Out with the API, in with the California School Dashboard
In February, the California Department of Education (CDE) gave school districts their first look at the new state accountability tool, the California School Dashboard. Instead of measuring only standardized test scores and ranking schools from high to low as the Academic Performance Index (API) did, the new system is based on the State’s eight educational priorities and gives schools insight into how they are doing in six key areas: standardized test scores in mathematics and English language arts, English Learner progress, suspension rate, graduation rate, and college/career preparedness.
The Dashboard is an online tool that parents, teachers, and administrators can use to see the status of performance in the areas mentioned above. Each area is measured both by “Status,” or the current school year’s score, and “Growth,” or improvement since the prior school year. A visual system of shapes and colors shows the school’s performance. Bonita Unified’s Dashboard was made available to the public March 15.
Two of the measures included in the Dashboard are student performance on standardized test scores in mathematics and English language arts. The test used for this measure, the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP), is in its third year of implementation in the State. This year’s CAASPP testing window for Bonita Unified School District opens the second week of April and runs for two or three weeks at each school. The CAASPP includes computer adaptive tests in English language arts and mathematics as well as a new online pilot assessment for science.
For more information on the California School Dashboard, watch this video on You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ2SHzt6PPo&feature=youtu.be.
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