Schools Profit as ‘Failures’ Improve Scores on State Tests

When the day arrived for high school seniors to take the California Assessment Program standardized test, Sharon Smith, acting principal of Amelia Earhart High School in North Hollywood, was worried that some of her 25 seniors might not show up.

Earhart is one of 16 San Fernando Valley public continuation high schools, small alternative schools for students who have had disciplinary problems. And chronic absenteeism is the No. 1 reason that students are transferred to continuation schools from their regular high schools.

Thirty minutes before test time, a few Earhart seniors still had not arrived. A call to the home of a student Smith calls a “notorious late sleeper” found that she had already left for school. One senior who didn’t really want to take the state test, which shows achievement levels in math, reading, writing and spelling, came even though she was ill.

Earned $3,750 for the School

By the 9 a.m. starting time, all of Earhart’s seniors were ready to take the test. When the CAP test results were released a few weeks ago, Earhart’s seniors scored higher than last year’s senior class and earned $3,750 for the school.

Earhart’s earnings came from the state’s Education Improvement Incentive Program, more commonly called “Cash for CAP.” Last year, the state announced that it would give cash awards totaling $14.4 million to all public high schools that raised their test scores. To get the money, 93% of a school’s seniors had to take the test and the results had to show “overall improvement.”

It was particularly gratifying for Smith and the principals of the six other Valley continuation schools that received money under the program, because continuation schools are supposedly where “failures” are placed. In fact, seven of the 10 Los Angeles Unified School District continuation schools to receive CAP awards are based in the Valley.

‘A Different Kind of Kid’

“We are a different kind of school for a different kind of kid,” said Cal Burke, administrator of the school district’s Senior High Schools Options Program.

“We have no reputation with people who don’t know about us, a bad reputation with others because we’re the schools where the dopers, long-hairs and failures go, and a good reputation with the parents who have kids in the program. In some cases, we have saved their lives,” Burke said.

Howard Marcus, principal of Miguel Leonis High School in Woodland Hills, added: “The incentive plan worked for our kids. This was a way to leave a legacy to Leonis. This was a way to show the world that they are smart and bright and that they are not dopers, not stupid and not dropouts.”

Accountability Sought

This is the first time in the 15-year history of the CAP testing program that the results have been released in the same school year the test was taken. The early release of the scores is part of state schools Supt. Bill Honig’s plan to make schools accountable to the public for the education of their students.

To illustrate the performance of a school, the state periodically releases scores of standardized tests, dropout and attendance rates, performance of public-school graduates at the University of California and the California State University system and a variety of other statistical “quality indicators.”

In this first Cash for CAP competition, 109 Los Angeles County regular and continuation high schools won $3.7 million in bonus money. Awards in the Valley area included $73,214 for Canyon High School in Canyon Country, $31,991 for James Monroe High School in Sepulveda, and $14,547 awarded to the Van Nuys Math and Science Magnet School on the campus of Van Nuys High School.

Top Cash for CAP winners in Los Angeles County included Rowland High School in the east San Gabriel Valley with $140,818 and Redondo Union High School in Redondo Beach with $110,126. Garfield High School in East Los Angeles topped all Los Angeles district schools with $105,819.

Neither of Burbank’s high schools--Burbank and John Burroughs--won any money in the competition, a fact that James J. Perino, Burbank Unified School District’s assistant for instruction, found somewhat embarrassing.

“It’s unfortunate that we did not qualify, but we didn’t show the all-around improvement that was needed,” Perino said. “We will just have to work harder and do better next year.”

Ventura County Winners

Several high schools in southern Ventura County won CAP money this year. Newbury Park High School was awarded $1,430 and Thousand Oaks High School received $30,123. Four high schools in the Oxnard Union High School District--Channel Islands, Oxnard, Adolfo Camarillo and Rio Mesa--combined to win $100,328.

Because the two regular high schools in the Las Virgenes Unified School District have annually attained high scores on CAP tests, officials said it was almost impossible for students to improve on such scores. However, Indian Hills, the Las Virgenes district’s continuation school, won about $3,300.

The incentive program backfired at Chico High School in Northern California. There, four seniors persuaded their classmates to deliberately fail the test when the administration refused to let them use a portion of any bonus funds earned for a beach trip. No such cases were reported in Los Angeles County.

Rallies, Vouchers Tried

At many regular high schools, administrators made a special effort to get at least 93% participation in the voluntary exam. Some schools staged rallies, some promised vouchers for popular fast-food chains and others had pep talks with 12th-grade classes.

