Page 7 - Reedley Exponent 1-11-18 E-edition

The Reedley Exponent BPanorama
Reedley Drama Club held monthly meeting in December See B8
Section | Thursday, January 11, 2018 www.reedleyexponent.com Looking deeper
Reedley (Fresno County) CA 93654
KCUSD students outperform others in region on state tests
The View From Here
In this week’s Panorama sec- tion, I reference the state’s newly launched Califor- nia School Dash- board in a story that takes another look at how Kings Canyon Unified students did on the 2017 state tests.
Felicia Cousart Matlosz
By Felicia Cousart Matlosz
felicia@midvalleypublishing.com
When the state Department of Education last month launched the California School Dashboard, it prompted Monica Benner to take a deeper look at test scores in the Kings Canyon Unified School Dis- trict.
The Dashboard highlights an ar- ray of subjects – from test scores to graduation rates to suspension rates – to measure how each public school in the state is performing.
With that format in place, Ben- ner – the district’s assistant superin- tendent of curriculum and instruc- tion – told the KCUSD trustees at their Dec. 12 meeting that she wanted to see where the district really stands when it comes to the test scores publicly released in Sep- tember. She also looked at results of other school districts in the region.
“We are one of the top perform-
ing districts around,” Benner said. “I think every stakeholder, all of our students, our teachers, our ad- ministration, the whole community should be extremely proud. It’s not by chance that this happens. It’s our focus.”
Superintendent John Camp- bell told the trustees he wanted the overview presented to them because “we’re very excited about what’s going on here.”
And, he said after the meeting, in noting how Kings Canyon Uni- fied students did compared to sur- rounding and similar districts: “We are extremely proud of our prog- ress and will continue to refine our district’s instructional practices to ensure all KCUSD students are col- lege and career ready.”
KCUSD has nearly 10,000 stu- dents.
Last year, KCUSD students showed improvement on the Smart- er Balanced exams that are part of
the California Assessment of Stu- dent Performance and Progress. It happened in a year when scores statewide mostly flatlined.
“We are one of the top performing districts around. I think every stakeholder, all of our students, our teachers, our administration, the whole community should be extremely proud."
– Monica Benner, KCUSD assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction
The tests reflect what propo- nents say are the more challenging Common Core standards. They’re given to students in third- to eighth- grades and to high school juniors.
The 2017 scores showed that 47 percent of KCUSD students met or exceeded the standards in English language arts, compared to 48.56 percent of students statewide. In math, 33 percent of KCUSD stu- dents met or exceeded the stan- dards, compared to 37.56 percent statewide.
In terms of showing improve- ment, KCUSD students’ scores in English language arts rose by 2 per- cent compared to 2016 marks and by 10 percent compared to 2015. In math, KCUSD students’ scores in- creased by 6 percent compared to 2016 and by 12 percent compared to 2015.
Kings Canyon Unified and other districts in the Central Valley have diverse student populations that include a higher percentage of stu- dents from lower-income families
See KCUSD page B2
The Dashboard uses a five color- coded online display to show more broadly how public schools are do- ing. The format focuses on six state indicators: test scores; English learners’ progress; graduation rates; suspension rates; chronic absentee- ism; and readiness for college and careers. (The indicators for absen- teeism and college/career readiness will be assigned colors this coming fall.)
Under the Dashboard, schools need to achieve, at the least, being “proficient” or meeting the stan- dard. Blue indicates the highest performing and red the lowest. The goal for each school is to at least reach green, which is second high- est to blue. Yellow is in the middle (Level 3), as “proficient.”
The state released the pilot ver- sion in March. Last year, I talked with Sheila Wiebe, the administra- tor of educational programs for the Kings Canyon Unified School Dis- trict, about the impending change. She said the district welcomed it because it provides parents, staff members and the community with a picture of all the different areas that educators have always known are important.
“I think we have always recog- nized there’s more to educating a child than looking at one indicator, such as standardized testing, that gives us an overall picture of how we’re doing,” Wiebe said.
And, she said: “It’s really re- freshing to have multiple ways of looking at our information and help us be highly focused.”
The Dashboard is part of the ongoing accountability effort, since 2013, to lift all students and prepare them for college and careers. This has meant giving public school dis- tricts more control over funding decisions. Also, additional funds go to districts, such as KCUSD, that have 55 percent or more students who come from low-income fami- lies, are English language learners or are foster children.
The Dashboard also has a spe- cific focus on equity, according to the news release.
State Superintendent Tom Tor- lakson said in a news release that California education is at a “critical moment in our education reform efforts because we are now turning data into direct action by identifying districts that face challenges in cer- tain areas and providing them with help rather than sanctions.”
“The Dashboard helps all schools and districts improve by identifying strengths and weakness- es in many different areas, allow- ing parents, teachers, students, and communities to target their resourc- es toward areas where improve- ment is needed. It also highlights the performance of student groups, making disparities or achievement gaps impossible to ignore.”
The state said the Dashboard replaces the previous accountabil- ity system called the Academic Per- formance Index, or API. It used stu-
See COLUMN page B2
Reedley
High's FCCLA
and FFA help
Marjaree Mason Center
Youngsters have fun at Christmas Camp
By Felicia Cousart Matlosz
felicia@midvalleypublishing.com
The fun days of the city’s Christmas Camp were nearly over, but the youngsters were as busy as every.
On the afternoon of Jan. 4, in the big California Room at the Reedley Community Center, youngsters had just come back from a field trip to a local piz- zeria. In the morning, they had enjoyed a Zumba exercise class.
Now, one group of children were absorbed in a friendly tug- of-war contest under the supervi- sion of Fernand Calix, a member of the city’s Community Services Department and the assistant site lead in Washington Elementary School’s afterschool program. The smiles and giggles were non-
See CAMP page B8
RIGHT: These three youngsters partici- pated in a friendly game of tug-of-war on Jan. 4 during Christmas Camp at the Reedley Community Center. They are (from left) Samuel Medina, Samantha Schapansky and Ella Serna.
Contributed
Two Reedley High School chapters teamed together in De- cember for a canned food drive to benefit the Marjaree Mason Center.
The Family, Career and Com- munity Leaders of America chap- ter and the Future Farmers of America chapter held their sec- ond annual joint community ser- vice project to again benefit the center, a nonprofit organization that offers shelter and services to victims of domestic violence and their children.
The goal was to collect 1,000
See DRIVE page B8
LEFT: Janie Almanzar, a staff member with the city's Community Services De- partment, on Jan. 4 tie-dyed a T-shirt while Mark Johnson (left) and Isiah Ocanas looked on. The activity was part of the department's Christmas Camp held during the winter break.
Photos by Felicia Cousart Matlosz / The Exponent
Photo Contributed
Pictured here are (from left) Luis Fernando Santos, member of the FCCLA; Lisa Bueno, FCCLA adviser/teacher at Reedley High School; Luz Mendoza, adviser/teacher of the RHS FFA; and Joe Sandoval, member of the FFA at Reedley High.