Closing Achievement Gaps

1
Closing Achievement Gaps Raising the
Achievement of All Students at All Levels
Alameda County Office of Education Professional
Development Series May 9, 2006Russlynn Ali,
Director The Education Trust-West
2
How does Californias achievement compare to
other states?
3
Californias Ranking on NAEP 4th Grade Reading
Source NCES, National Assessment of Educational
Progress, 2005
4
Californias Ranking on NAEP 8th Grade Reading
Source NCES, National Assessment of Educational
Progress, 2005
5
And what of the size of our gap?
6
And Our Achievement Gaps Are Larger Than Many
Other States
Source NCES, National Assessment of Educational
Progress, 2005
7
Even when statistical significance is taken into
account, almost every other state does better
than California in 8th grade reading
Source NCES, National Assessment of Educational
Progress, 2005
8
Are Californias low achievement levels due to
our demographics?
9
CAs White Students Are Scoring Below White
Students in Many Other States.
Source NCES, National Assessment of Educational
Progress, 2005
10
Californias Non Low-Income Students Do Better
Than Non Low-Income Students in Only Three Other
States.
Source NCES, National Assessment of Educational
Progress, 2005
11
How are California students doing on our own
assessments?
12
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS CST All Students 2005
Source California Department of Education, 2005
13
MATH CSTAll Students 2005
General Math Tests Grades 6 7 Standards
Source California Department of Education, 2005
14
Weve Made Some Progress, Especially in the Early
Grades

• But Some Progress Cannot Be Considered Enough

15
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS4th Grade, CST African
American-White Gap On the Rise
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
16
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS4th Grade, CST
Latino-White Gap On the Rise
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
17
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS4th Grade CST Poverty Gap
Growing
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
18
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS8th Grade, CST African
American-White Gap Growing
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
19
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS8th Grade, CST
Latino-White Gap Growing
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
20
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS8th Grade, CST Poverty Gap
Growing
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
21
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS11th Grade, CST
Latino-White Gap On the Rise
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
22
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS11th Grade, CST Poverty
Gap On the Rise
Percent proficient or above
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of California
Department of Education Data, 2005
23
How are students doing in Alameda County?
24
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS CST Alameda County - All
Students 2005
Source California Department of Education, 2005
25
MATH CSTAlameda County - All Students 2005
General Math Tests Grades 6 7 Standards
Source California Department of Education, 2005
26
Underneath The Averages, There are Huge Gaps.
27
In Alameda County, African American and Latino
7th graders read below the level of White 3rd
graders
Source California Department of Education, 2005
28
Alameda County 4th Grade Readingby Ethnicity,
2005 CST
Source California Department of Education, 2005
29
Alameda County 4th Grade Reading by Economic
Status, 2005 CST
Source California Department of Education, 2005
30
Alameda County 8th Grade Reading by Ethnicity,
2005 CST
Source California Department of Education, 2005
31
Alameda County 8th Grade Readingby Economic
Status, 2005 CST
Source California Department of Education, 2005
32
Alameda County 11th Grade Reading by Ethnicity,
2005 CST
Source California Department of Education, 2005
33
Alameda County 11th Grade Reading by Economic
Status, 2005 CST
Source California Department of Education, 2005
34
There are gaps in achievement within districts in
Alameda County too.
35
Alameda City Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades
2-11, by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
36
Albany City Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11,
by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
37
Berkeley Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
38
Castro Valley Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades
2-11, by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
39
Dublin Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
40
Emery Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
41
Fremont Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
42
Hayward Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
43
Livermore Valley - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
44
New Haven Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11,
by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
45
Newark Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
46
Oakland Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11, by
Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
47
Piedmont City Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades
2-11, by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
48
Pleasanton Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11,
by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
49
San Leandro Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11,
by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
50
San Lorenzo Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11,
by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
51
Sunol Glen Unified - 2005 ELA CST, Grades 2-11,
by Ethnicity
Percent Proficient or Above
Source California Department of Education, 2005
52
In the end, these gaps mean some students wont
get their high school diploma at the end of their
senior year.
53
Alameda County Success on English Portion of
CAHSEE 2005, By Ethnicity
Source California Department of Education, 2005
54
Alameda County Success on Math Portion of CAHSEE
2005, By Ethnicity
Source California Department of Education, 2005
55
The Gaps in Passage Rates on CAHSEE are Deeply
Troubling, Particularly Because the Level of the
Test is So Low

