On Thursday, state standardized testing data revealed a slight improvement in California students’ performance in math, English, and science for the first time since the pandemic. However, these scores still lag behind pre-pandemic levels, according to a report by the Mercury News.
This news brings a glimmer of hope for many, yet student achievements remain below where they were prior to COVID-19, with varying performance levels across Bay Area schools.
Statewide, the percentage of students meeting or exceeding grade-level standards saw a modest increase of just under half a percentage point in English and science—47% and 30.7%, respectively—while the uptick in math was nearly one percentage point, reaching 35.5%. Notably, students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds made the most significant gains, with English and science meeting standards increasing by about 1.5 percentage points to 36.8% and 20.7%, respectively, and math scores rising by more than 2 percentage points to 25%.
Linda Darling-Hammond, chair of the state board of education, commented, “Today’s results indicate that California public schools have made encouraging progress across all critical subjects, especially for our most vulnerable student populations.”
However, Alix Gallagher, director of strategic partnerships at the independent research center California Education Policy Analysis, cautioned against overstating the minimal changes reflected in the latest test scores.
She noted, “Some of the progress is so small that I’m not sure we can really call it progress. We have many years ahead of us to reach pre-pandemic levels, and still, less than half of our students are meeting proficiency standards. I wouldn’t say there is anything optimistic at this point.”
The data shows that students’ English and math scores are still behind pre-pandemic results, with most California students performing below grade-level standards across the three subjects.
The figures come from the most recent Smarter Balanced Assessments for English and math, as well as the California science test, which are computer-based standardized assessments used in various states, including California, to evaluate students’ understanding of the subject matter.
Performance varies significantly among some of the largest school districts in the Bay Area, including San Jose, Oakland, and Fremont, all of which still trail their pre-pandemic scores in English and math. Compared to the 2018-2019 academic year, San Jose Unified School District saw a 5.6 percentage point drop in English scores and a 2.7 percentage point drop in math; Oakland Unified School District experienced a 0.4 percentage point decrease in English and a 1.4 percentage point decrease in math; while Fremont Unified School District’s scores in both subjects dropped by over 5 percentage points.
Gallagher pointed out that California students were already trailing behind most states prior to the pandemic, and since then, California’s student performance has declined more significantly than in many other states, with smaller gains observed.
She emphasized that the state and many Bay Area school districts are grappling with issues like a “fiscal cliff,” declining enrollment, and growing challenges related to youth mental health crises, increased chronic absenteeism, and low educator morale.