Administrators at the continuation schools tried many of the same techniques, except on a smaller scale. Their incentive work, however, was more difficult because many of their students, according to Burke of the Los Angeles school district, are already “turned-off” by school.

In the Los Angeles school district, students who are unable to adjust to regular school are transferred to continuation schools. Once there, they receive intensive counseling. There is a 25-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio in continuation schools, in contrast with the district’s typical 33-to-1 ratio.

Requirements the Same

Continuation schools usually are located next to a larger regular high school and most continuation students formerly went to the nearby school.

Continuation school students must meet the same graduation requirements as those attending regular high schools. Since students can move as slowly or as swiftly as they want in completing course work, some graduate in less than three years while some take longer.

Preparation Stressed

In the weeks before the CAP test, many Valley continuation administrators took a two-pronged approach toward preparing their students for the test.

First, they used materials provided by the district to all high schools. The so-called Test-Taking Modules provide an outline for teachers to use in helping students learn how to take a test.

Tips such as answering the easy questions first and going back to the more difficult ones, reading the entire question and making sure the test-taker follows the written directions were included in this packet.

In addition to the district material, teachers and principals at each continuation school used their own test preparation methods.

Reading Skills Stressed

At West Granada Hills High School in Granada Hills, Principal Al Suydam said he expanded the special reading program to include preparation for the CAP test.

“Tests like these require good reading skills, so we stressed this to our students,” Suydam said.

Leonis High School in Woodland Hills had one of the more extensive CAP preparation programs. Letters were sent home with the school’s 28 seniors telling their parents about the test and asking for their help in making sure their child had a good night’s sleep before test day.

Tutoring by Students

All the seniors were given diagnostic tests in the reading and math skills that were likely to be tested. The students were then given extra help in the areas in which they were weak.

“We all felt really confident when we took the test,” said 17-year-old Mara Dawidziak, a Leonis senior.

“There wasn’t anything on the test that we hadn’t learned in school,” added Amey Sellery, another 17-year-old Leonis senior.

Preparation Paid Off

The Leonis preparation plan worked: The 28 Leonis seniors earned the maximum $400 per student CAP award for a total of $11,200.

Some educators are critical of the cash incentive program, arguing that it is ethically wrong to motivate students to learn--or take a test--in return for money. But others said they welcomed the cash bonus plan and already were making plans for spending the money.

Because of education code regulations and the rules of the Education Improvement Incentive Program, school administrators must confer with parents and students before they decide how to spend the CAP money.

But many of the principals already have a “wish list” of things, ranging from photocopying machines, personal computers, books and other instructional materials to air conditioners for classrooms.

“These youngsters are capable of directly competing on the same academic level as the students in the comprehensive high schools,” Marcus said. “The Cash for CAP has given them the opportunity to show this to the world.”

How to Read the Scores

The 12th-grade scores of the California Assessment Program are the mean percentage of correct answers and may be compared with scores in other schools and to district and state averages.

Dashes indicate that tests were not given or that scores were unavailable.

Valley Continuation Schools That Won Cash in CAP Competition EARHART $3,750

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 56.5 55.1 73.5 52.9 84-85 60.2 58.3 66.0 64.4

EINSTEIN $7,988

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 56.4 47.3 60.7 36.4 84-85 52.0 52.7 65.0 58.2

INDEPENDENCE $3,247

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 61.5 51.8 62.5 53.2 84-85 62.4 57.7 60.0 60.0

LEONIS $11,200

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 51.0 60.3 65.8 55.3 84-85 62.4 61.5 62.5 57.8

OWENSMOUTH $1,894

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 57.6 57.0 61.8 56.1 84-85 53.4 57.5 66.7 66.1

THOREAU $3,200

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 63.4 52.1 61.1 53.5 84-85 64.4 70.6 71.9 69.3

WEST GRANADA $4,163

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 65.5 58.8 56.7 62.4 84-85 65.7 64.9 58.3 65.2

L.A. UNIFIED AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 NA* NA NA NA 84-85 57.3 57.4 66.7 62.3

STATE AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 NA NA NA NA 84-85 62.9 63.2 69.7 68.3

* Not applicable CAP SCORES FOR VALLEY-AREA 12TH-GRADERS State, County Averages STATE OF CALIFORNIA

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 63.1 63.0 69.5 67.7 83-84 62.2 62.6 69.4 67.4 84-85 62.9 63.2 69.7 68.3