• The CAHSEE tests 6th and 7th grade math, as well
  as Algebra I Students need to answer 55 of the
  math questions correctly.
• The CAHSEE tests English Language Arts standards
  through 10th grade Students need to answer 60
  of the ELA questions correctly,

56
Sample ELA Question on CAHSEE

• Fill in the blank
• _______________ going to be late if they dont
  hurry.
• Theyre
• Their
• There
• Theyll

Source How Hard is the Exit Exam? EdSource,
February 2006.
57
Sample Math Question on CAHSEE

• Some students attend school 180 of the 365 days
  in a year. About what part of the year do they
  attend school?
• A) 18
• B) 50
• C) 75
• D) 180

Source How Hard is the Exit Exam? EdSource,
February 2006.
58
With the right supports,students can succeed.
59
CAHSEE Passage Rates, Class of 2006as of
February 2006
Source Wise, L., et al., Independent Evaluation
of the CAHSEE, 2006 HumRRO
60
Most California adults polled support a high
school exit exam. 73 of all adults say students
should have to pass a statewide test before they
can graduate from high school, even if they have
passing grades in their classes.
Percentage of adults who say students should have
to pass a statewide test before they can graduate
Source Baldassare, M., PPIC Statewide Survey,
April 2006.
61
Is it fair to require students to pass the CAHSEE
in order to graduate?What about alternative
assessments?
62
If we dont hold the line on standards, we run
the risk of creating devastating unintended
consequences Alternatives to the High School
Exit Exam? Example New Jersey
Source EdTrust-West analysis of NJ Department of
Education and schoolmatters.com data, 2005
63
In New Jerseys large urban high schools
Source EdTrust-West analysis of NJ Department of
Education and schoolmatters.com data, 2005
64
A lawsuit of this nature projects an image of
"dumbing down" for those that cannot comprehend
nor compete and in the public mind those are
Latino and African-American students.-
Sacramento Citizen, Latino Male
65
"If you can't pass this test, you're not ready to
go on in life, to college or to achieve your
goals," she said. "We should be there
academically" - Sophomore Lynsey Davis, Palm
Springs High School
Source Exit exam tests students, schools, The
Desert Sun, March 20, 2006
66
Far too many never get to the end of high school
in the first place. (And thats a problem that
pre-dates CAHSEE.)
67
Latino African-American Students in Alameda
County Graduate From High School In Fewer Numbers
Than Their Peers9th graders who graduated four
years later, class of 2004
Source Education Trust-West Analysis of CDE
data, using the Manhattan Institute methodology
68
EVEN FOR THOSE WHO MAKE IT TO COLLEGE,GAINS IN
COLLEGE COMPLETION ARE NOT PROPORTIONATE WITH
GAINS IN COLLEGE ATTENDANCE.
Once they arrive, low-income students and
students of color less likely to succeed.
69
Even When Students Get to College, They Arent
Necessarily Well-Prepared CSU Remediation Rates
Alameda County Percentage of Entering CSU
Freshman From Alameda County High Schools Who Are
Not Proficient in English Math, Fall 2005
Source CSU, Analytic Studies Unit,
http//www.asd.calstate.edu/performance/proficienc
y.shtml
70
Minority Students Require More Remediation at CSU
Percentage of all CSU Freshmen Requiring
Remediation in English, Fall 2005
Source CSU, Analytic Studies Unit, 2005.
http//www.asd.calstate.edu/performance/proficienc
y.shtml
71
Minority Students Require More Remediation at CSU
Percentage of CSU Freshmen Requiring Remediation
in Math, Fall 2005
Source CSU, Analytic Studies Unit, 2004.
http//www.asd.calstate.edu/performance/proficienc
y.shtml
72
Graduation Rates at CSU SchoolsLatino vs. White
Source CollegeResults.org (www.edtrust.org)
73
Graduation Rates at CSU SchoolsAfrican-American
vs. White
Source CollegeResults.org (www.edtrust.org)
74
Graduation Rates at UC SchoolsLatino vs. White
75
Graduation Rates at UC SchoolsAfrican American
vs. White
Source CollegeResults.org (www.edtrust.org)
76
Can we agree that all students are capable of
reaching high standards?
77
Only 26 of High School Teachers Believe All
Students Should be Held to Same Standard
Source Ready for the Real World Americans Speak
on High School Reform, ETS, 2005
78
Underlying Everything Is the Cycle of Low
Expectations
Low Expectations
Poor Test Results
Less Challenging Courses
Low Level Assignments/Instruction
79
To break through these old attitudes, we cannot
equivocate.

