusive, interactive, and collaborative environment where educators will gather to share best practices and learn strategies immediately useable to address their daily challenges," he said.

"I'm committed to addressing this issue, to creating the partnerships, sharing the information and employing the strategies that will ensure success for all California students," O'Connell said. "I am excited about this challenge because I know it is one we can overcome. I believe in the ability, in the talent, and in the dedication present in our public schools."

Under the STAR program, California students attain one of five levels of performance on the CSTs for each subject tested: advanced, proficient, basic, below basic, and far below basic. The State Board of Education has established the proficient level as the desired achievement goal for all students. This goal is consistent with school growth targets for state accountability and the federal No Child Left Behind requirements. The state target is for all students to score at the proficient or advanced level. Approximately 4.8 million students participated in 2007 in the STAR program, which is comprised of five components:

California Standards Tests (CSTs) are standards-based tests that measure the achievement of state content standards in English-language arts, mathematics, science, and history-social science.
California Alternate Performance Assessment (CAPA) is for students who have significant cognitive disabilities.
California Achievement Tests (CAT/6) are nationally norm-referenced tests, taken in grades three and seven only.
Aprenda: La prueba de logros en español, Tercera edición (Aprenda 3) is a nationally norm-referenced achievement test of general academic knowledge in Spanish for Spanish-speaking English learners (for grades five through eleven in 2007).
Standards-based Tests in Spanish (STS), are designed for Spanish-speaking English learners to measure the achievement of state content standards in reading-language arts and mathematics in Spanish, for grades two, three, and four in 2007.
The STAR Program data released today is preliminary because a small number of school districts have not yet completed testing and have not yet had time to complete a review of the results to verify their accuracy. A second posting of preliminary results that will include all students tested is scheduled for September. Final results after local corrections are incorporated are scheduled for posting during December.

School, school district, county, and state level results for the 2007 STAR Program have been posted on the California Department of Education's Web site at http://star.cde.ca.gov/.