LOS ANGELES COUNTY

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 60.7 60.6 --- 64.9 83-84 59.4 59.8 68.0 64.3 84-85 60.1 60.5 68.3 65.3

VENTURA COUNTY

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.4 64.4 --- 68.4 83-84 62.9 63.6 69.7 68.2 84-85 64.1 64.6 70.4 68.7

Burbank Unified DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 66.1 65.1 69.9 67.9 83-84 64.5 64.5 70.2 67.4 84-85 64.6 63.3 69.2 66.4

BURBANK HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 65.2 65.5 --- 67.5 83-84 64.7 66.1 69.4 67.5 84-85 64.1 63.9 69.5 66.4

BURROUGHS

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 66.9 64.7 --- 68.2 83-84 64.5 63.5 71.2 67.9 84-85 65.3 62.6 68.9 66.4

Conejo Valley DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 68.0 68.6 72.2 73.3 83-84 66.8 68.2 71.6 73.4 84-85 67.3 68.2 72.2 73.6

NEWBURY PARK HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 65.5 65.6 --- 70.2 83-84 66.0 66.7 70.9 71.5 84-85 65.4 67.1 71.6 71.3

THOUSAND OAKS HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 68.1 69.2 --- 74.2 83-84 65.7 68.1 74.0 73.8 84-85 67.6 68.6 71.9 75.2

WESTLAKE HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 69.8 70.6 --- 74.9 83-84 68.8 69.7 73.2 74.7 84-85 68.7 68.6 73.0 74.1

Hart Union DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 67.0 67.2 72.0 71.8 83-84 66.2 68.2 72.4 70.9 84-85 67.8 68.7 72.4 74.2

CANYON HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.9 64.5 --- 69.7 83-84 62.5 65.1 69.9 67.5 84-85 67.0 67.5 69.5 73.2

HART HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 70.4 71.2 --- 75.2 83-84 70.0 72.3 73.2 73.3 84-85 70.1 71.2 74.6 78.1

SAUGUS HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 65.4 65.6 --- 70.2 83-84 65.9 67.2 74.1 71.9 84-85 65.9 67.5 73.3 71.1

Las Virgenes Unified DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 69.4 70.6 73.5 75.5 83-84 70.2 72.4 75.0 75.0 84-85 69.1 72.2 73.1 75.3

AGOURA HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 69.0 69.8 --- 75.0 83-84 70.4 72.4 74.9 75.4 84-85 68.9 72.2 74.1 76.4

CALABASAS

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 69.8 71.7 --- 76.1 83-84 70.1 72.4 75.2 74.6 84-85 69.3 72.3 72.1 74.2

Los Angeles Unified DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 57.5 57.4 65.6 61.7 83-84 56.4 56.6 65.8 61.3 84-85 57.3 57.4 66.7 62.3

BIRMINGHAM

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 62.4 62.4 --- 67.3 83-84 61.5 63.5 69.3 68.0 84-85 62.3 63.2 70.9 68.3

CANOGA PARK

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 59.9 59.1 --- 64.0 83-84 61.1 61.2 66.4 66.7 84-85 59.1 60.3 69.0 65.8

CHATSWORTH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.7 63.9 --- 70.1 83-84 62.7 63.2 69.9 68.9 84-85 64.6 64.6 69.4 70.9

CLEVELAND

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 61.2 59.2 --- 64.6 83-84 57.3 55.4 64.9 60.0 84-85 55.0 54.5 65.5 58.3

CLEVELAND MAGNET

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 67.1 66.5 75.0 70.7 84-85 62.9 64.9 72.6 66.5

EL CAMINO REAL

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 67.3 66.9 --- 70.6 83-84 65.8 67.4 71.6 71.2 84-85 67.8 69.3 69.7 73.8

FRANCIS POLYTECHNIC

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 59.5 58.7 --- 62.5 83-84 55.7 55.7 64.9 60.5 84-85 55.9 55.8 66.5 61.6

GRANADA HILLS

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 65.0 64.9 --- 69.3 83-84 64.4 63.9 71.8 70.4 84-85 63.0 65.0 72.7 69.6

GRANT

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 61.5 62.6 --- 67.5 83-84 57.6 58.7 65.2 62.9 84-85 58.8 58.6 67.5 65.5

KENNEDY

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 61.3 61.7 --- 66.3 83-84 60.1 60.8 67.5 65.1 84-85 61.2 61.1 68.9 66.4