• Close the Expectation Gap.

80
Can we agree that ready for work ready for
college?
81
For California students who are NOT on track to
complete the A-G requirements, 71 want to go to
college. 12 plan to enter work or the
military. One-third of 11th graders who FAIL
at least one part of the CAHSEE want to go to
college. Only 18 of those students want to go
into the workforce.
Source LAO Strategic Approach to High School
Report by Paul Warren 2005.
82
YET KIDS AND PARENTS ARE CLEAR THEIR GOAL IS
COLLEGE
Source U.S. DOE, NCES, Getting Ready to Pay for
College What Students and Their Parents Know
About the Cost of College Tuition and What They
Are Doing to Find Out, September 2003.
83
Thats Good, Because Education Pays
Source Extrapolated from first quarter 2002
averages, not seasonally adjusted. Usual Weekly
Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers, U.S. Dept.
of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Apr. 2002.
84
WAGE GAP IS GROWING

• Income
• 1980, College Grad earned 50 more than HS Degree
• 2004, College Grad earns 100 more
• Wage Gap Continues to Widen

Source U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population
Survey, 1975-2001
85
Students are leaving high school without the
skills they need for college, and (in California)
without the classes they need to go to the public
colleges.A-G FOR ALL
86
Less than half of polled adults think that CA
schools are doing a good job of preparing
students for college or careers
Source Baldassare, M., PPIC Statewide Survey,
April 2006.
87
They showed me how to fill out a McDonalds
application in my Life Skills Class. I think that
they should have at least taught me how to fill
out a college application or at least tell me
what the A-G requirements are, said a
disappointed Gabriela Perez, 17, a student at
Garfield.

• Source Coalition Demands Access to Higher
  Education, Inner City Struggle, March 24, 2005

88
The Highest Level of Math Reached in High School
is a Strong Predictor of BA Attainment
Source Clifford Adelman, U.S. Department of
Education, The Toolbox Revisited, 2006.
89
High School Curriculum Intensity is a Strong
Predictor of Bachelors Degree Completion
Curriculum quartiles are composites of English,
math, science, foreign language, social studies,
computer science, Advanced Placement, the
highest level of math, remedial math and remedial
English classes taken during high school.
Source Clifford Adelman, U.S. Department of
Education, The Toolbox Revisited, 2006.
90
College may not be for everyone. But A-G is.
Why?
91
Students of all sorts will learn more...
92
Low Quartile Students Gain More From College Prep
Courses
Grade 8-grade 12 test score gains based on 8th
grade achievement.
Source USDOE, NCES, Vocational Education in the
United States Toward the Year 2000, in Issue
Brief Students Who Prepare for College and
Vocation
93
San Jose Unified SAT Scores, by Subgroup
SAT Scores - Verbal
94
San Jose Unified SAT Number of Test Takers,
by Subgroup
SAT Scores - Verbal
95
San Jose Unified - A-G For AllAP Scoreswith a
score of AP gt3
748 Test Taken
1197 Tests Taken
Source EdTrust West analysis of California
Department of Education data
96
Students taking rigorous courses will fail less
often...
97
Challenging Curriculum Results in Lower Failure
Rates, Even for Lowest Achievers
Ninth-grade English performance, by high/low
level course, and eighth-grade reading
achievement quartiles
Source SREB, Middle Grades to High School
Mending a Weak Link. Unpublished Draft, 2002.
98
Gaps Will Close.
99
SJUSD SAT9 CAT6 Matched Reading Scores at
Grades 4-9 for Students who Have Been Tested
with STAR Every Year Since 1998
Gap reduced by 48
Median National Percentile
CAT6 scores adjusted to SAT9 scale
Source San Jose Unified School District
100
SJUSD SAT9 CAT6 Matched Mathematics Scores at
Grades 3-9 for Students who Have Been Tested
with STAR Every Year Since 1998
Gap reduced by 43
Median National Percentile
CAT6 scores adjusted to SAT9 scale
Source San Jose Unified School District
101
San Jose Unified API Gap Narrowing Between White
and Latino Students
102
Will increasing rigor cause more students to drop
out?
103
SJUSD Graduation Rates
Estimated completion rate using Cumulative
Promotion Index methodology
Estimated completion rate using Manhattan
Institute methodology
Source Ed Trust West analysis of CA Dept of Ed
data, 2005
104
Recent poll shows that 66 of dropouts would have
worked harder if expectations were higher.
Source The Silent Epidemic Perspectives of High
School Dropouts, Civic Enterprises, March 2006
105
LAUSD High Schools That Have High Percentages of
Their Graduates Completing A-G Have Fewer
Suspensions and Lower Failure Rates
Source Ed Trust West Analysis of School-Level
Data, School Accountability Report Cards, 2005.
106
Most 21st Century Jobs Require Postsecondary
Education
107
High School Course-Taking Indicates Opportunity
for Success in the Workplace
The percentage of workers in the highest-paying
jobs that took high-level math courses in high
school
Source Carnevale and Desrochers, ETS,
Connecting Education Standards Employment
Course Taking Patterns of Young Workers, ADP
Workplace Study, 2002
108
American Diploma Project Interviews with
Employers

