English learners consist primarily of students for whom English is a second (or third) language, and who have not yet achieved a satisfactory mastery of English. One would expect a significant correlation between a high percentage of English learners and lower test scores than would otherwise be expected.
As you can see, this is borne out by my charts. Please pay particular attention to the scatter chart (the third chart in the series). As you can see, some districts score well above the trendline. For example, San Marino has 6.3% English learners (almost the same as in BHUSD), but its high school API scores are significantly higher. We should strive to score above the trendline, which will indicate that we are doing an above average job promoting achievement by our English learners.
For two years, I have lobbied for an afterschool program to provide additional assistance to the English learners in our elementary schools. This would involve bringing in student volunteers from the high school to help elementary school students with their homework. The high school students would be proficient in the languages of the English learners in the program and would receive community service points. Also, the district would provide milk and cupcakes to the high school volunteers and to each elementary school participant upon FINISHING the key parts of his/her homework. So far, my plan has not received enough support to get serious consideration. Feel free to suggest alternatives, or to come to a Board meeting and demand that the district do SOMETHING to address this issue.
District |
Engl. Learners |
HS API |
Arcadia |
16.60% |
795 |
BHUSD |
7.30% |
820 |
Culver City |
19.40% |
649 |
La Canada |
4.20% |
858 |
Las Virgenes |
3.80% |
821.5 |
Palos Verdes |
11.90% |
840 |
San Marino |
6.30% |
868 |
Santa Monica |
14.30% |
738 |
S. Pasadena |
7.20% |
790 |
Walnut Valley |
7.00% |
747 |
Piedmont |
2.40% |
906 |
Fremont |
12.40% |
736.4 |
Palo Alto |
5.30% |
868.5 |
Oak Park |
1.80% |
846 |
Laguna Beach |
3.80% |
822 |
