Clayton Valley Students Continue to Struggle on STAR Test

A lot of work was done by administrators last year to try improve standardized test scores. It didn't seem to work.

Clayton Valley High students scored almost exactly on the 2011 Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) test as they did on the 2010 STAR test.

In 2010, on the English test, 62 percent of students had a proficient score and only 28 percent were proficient on the math test.

This past year, 61 percent were proficient on the English test and 27 percent were proficient on the math test.

The numbers stayed stagnant even though administrators tried to raise awareness about the test with the "Club 800" campaign. Posters were placed around campus and T-shirts were made, in hopes students would take the test more seriously.

STAR testing is one of the main factors in a school's Academic Performance Index (API) and the state looks for schools to have an API of at least 800.

In 2010, Clayton Valley had an API of 776, while 100 California schools with similar demographics scored an average of 826.

, now retired Clayton Valley principal Gary Swanson tried to explain why his school struggled on standardized tests.

"The STAR testing, for many, they see as a waste of time," Swanson. "They make patterns on the test or are done in five minutes. Not even our most brilliant students can finish this test in five minutes."

The low standardized test scores were one of the reasons Clayton Valley stakeholders have .

The overall region came out ahead in the 2011 STAR, which evaluated 4.7 million California students in core subjects like language, math, history and science.

Fifty-four percent of East Bay students scored proficient or better in English-language arts and 50 percent were proficient or better in math, according to figures released Monday by the California Department of Education.

In Contra Costa County, where 128,000 students were tested, 61 percent scored at least proficient in English and 55 percent proficient or better in math. Alameda County scores were nearly the same: 60 percent were proficient or better in language and 55 percent in math among the 162,410 tested.

Students in second through 11th grades are tested in several subjects and ranked by the following levels: far below basic, below basic, basic, proficient or advanced.

Both state and East Bay scores are the highest since the program launched in 2003. That first year, just 35 percent of California students ranked proficient in math and English.

“The significant and sustained improvements we’ve seen for nine consecutive years prove how hard teachers, school employees, administrators and parents are working to help students achieve despite budget cuts that have affected our schools,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson said in a statement. “Their heroic teamwork is paying off for California.”