• They mostly want the same things that higher
  education wants!
• Strong Reading Ability read/comprehend
  informational and technical texts
• Emphatic about literature understanding other
  cultures is necessary with diverse customers and
  co-workers
• Writing ability key
• Mathematics Imperative data, probability,
  statistics and competent problem solvers.
  Algebra I, Geometry and Algebra II.

Source Workplace Study by the National Alliance
for Business for the American Diploma Project,
unpublished report, 2002.
109
But Even in Jobs We Dont Expect

• Requirements for Tool and Die Makers
• Four or five years of apprenticeship and/or
  postsecondary training
• Algebra, geometry, trigonometry and statistics
• Average earnings 40,000 per year.

• Requirements for
• Sheet Metal Workers
• Four or five years
• of apprenticeship
• Algebra, geometry,
• trigonometry and
• technical reading

• Requirements for
• Auto Technicians
• A solid grounding
• in physics is
• necessary to
• understand force,
• hydraulics, friction
• and electrical
• circuits.

110
Even in Jobs We Dont Expect

• Plumbing-Heating-Air Conditioning
• Four or five years of apprenticeship and/or
  post-secondary training
• Algebra, plane geometry, trigonometry and
  statistics
• Physics, chemistry, biology, engineering
  economics.

ALL of these jobs require a strong foundation
of reading, writing and speaking the English
language in order to comprehend instructions and
technical manuals

• Construction
• and Engineering
• Four or five years of apprenticeship and/or
  post-secondary training
• Algebra, plane geometry
• Critical thinking, problem solving, reading and
  writing

Sources Plumbing  Shapiro, D., and Nichols, J.
Constructing Your Future Consider a Career in
Plumbing, Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning
(HVAC) PHCC Auxiliary 2005 downloaded March 13,
3006 http//www.phccweb.org/PDFs/PHCC20pg.pdf,
Construction California Apprenticeship Council
Division of Apprenticeship Standards 2001 Annual
Legislative Report Downloaded March 15, 2006
http//www.dir.ca.gov/das/DASAnnualReport2001/LegR
ep2001.pdfsearch'architecture2C20construction
2C20engineering2028ace20pathway2920course20
outline'  
111
Employers Are Less Willing to Help

• Remedial programs were victims of mid-90s cost
  cutting initiatives from a high point of 24 of
  businesses in 1993, the share of companies
  sponsoring such programs dropped to 15 in 1999
  and 12.3 in 2001.
• --2001 American Management Association Survey on
  Workplace Testing

112
Employers are looking for better educated workers
elsewhereExample Toyota Motor Corporation
113
Why Ontario, Canada is a better location for a
new Toyota plant
The level of the workforce in general is so
high the training program you need for people,
even for people who have never worked in a Toyota
plant before, is minimal compared to what you
have to go through in the southeastern United
States, --Gerry Fedchun, president of
Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association,
7/8/2005 Source www.cbc.ca/cp/business/050630/b0
630102.html
114
In Alabama, trainers had to use pictorials to
teach some illiterate workers how to use
high-tech plant equipment. --Gerry
Fedchun, president of Automotive Parts
Manufacturers Association, 7/8/2005 Source
www.cbc.ca/cp/business/050630/b0630102.html
115
Then why dont more kids go to college? In
part, because their teachers had other ideas
about their plans.
Source Are We Preparing Students for the 21st
Century? Met Life Survey of the American Teacher,
2000.
116
How are we responding to these new demands?
117
Alameda County A-G Graduation Rates9th graders
who graduated four years later with A-G mastery,
class of 2004
Note Estimated A-G Graduation Rate includes
those students who have completed the full A-G
course sequence with a C or better in each
class.
Note Estimated A-G Graduation Rate includes
those students who have completed the full A-G
course sequence with a C or better in each
class.
Source Education Trust-West Analysis of CDE
data, using the Manhattan Institute methodology
118
Even though most students want to go to college,
the truth is, many low income students and
students of color arent getting the classes in
the first place.
119
San Diego City Schools Two High Schools

