By Sabrina Pickett
Staff Writer
Mira Costa High School released its 2012 Academic Performance Index score of 913 on Oct. 12, confirming a two point increase from last year’s score.
In addition to Costa, Grandview Elementary increased by 13 points to 970, Meadows increased by five to 951, Pacific went up by five to a score of 965, Robinson increased by eight to 970 and Manhattan Beach Middle School went up four points to 949. API scores are generated from schools’ performances on the California standardized testing and reporting exams taken every year.
“I’m extremely happy that as a school we were able to continue the upward trend of our API score, especially after a large 12 point increase from 2010 to 2011,” Mira Costa principal Dr. Ben Dale said.
Previous to the score’s release, Costa administrators expected the API to drop based on a slight decrease of both the English-language arts and Mathematics portions of the STAR test. However, a significant increase in the Science sections was able to not only maintain Costa’s 911 but increase the API by two points.
“I’m not too worried about the dips on our English and math scores because they were so small and for the past several years we’ve increased in both areas,” Manhattan Beach Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Michael Mathews said. “Of course I would have liked to see an increase in all areas, but once we look at next year’s we will be able to tell if this is a downward trend in which case we’ll take measures to turn it around.”
The California Department of Education ranked Costa’s score in the “high” category. Costa also scored higher than other schools in the south bay including Redondo Union High School, Palos Verdes High School, Peninsula High School, and El Segundo High School.
“When choosing a high school, API was definitely a factor for me,” senior Meghan Mahoney said. “The fact that Costa has such a high API really helps when colleges look at your transcript and applications.”
The MBUSD has recently been discussing the effect of summer school on API scores. Many Costa students that take summer school forget much of the information they learned and feel insufficiently prepared for the test. According to Costa Vice Principal Jamie Mancilla, the administration has considered review sessions as a possible solution, but the discussion is still in the early stages.
“I took history over the summer going into my sophomore year and when it came time for the STAR test I had forgotten much of the information I’d learned and my score reflected my lack of preparation,” junior Taylor Duncan said.
Regardless of being ranked a top-performing high school, Costa’s administration is analyzing the STAR testing scores in hopes to find ways to improve the API for following years.
“I’m pleased that our score is higher than last year but there is still room for improvement and that’s exactly what we intend to do,” Dale said.
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