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Explanatory Notes for 2004 API Base Report

These Explanatory Notes are designed to assist educators and other interested parties in interpreting the 2004 Academic Performance Index Base Report. The Explanatory Notes provide details with respect to the Academic Performance Index (API) and growth target calculations beyond the explanations and footnotes that appear on the report.

The Public Schools Accountability Act

The API is the centerpiece of the statewide accountability system in California public education. The Public Schools Accountability Act (PSAA) of 1999 (Chapter 3, Statutes of 1999) requires that the California Department of Education (CDE) annually calculate APIs for California public schools, including charter schools, and publish school rankings based on these APIs. The PSAA also requires the establishment of a minimum five-percent annual API growth target for each school as well as an overall statewide API performance target for all schools. On November 9, 1999, the State Board of Education (SBE):

• Adopted a 1999 base-year API
• Defined the five-percent annual API growth target
• Established an interim statewide API performance target of 800

Awards Programs

A school that meets API growth targets may be eligible for awards under the following programs:

• The Governor's Performance Award Program
• The Certificated Staff Performance Incentive Act (Chapter 52, Statutes of 1999)

These programs are not funded for 2004–2005 and are likely to remain unfunded for 2005–2006.

No Child Left Behind

In 2003 the SBE identified the API as an additional indicator for measuring Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under Title I of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001. As a result, school districts also receive API reports. For purposes of NCLB, this includes county offices of education that administer schools.

To demonstrate progress on the API in 2005 for NCLB purposes, a local educational agency (LEA) or school must have a 2004–05 API Growth of at least 590 or make at least one point of growth from the 2004 API Base.

API Reporting Cycle

Each annual API reporting cycle includes two reports: a base report, which appears after the first of the calendar year, and a growth report, which appears after school starts in the fall. This pair of reports is based on APIs calculated in exactly the same fashion with the same indicators but using test results from two different years. The 2004 API Base Report represents the beginning of the sixth API reporting cycle.

The Development of the API

The 2004 API Base adds two new components:

• The California Science Standards Test (CST in science), grade five
• The California History-Social Science Standards Test (CST in history-social science), grade eight

The 2004 API Base no longer includes results of the California Achievement Test, 6th Edition Survey (CAT-6 Survey) for grades that are no longer tested starting in 2005. This includes grades two, four through six, and eight through eleven.

The 2004 API Base includes:

• The California Science Standards Test (CST in science), grades five and nine through eleven
• The California Alternate Performance Assessment(CAPA) in English-language arts (ELA) and mathematics for students with the most severe cognitive disabilities, grades two through eleven
• The California Achievement Tests, 6th Edition Survey (CAT-6 Survey), grades three and seven
• The California English-Language Arts and Mathematics Standards Test (CST in ELA and mathematics), grades two through eleven
• The California History-Social Science Standards Test (CST in history-social science), grades eight, ten and eleven
• The California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE), grade ten

The SBE also adopted a new method for calculating the API. The new method is described in the 2004 Academic Performance Index Base Information Guide [http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ap/techinfo04b.asp] (PDF; 845KB; 64pp.) and the 2004 Academic Performance Index Base Technical Information [http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ap/techinfo04b.asp].

The final element of the 2004 API Base is a Scale Calibration Factor (SCF). The SCF is a numerical constant that is calculated by grade span (two through six, seven through eight, and nine through eleven) and then added to the API of each school and school district according to grade span.

The SCF may be a positive or negative number. The purpose of the SCF is to enhance the stability and interpretability of the API by ensuring that the statewide average API does not fluctuate solely as the result of adding new API components.

Mobile Students Excluded from the API

California law excludes from a school's API the test scores of students who have not been continually enrolled in the same school since the preceding California Basic Educational Data System (CBEDS) date. This is the date in October on which LEAs submit data to the CBEDS.

A school district is responsible for the performance of any student continuously enrolled in the school district since the preceding CBEDS date. The test results of any student who has not been continuously enrolled in the school district since CBEDS date are excluded from a school district's API.

Exclusions and Adjustment of Results

Besides student mobility, there are a number of other circumstances that result in excluding test results from the API. Test results from students taking the California Standards Tests below their grade level or with modifications are treated as "far below basic" in API calculations. Rules on exclusions and adjustments are included in the Appendix of the the 2004 Academic Performance Index Base Information Guide [http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ap/techinfo04b.asp] (PDF; 845KB; 64pp.).

Core Elements of the Report

Certain core elements appear throughout the 2004 API Base Report. They include:

• Number of students included in the 2004 API Base
• 2004 API Base
• 2004 Statewide Ranks
• 2004 Similar Schools Rank
• 2004–05 Growth Target
• 2005 API Target

Number of Students Included in the 2004 API Base

This is the number of students with valid scores, i.e., scores contributing to the school's API. It is possible for a student to have test results contributing to the component score in one content area and not another. For example, if a student did not receive a test score in ELA, but did receive a score in mathematics, the student's mathematics results can still be included in the API.

