OC California State Testing Results 2008 (Schools) (Santa Ana, Anaheim: fit in, school rankings, university)

[missionhome]

The CST (California State Testing) Results came in today for CA schools. You can check out all the results for each school at greatschools.com. Greatschools.com also updated their "Great Schools Ranking." Note that this is different than the API ranking that comes from the state. The API rankings and scores won't come until it can be added with other tests to get a total score.

Great School Rankings for OC high schools on scale of 10:
Anaheim Union High Schools
Anaheim 6
Katella 6
Loara 7
Magnolia 6
Savana 6
Western 8
Cypress 9
Kennedy 8
Oxford (Academy) 10

Brea Olinda Unified
Brea Olinda 8

Capistrano Unified
Aliso Niguel 9
Capistrano Valley 9
Dana Hills 10
San Clemente 9
San Juan Hills 8
Tesoro 9

Fullerton Joint High Schools
Fullerton Union 7
Sunny Hills 9
Troy 10
Buena Park 6
La Habra 8
Sonora 8

Garden Grove Unified
Bolsa Grande 7
Garden Grove 8
Pacifica 8
Rancho Alamitos 6
Santiago 6
La Quinta 9
Los Amigos 6

Huntington Beach Union High
Edison 9
Fountain Valley 10
Huntington Beach 9
Marina 9
Ocean View 7
Westminister 8

Irvine Unified
Irvine 9
University 10
Woodbridge 9
Northridge 10

Laguna Beach Unified
Laguna Beach 8

Los Alamitos Unified
Los Alamitos 9

Newport Mesa Unified
Newport Harbor 8
Corona del Mar 9
Estancia 6
Costa Mesa 7

Orange Unified
Orange 6
Canyon 8
El Modena 9
Villa Park 8

Placentia Yorba Unified
El Dorado 9
Valencia 9
Esperanza 10

Saddleback Valley Unified
El Toro 9
Mission Viejo 9
Laguna Hills 9
Trabuco Hills 9

Santa Ana Unified
Santa Ana 4
Century 3
Saddleback 3
Valley 4
Chavez 3
Middle College 8
Orange County High Schools of the Arts 8
Segerstrom 6

Tustin Unified
Tustin 6
Foothill 9
Beckman 9

[BRinSM]

Looks like everyone is doing OK except for Santa Ana. It's too bad that it has to be that way.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by BRinSM

Looks like everyone is doing OK except for Santa Ana. It's too bad that it has to be that way.

But its always been that way.

Large school-age population relative to its property tax base
+ Inept and corrupt school district management
+ Healthy dose of kids left to themselves while their parents work 2 jobs each
+ Parents who don't speak English and don't push their kids
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
= Santa Ana

[NaplesRes]

The real issue with Santa Ana is the % of English Language learners. Plus many schools place greater emphasis on these tests and reward their students for taking the test seriously. Great Schools / API scores really aren't a great measure of a school.

Newsweek (America's Top Public High Schools | Newsweek Best High Schools | Newsweek.com) has a much better method of evaluating schools (at least at the high school level). Specifically they look at the AP classes offered which is the best predictor (based on some research anyway) of college success.

In the end, parents matter a lot more than the school.

[missionhome]

Originally Posted by NaplesRes

The real issue with Santa Ana is the % of English Language learners. Plus many schools place greater emphasis on these tests and reward their students for taking the test seriously. Great Schools / API scores really aren't a great measure of a school.

Newsweek (America's Top Public High Schools | Newsweek Best High Schools | Newsweek.com) has a much better method of evaluating schools (at least at the high school level). Specifically they look at the AP classes offered which is the best predictor (based on some research anyway) of college success.

In the end, parents matter a lot more than the school.

I totally agree that test scores are not the only factor to look at when choosing a school. Test scores simply show that the student body as a whole did a decent or bad job on a state test. Test scores don't mean "find the one at the very top" and that it is the one for your child. Parents need to find places where their kids fit in and can do the best to their ability.

