Standardized test results reflect well on school district

By Maysen Marolda

Opinion Editor

In the results of the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress testing from last school year, Manhattan Beach Unified School District is at the top of South Bay schools in third through twelfth grade English and math performance. It is evident that MBUSD schools, districts and educators work diligently to ensure that students are academically prepared for standardized tests, and are committed to ensuring that the district is constantly improving and planning for the future.

The CAASPP is California’s statewide assessment system thatincludes a range of items such as selected response; constructed response; and table, fill-in, and graphing questions. Additionally, there are Performance Tasks, which are extended activities designated to measure a student’s ability to integrate knowledge and skills across multiple standards—a key component of college and career readiness. The results revealed that 84.08% of MBUSD students met or exceeded English standards and 74.78% did so in math, which means that they demonstrated advanced progress towards mastery of English and math concepts. 

According to the CAASPP results, 48.56% of all California students met or exceeded English standards, while 37.56% did the same in math. Thus, it is evident that MBUSD schools far exceed the statewide statistics, more than doubling the percentages of each category. This reveals that MBUSD teachers successfully prepare their students with an appropriate amount of rigor in their classrooms to perform well on tests. Additionally, their intelligent teaching styles ensure that students are well qualified for tests of this level of difficulty.

MBUSD is a high-performing district; as a result, these test scores are one way to validate all of the effort that teachers put in, MBUSD superintendent Dr. Michael Matthews said. It is apparent that MBUSD employs teachers who are passionate about teaching and desire for their students to become accomplished individuals. Furthermore, a dedicated teaching staff proves beneficial for students’ future academic careers, as students acquire the tools necessary for success.

MBUSD’s exceptional test scores reveal that MBUSD students are hardworking, Matthews said. It is evident that the district notices students’ ability to achieve, so their work does not go unnoticed. This recognition is invaluable to students because they are able to acknowledge the fact that their efforts to succeed are appreciated by faculty.

Even though MBUSD is ranked number one among local school districts, according to the results the district would like to improve problem solving within math classrooms, Matthews said. MBUSD recognizes that there is still room to improve, even though test scores within the district are exceedingly high. MBUSD consistently aims to further develop in subject areas to ensure that students receive the best education possible. Furthermore, MBUSD works to insure that the remarkable test scores are not the sole end goal of the district,  but rather it is the quality of education that students receive.

Although it is evident that MBUSD exceeds the standards in comparison to other local for state schools, achievement gaps should narrow in the state of California in order to create more equal test scores among ethinicities. According to CAASPP results, in 2017, 37.28% of Latino students and 31.23% of black students met or exceeded English standards, compared to  64.29% of white students who exceeded the same standards statewide. This reveals that all California schools need to work diligently to narrow achievement gaps and ensure that all students continue to make progress, regardless of their race or socioeconomic background. As a result, this would likely increase test scores statewide because all groups would have scores within very close percentages.

With MBUSD schools in the lead over other South Bay schools in third through twelfth grade performance on the CAASPP testing, it is evident that MBUSD is an accomplished school district. In addition, MBUSD teachers, faculty and students strive to be well-rounded in all areas of academics ranging from english to math. With guidance from teachers and MBUSD members, students are able to perform strongly on standardized tests, which reflects impressively  on the school district as a whole.