2004 API Base

The 2004 API Base summarizes the performance of a school district or a school on the 2004 Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program, CAHSEE, and CAPA. The API is on a scale of 200 to 1000. It is calculated from the performance of individual pupils on:

• The CSTs as measured through performance levels in ELA, mathematics, history/social science, and science
• The CAT-6 Survey (all content areas) as measured through national percentile rankings (NPRs)
• The CAHSEE as summarized on a pass/no-pass basis
• The CAPA as measured through performance levels in ELA and mathematics

APIs may also be calculated for student subgroups. For details on the calculation of the 2004 API Base, please consult the 2004 Academic Performance Index Base Information Guide [http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ap/techinfo04b.asp] (PDF; 845KB; 64pp.).

Statewide Rank

Most schools that receive APIs are ranked in deciles by school type: elementary, middle, and high. A rank of 10 is the highest and 1 is the lowest. Each decile in each school type contains 10 percent of all schools of that type. School districts and schools in the Alternative Schools Accountability Model (ASAM) and special education schools do not receive statewide ranks.

Similar Schools Rank

Most schools with at least 100 students with test results included in the API are also ranked in deciles by school type when compared to schools with similar characteristics. The PSAA specifies these characteristics to include:

• Pupil mobility
• Pupil ethnicity
• Pupil socioeconomic status
• Percentage of teachers who are fully credentialed
• Percentage of teachers who hold emergency credentials
• Percentage of pupils who are English-language learners
• Average class size per grade level
• Whether the schools operate multi-track year-round educational programs

To derive these ranks, the CDE employed standard statistical procedures to generate a school characteristics index (SCI). All legally required characteristics were considered as part of these procedures. The SCI was then employed in the following fashion to determine the "similar schools rank" of an individual school:

• Form a comparison group of schools for an individual school by listing all schools (of the same school type) in order (high to low) based on the SCI.
• Select the 100 most similar schools, that is, the 50 schools immediately above and 50 schools immediately below a selected school. In the event that the individual SCI was within 50 of either the top or the bottom of the statewide distribution, that school's comparison group became either the top 100 schools by SCI or the bottom 100 as appropriate.
• Separate the 100 schools in the comparison group into deciles according to the value of their 2004 APIs.
• Compare the API of the individual school to the APIs of the schools in its comparison group.
• Assign the appropriate decile rank to the individual school.

Schools in the ASAM, school districts, and special education schools do not receive similar schools ranks.

2004–05 Growth Target

A school's growth target is calculated by taking 5 percent of the distance between a school's 2004 API Base and the statewide performance target of 800. For any school with a 2004 API Base of 781 to 799, the annual growth target is one point. Any school with an API of 800 or more must maintain an API of at least 800. School districts and ASAM schools do not receive growth targets.

2005 Target

The 2005 API target is the sum of the 2004 API and the growth target, except for schools with a 2004 API Base of 800 or more. Schools with an API of 800 or more are expected to maintain a score of 800 or more. School districts and ASAM schools do not receive targets.

Structure of the Report

The 2004 API Base Report is composed of:

1. County and District Lists of Schools
2. District Reports
3. School Reports

County and District List of Schools

These lists include all public schools in a school district or county office of education. The schools are listed alphabetically by type (elementary, middle, high, small, and ASAM). Schools with nontraditional grade configurations,(e.g., seven through twelve) have been placed into a school type according to standard criteria established by the CDE.

APIs for small schools, (i.e., with between 11 and 99 valid STAR scores) are asterisked. APIs based on small numbers of students are less reliable and therefore should be interpreted with care.

Schools on the Lists without APIs

Some schools appear on the list of schools without APIs because they have had their 2004 API Base invalidated. Under regulations adopted by the SBE, this may have occurred for one of several reasons:

• Adult testing irregularities involving 5 percent or more of the students tested have occurred at the school.
• The rate of students who have been excused from STAR testing by parent request is equal to or greater than 10 percent (schools with rates between 10 percent and 20 percent have had their APIs reevaluated through standard statistical tests to check the representativeness of the tested population).
• The school failed to test 85 percent of its students in a particular content area (either CAT-6 Survey or CSTs).
• The school has unresolved problems with STAR demographic data.
• The school has less than 11 valid scores.

District Reports

A School District Report is generated for each LEA that administers schools to comply with the state's accountability plan under NCLB. School districts do not have 5 percent growth targets. To demonstrate progress on the API for federal purposes, school districts must have a 2004–05 API Growth of 590 or demonstrate a one-point increase from the 2004 API Base.

School Reports

A School Report is generated for each school that has API information displayed on the County and District List of Schools. In addition to the common core elements, the School Report includes:

• Data on subgroups
• School demographic characteristics
• School content area weights
• Similar schools report

Subgroup

The Education Code defines a "numerically significant ethnic or socioeconomically disadvantaged subgroup" as a subgroup "that constitutes at least 15 percent of a school's total pupil population and consists of at least fifty pupils." Also, under the law, if a subgroup defined by ethnicity or socioeconomic disadvantage constitutes at least 100 pupils, i.e., at least 100 pupils with valid STAR scores, that subgroup is "numerically significant" and required to demonstrate comparable improvement, even if it does not constitute 15 percent of the school population.