I do think that lower test scores should be a red flag and a parent needs to investigate more. There is a big WHY??? when a school has low scores and questions arise like "Are the teachers incompetent?", "Are students not motivated?", "Why can't they pass a test on what they learned?", "Will my child be able to succeed if the majority of the kids can't pass Algebra I?", "Will my child have friends who value education?", "Do parents not support their kids education here" etc....
Depending on the answers to these types of questions, a parent must weight how they look into the test scores. Some schools can still have low test scores and be good places for some kids. Also, a school may test low but have successful programs for more advanced students also.

The Newsweek ranking is an interesting one. It does show that students are interested in being college bound and taking challenging courses if the school can offer so much. I think a combination of a Newsweek ranking with a API ranking can show how the average does and how the top does. For example a school ranked 2/10 for API yet ranked number 500 in the country has a problem. They offer many programs to the elite students (high Newsweek ranking), yet the majority of the students are not passing state test. In general, a Newsweek ranking usually matches a API ranking closely (good Newsweek schools usually have 8/10 or better on API ranking).

So again, test scores are one part of a school. You want to make sure your children are getting an education and actually learning, while also having a school that has programs and a culture that will be conductive to his or her learning.

[hsw]

Prob a dubious ranking...

Need to eval public schools on safety and academic achievement...

Safety...odds of more affluent, studious kids being mugged/assaulted by young criminals among fellow students in an economically diverse school, like nearly any public school in US today (incl places like BeverlyHills, Greenwich, LakeForest (IL) and PaloAlto)...

Academics....no. of National Merit Finalists and no. of students who will be attending Stanford/Harvard/Wharton/Princeton....

Rest of stats are easily manipulated and meaningless...

[missionhome]

I checked and all of the OC high schools on the 2008 list of Newsweek's best 1,000 schools nationwide scored a 8/10 or better on the greatschools list except for Ocean View (7) and Tustin High (6). http://www.city-data.com/forum/orang...ng-2008-a.html

[missionhome]

Originally Posted by hsw

Prob a dubious ranking...

Need to eval public schools on safety and academic achievement...

Safety...odds of more affluent, studious kids being mugged/assaulted by young criminals among fellow students in an economically diverse school, like nearly any public school in US today (incl places like BeverlyHills, Greenwich, LakeForest (IL) and PaloAlto)...

Academics....no. of National Merit Finalists and no. of students who will be attending Stanford/Harvard/Wharton/Princeton....

Rest of stats are easily manipulated and meaningless...

It is an interesting idea, but how do you measure the skills of the students who aren't National Merit Finalists? What if a school has 20% of its student body get National Merit Finalist awards but then meanwhile 40% of the student body could not even pass Algebra I? The school may get ranked the highest in the state because it has such high National Merit award winners, but then also a huge amount of kids who aren't even close to be award winners. The whole entire school's ranking is weighted on the minority (National Merit Award Winners are not the majority at almost any public high school in the country) of intelligence kids and the majority of regular kids are ignored.

[NaplesRes]

great schools / api scores are more a reflection of parents and % of english as a primary language students.

Newsweek is a reflection of what the school has to offer.

It does seem there is a correlation, but not always.

[bhcompy]

Originally Posted by hsw

Academics....no. of National Merit Finalists and no. of students who will be attending Stanford/Harvard/Wharton/Princeton....

what do those schools have to do with it? ivy leagues(and equivalents) admissions are significantly political in nature(political as in who you know, who you're born to, and who/what you associate with, not as in presidential politics).

in california, a certain percentage of students in each graduating class receive guaranteed admittance to CSU and UC colleges. 6 UC schools are in the top 50 on the US news list for top colleges(08 rankings). its very beneficial from a cost viewpoint, competitive from an academic viewpoint, and not even a competition from a sporting viewpoint to attend a UC school over an ivy league school.

anyways, test scores(could be national tests, sats, acts, whatever) combined with the percentage of students taking each test help you find out where the average is in a school. and im sorry to tell you, but the chances are your(pointing at everyone) kid is average and not the smartest kid on the block.

that said, the ultimate test of a school is going yourself, reviewing the curriculum, and meeting the teachers, faculty, and other parents. rankings and test scores only show you so much