• Gompers HS
• 1543 Students
• 87.1 Latino African-American
• 81.1 low-income
• 17 of graduates successfully completed A-G in
  2004

• La Jolla HS
• 1688 students
• 25 Latino African-American
• 17.8 low-income
• 56.7 of graduates successfully completed A-G in
  2004

Source CA Dept of Education, 2005
120
Opportunities to take higher level math classes
are much more limited at the high-poverty,
high-minority high schoolGompers HS vs. La
Jolla HS, San Diego City Schools
Number of classes offered in 2004-05
Source Ed Trust-West Analysis of CA Dept of
Education Data, 2005
121
Regressive Math A Path to NowhereSample
Sequence

• In one California district, a high school student
  has
• passed both sections of the California Exit Exam
  by the beginning of the senior year.
• has started her senior year with 175 of the 230
  credits needed to graduate.
• has not fulfilled the 10 credits for Algebra, and
  still needs 10 more credits in other math
  courses.
• She is only enrolled in one math course in her
  senior year Business Math.

Source Unidentified Student Transcript,
California High School
122
Regressive Math A Path to Nowhere

• In that same district 20 of students are
  enrolled in regressive math.
• More than half of those are Latino.

123
15 Years Ago it Was No Different. High-performing
minority students excluded from higher-rigor
courses
Source The Achievement Council analysis of
unpublished CA district data, 1991.
124
Disadvantaged districts are only 1/3 as likely
to have enough A-G classes for all students.
Districts offering enough A-G classes for all of
their students, 2004-05
Note Disadvantaged means schools at the lower
end of CAs School Characteristics Index (SCI),
which takes into account demographic factors
including poverty level and English language
proficiency. Source Education Trust-West
analysis of CDE data
125
Time for a Default Curriculum?San JoseLos
Angeles UnifiedVallejoWoodland
126
If we can agree how do we make sure we teach
All to All. Leaving Little to Chance.
127
In high school, the teacher is the source of
majority of assignments, therefore teachers
should work together and be supported to ensure
rigor and consistency of assignments and
instruction.
Source DataWorks Educational Research, 2006.
128
Less Alignment to Standards in Upper Grades
Source DataWorks Educational Research, 2006.
129
Students can do no better than the assignments
they are given...
130
Grade 7 Writing Assignment
Essay on Anne Frank Your essay will consist of
an opening paragraph which introduced the title,
author and general background of the novel.
Your thesis will state specifically what Anne's
overall personality is, and what general
psychological and intellectual changes she
exhibits over the course of the book You might
organize your essay by grouping psychological and
intellectual changes OR you might choose 3 or 4
characteristics (like friendliness, patience,
optimism, self doubt) and show how she changes in
this area.
Source Unnamed school district in California,
2002-03 school year.
131
Grade 7 Writing Assignment

• My Best Friend
• A chore I hate
• A car I want
• My heartthrob

Source Unnamed school district in California,
2002-03 school year.
132
Even in college-prep classes, differences in
rigor
133
Using the SAME TEXT BOOKCollege-prep assignments
from

• School A, District A, California
• 1467 students enrolled in 2005
• 82 White
• 6 Asian
• 4 Latino
• 2 Black
• 2 Low-Income

• School B, District B, California
• 2001 students enrolled in 2005
• 45 White
• 4 Asian
• 48 Latino
• 1 Black
• 27 Low-Income

134
Same Text Book High-Level college-prep
assignment.

• Describe the fundamental problems in the economy
  that helped cause the Great Depression. Consider
  agriculture, consumer spending and debt,
  distribution of wealth, the stock market
• Describe how people struggled to survive during
  the Depression
• How did Hoovers belief in rugged individualism
  shape his policies during the depression?

135
Same Text BookLow Level college-prep assignment.

• Role play (Meet the Press) interview key people
  of the era
• Draw a political cartoon highlighting a major
  event of the time
• Share excerpts from noted literary authors-Lewis,
  Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Hughes
• Listen to jazz artists of the 20s
• Construct a collage depicting new inventions

136
A Work in Poor Schools Would Earn Cs in
Affluent Schools
Source Prospects (ABT Associates, 1993), in
Prospects Final Report on Student Outcomes,
PES, DOE, 1997.