APIs for numerically significant student subgroups are also generated at the school district level. Since school districts do not receive growth targets, student subgroups in school districts are not subject to the comparable improvement requirement.

These numerical criteria (15 percent and 50 pupils, or 100 pupils) are calculated on the basis of the number of pupils with valid STAR scores for that subgroup.

Ethnic/racial subgroups include:

• African American (not of Hispanic origin)
• American Indian or Alaska Native
• Asian
• Filipino
• Hispanic or Latino
• Pacific Islander
• White (not of Hispanic origin)

1. Neither of the pupil's parents has received a high school diploma
   
   OR
   
   
2. The pupil participates in the free or reduced-price lunch program.

Information from the 2004 STAR or CAHSEE student answer document determines whether a student meets either criterion. A pupil may be a member of more than one student subgroup. Therefore, it is possible that the total percentage of students in all numerically significant subgroups at a school may exceed 100.

Two additional subgroups, English learners and students with disabilities, will be required to demonstrate comparable improvement on the API beginning with the 2005 API Base.

Comparable Improvement

By regulation, "comparable improvement" requires that each numerically significant subgroup must meet or exceed 80 percent of the 2004–05 schoolwide growth target. The 2004–05 subgroup target is calculated by first multiplying the schoolwide target by 80 percent and then rounding the product to the nearest whole number.

There are four minor exceptions to this rule:

1. For subgroups within schools with schoolwide APIs between 790 and 799, i.e., approaching the statewide performance target of 800, the annual growth target is one point.
2. Regardless of the schoolwide API, subgroups already at or above 800 must continue to meet the statewide performance target of 800.
3. In schools with 2004 APIs of 800 or more, subgroups with an API of less than 800 must make growth of at least one point.
4. In instances where 80 percent of the schoolwide target results in a subgroup target that would exceed the distance from the subgroup API to 800, the subgroup target equals the distance to 800.

School Demographic Characteristics

Along with general subgroup and schoolwide demographic data, the School Report includes the demographic characteristics on which the school characteristics index for the 2004 API Base similar schools ranking is based. The data for the percentages and rates were collected from these sources:

1. October 2003 CBEDS data collection (information on teacher credentials, multi-track year round participation, and average class size)
2. 2004 STAR student answer document (information on ethnic/racial distribution, parental education level, participation in free or reduced price lunch program, school mobility, the number of English learners, and enrollment and testing counts, including the number of students excused from testing at the request of their parent/guardian)
3. 2004 CAPA student answer document (number of students tested on the CAPA)

• It is possible for one teacher to be in both the fully credentialed and emergency credential categories; therefore, the total of the percentages for "fully credentialed teachers" and "teachers with emergency credentials" may exceed 100 percent.
  
• Average class sizes were derived from the enrollment data reported on the Professional Assignment Information Form (PAIF).
  
• The item "core academic courses in departmentalized programs" reflects average class size in the following subject areas: English, foreign languages, mathematics, science, and social science.

Regarding background characteristics derived from the STAR student answer document:

• School mobility from the prior year is the percentage of students who have not been continuously enrolled in the school since the preceding school year.
  
• School mobility from the CBEDS date is the percentage of students who have not been continuously enrolled in the school from the 2003 CBEDS date to the 2004 STAR testing date. Students who have not been continuously enrolled in the school from the 2003 CBEDS date to the 2004 STAR testing date are excluded from the school's API.
  
• District mobility from the CBEDS date is the percentage of students who have not been continuously enrolled in the school district from the 2003 CBEDS date to the 2004 STAR testing date. Students who have not been continuously enrolled in the school district from the 2003 CBEDS date to the 2004 STAR testing date are excluded from a district's API.
  

Some of the school demographic characteristics that appear on this report are used in the formation of the similar schools comparison groups for the similar schools ranking on the 2004 API Base Report.

Test Weights

Test weights were established by the SBE as the weights for each tested content area used in the API and are applied at the student level. Test weights are shown as decimals rather than percentages to distinguish them as student test level weights. The test weights set for the API Base will be the same for the API Growth within an API reporting cycle. The SBE adopted separate test weights for grades two through eight and for grades nine through eleven. 

2004 API Base Test Weights
For Grade Levels Two Through Eight

School Content Area Weights

Content area weights at the school level are unique to each school, based on the test weights established by the SBE, the school's grade span configuration, and the number of valid test scores in each content area for the school. A school's content area weights are not needed in calculating the API, but they will be provided on the API reports for information only. Content area weights differ from test weights because they are school level weights (rather than student test level weights), and they are not the same for all schools. In addition, although the test weights established by the SBE remain the same within an API reporting cycle, a school's unique content area weights within a reporting cycle may be slightly different for the API Base and Growth (e.g., 2004 API Base and 2005 API Growth). The amount of difference will depend on the amount of variation in the counts and grade levels of test takers in the base year (e.g., 2004) and the growth year (e.g., 2005) at the school.