MONROE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 60.2 59.5 --- 63.0 83-84 59.9 58.6 68.4 64.5 84-85 62.7 58.7 67.2 65.1

NORTH HOLLYWOOD

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 61.0 59.8 --- 63.4 83-84 61.1 61.0 68.7 66.4 84-85 60.8 60.5 69.3 65.8

NORTH HOLLYWOOD MAGNET

Reading Writing Spelling Math 84-85 66.5 64.0 70.9 66.4

RESEDA

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 60.9 60.4 --- 66.1 83-84 57.0 55.3 65.7 60.1 84-85 60.4 58.8 65.5 63.0

SAN FERNANDO

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 55.0 53.9 --- 57.4 83-84 50.4 49.9 59.9 54.0 84-85 51.1 50.5 61.8 54.3

SAN FERNANDO MAGNET C.I.P

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 65.9 65.5 64.4 71.0 84-85 71.5 68.6 73.1 77.4

SHERMAN OAKS CENTER

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 56.9 47.8 --- 51.9 83-84 54.6 66.7 64.4 58.4 84-85 58.1 54.7 60.3 61.1

SYLMAR

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 58.4 55.7 --- 58.6 83-84 56.2 54.1 62.4 57.9 84-85 55.2 55.2 63.8 59.5

TAFT

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 66.1 67.4 --- 72.1 83-84 65.6 66.0 70.4 70.8 84-85 66.1 66.8 70.9 73.2

VALLEY ALTERNATIVE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 53.9 46.9 --- 53.5 83-84 56.4 51.1 61.9 55.8 84-85 51.0 51.4 47.1 39.0

VAN NUYS

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 58.8 61.4 --- 63.4 83-84 58.2 58.5 67.6 62.9 84-85 58.1 59.0 65.1 61.5

VAN NUYS MATH MAGNET

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 76.6 72.9 69.3 83.6 84-85 76.6 77.0 76.9 88.8

VAN NUYS PERFORMING ARTS MAGNET

Reading Writing Spelling Math 83-84 68.3 66.9 69.4 64.1 84-85 65.4 61.8 72.2 63.3

VERDUGO HILLS

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 56.6 58.3 --- 63.9 83-84 57.2 56.4 62.8 61.2 84-85 58.6 59.3 67.8 67.3

Moorpark Unified DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 60.7 61.5 67.6 61.6 83-84 57.4 60.4 67.5 63.1 84-85 61.3 62.7 69.7 63.7

MOORPARK HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 60.7 61.5 67.6 61.6 83-84 57.4 60.4 67.5 63.1 84-85 61.3 62.7 69.7 63.7

Oak Park Unified DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 68.7 68.4 69.1 72.1 83-84 66.6 64.6 71.1 71.6 84-85 70.8 67.2 70.9 71.1

OAK PARK HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 68.7 68.4 69.1 72.1 83-84 66.6 64.6 71.1 71.6 84-85 70.8 67.2 70.9 71.1

Oxnard Union High DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 61.9 61.6 70.2 66.9 83-84 60.7 61.2 67.9 66.0 84-85 61.2 61.8 68.9 67.0

CAMARILLO

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 67.9 66.3 --- 75.9 83-84 67.6 67.5 69.9 74.7 84-85 67.1 68.9 70.3 74.3

CHANNEL ISLANDS HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 58.7 58.9 --- 60.6 83-84 58.1 58.1 67.3 60.4 84-85 60.4 61.1 69.7 64.2

HUENEME

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 59.9 60.9 --- 64.2 83-84 58.9 60.6 67.5 63.7 84-85 56.4 56.2 68.3 62.4

OXNARD HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 57.9 58.6 --- 63.2 83-84 57.5 56.7 67.6 61.7 84-85 59.5 58.3 68.0 63.7

RIO MESA

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.5 62.6 --- 69.7 83-84 59.4 62.0 66.0 67.6 84-85 60.1 61.3 67.2 67.2

Simi Valley Unified DISTRICT AVERAGE

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 65.3 64.7 69.7 68.4 83-84 63.2 63.1 70.8 68.1 84-85 63.3 63.7 70.1 68.1

ROYAL HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 64.6 63.1 --- 66.7 83-84 62.2 63.1 71.8 66.2 84-85 63.5 62.9 69.1 67.7

SIMI VALLEY HIGH

Reading Writing Spelling Math 82-83 66.0 66.4 --- 70.1 83-84 64.0 63.2 69.9 69.8 84-85 63.1 64.4 70.8 68.4