Bright Star Schools (BSS) has outperformed both the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and the State of California in the recently released 2014-15 California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP). This past year was the first time the new state standardized tests, also called the Smarter Balanced Assessments, were given to all public school students in grades 3 through 8 and grade 11.
These new exams were taken by the BSS students on desktop computers, laptops and tablets. They differ from the previously required paper-pencil multiple choice tests in that they are computer adaptive and designed to show how well a student can write, analyze and solve real-world questions. If a student answers a question correctly, they are given a more challenging question, whereas if a student answers a question incorrectly they are given an easier one.
We are excited and motivated by the scores across Bright Star’s schools. The graph above shows that the average percentage of BSS students who met or exceeded English Language Arts standards was 14 percent higher than LAUSD’s average. Similarly, the average percentage of BSS students who met or exceeded standards was 12 percent higher than LAUSD’s average in Math.
While these figures are impressive, our student performance becomes more significant when we compare scores with the traditional public schools that our students would have otherwise attended. The percent of BSS students who met or exceeded Math standards is over three times the average percentage achieved at surrounding schools. Likewise, the average of BSS students who met or exceeded English Language Arts standards was 25% higher than the average in surrounding schools.
Our results on the Smarter Balanced Assessments offer strong evidence that Bright Star Schools is providing students with a superior educational program. However, despite these achievements, we still aim to ensure that all of our students are able to achieve at the highest levels, and in the upcoming years we are eager to build on these baseline results.
[…] of the effectiveness of Bright Star’s program (see our previous blog post on this topic HERE). In order to gain a better understanding of our program’s real impact, it was important for us […]
Congratulations to the teachers and students of Bright Star. To all the adults, thank you for caring about LA’s youth and future leaders. To the students, thank you for your hard work and commitment to obtaining a quality education. Great work everyone.
Pam Horowitz