Merquin Elementary: english

The shaded band is this school's normal range. If nothing about how it works changes, nearly every future year should land inside it. Zero means the typical student just meets the state standard. The small numbers under the years are how many students were tested.

Measured against the grade bars

The state's English test uses one scale for every grade, so a score means the same thing in grade 3 as in grade 5.

Many students here are still learning English, and this test is given in English. In 2026, 18 of the 54 students who took the English Language Arts test were English learners.

3rd The average 3rd grader scores 14 points under the grade 3 bar. 2418 vs. 2432.
4th The average 4th grader scores 19 points under the grade 3 bar. 2413 vs. 2432. The 4th-grade bar is 2473.
5th The average 5th grader scores 16 points under the grade 4 bar. 2457 vs. 2473. The 5th-grade bar is 2502.

2026 results. The English test covers reading, writing, listening and research together. "Meets standard" is the state's mark for being on track for that grade.

Step 1 · Each year's result

For each grade tested, take the average (mean) scale score from the California Department of Education's results file, and subtract the lowest score that counts as "Standard Met" for that grade. That is the grade's distance from standard. Weight each grade by its share of the students tested, then add the grades up. Grades where the state hides the average because ten or fewer students tested are left out entirely.

2015 from sb_ca2015_1_csv_v3.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	44,083	2323.5	− 2432	−108.5	× 20 / 67	−32.4
4	44,086	2412.2	− 2473	−60.8	× 27 / 67	−24.5
5	44,087	2466.5	− 2502	−35.5	× 20 / 67	−10.6
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−67

2016 from sb_ca2016_1_csv_v3.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	40,779	2341.6	− 2432	−90.4	× 28 / 81	−31.2
4	40,781	2389.8	− 2473	−83.2	× 22 / 81	−22.6
5	40,784	2463.1	− 2502	−38.9	× 31 / 81	−14.9
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−69

2017 from sb_ca2017_1_csv_v2.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,783	2337.5	− 2432	−94.5	× 22 / 73	−28.5
4	41,784	2398.4	− 2473	−74.6	× 25 / 73	−25.5
5	41,786	2412.2	− 2502	−89.8	× 26 / 73	−32
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−86

2018 from sb_ca2018_1_csv_v3.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,815	2364.1	− 2432	−67.9	× 16 / 55	−19.8
4	41,818	2410.7	− 2473	−62.3	× 18 / 55	−20.4
5	41,819	2442.2	− 2502	−59.8	× 21 / 55	−22.8
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−63

2019 from sb_ca2019_1_csv_v4.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,957	2361.6	− 2432	−70.4	× 21 / 53	−27.9
4	41,958	2464.3	− 2473	−8.7	× 16 / 53	−2.6
5	41,959	2433.4	− 2502	−68.6	× 16 / 53	−20.7
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−51

2022 from sb_ca2022_1_csv_v1.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,706	2364.8	− 2432	−67.2	× 18 / 57	−21.2
4	41,707	2419.8	− 2473	−53.2	× 17 / 57	−15.9
5	41,708	2477.9	− 2502	−24.1	× 22 / 57	−9.3
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−46

2023 from sb_ca2023_1_csv_v1.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,737	2379.0	− 2432	−53	× 20 / 53	−20
4	41,738	2431.9	− 2473	−41.1	× 17 / 53	−13.2
5	41,739	2436.7	− 2502	−65.3	× 16 / 53	−19.7
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−53

2024 from sb_ca2024_1_csv_v1.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,568	2370.7	− 2432	−61.3	× 13 / 53	−15
4	41,569	2418.7	− 2473	−54.3	× 19 / 53	−19.5
5	41,570	2436.0	− 2502	−66	× 21 / 53	−26.2
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−61

2025 from sb_ca2025_1_csv_v1.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,331	2361.5	− 2432	−70.5	× 24 / 60	−28.2
4	41,332	2368.3	− 2473	−104.7	× 16 / 60	−27.9
5	41,333	2446.0	− 2502	−56	× 20 / 60	−18.7
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−75

2026 from sb_ca2026_1_csv_v1.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
3	41,237	2418.4	− 2432	−13.6	× 14 / 54	−3.5
4	41,238	2413.2	− 2473	−59.8	× 21 / 54	−23.3
5	41,239	2457.2	− 2502	−44.8	× 19 / 54	−15.8
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−43

Step 2 · The average and the normal range

Average: add the yearly results and divide by how many there are. −67, −69, −86, −63, −51, −46, −53, −61, −75, −43 → −61.4
Typical year-to-year change: how far the result moved from each year to the next, ignoring up or down. 2015→2016: 2 · 2016→2017: 17 · 2017→2018: 23 · 2018→2019: 12 · 2019→2022: 5 · 2022→2023: 7 · 2023→2024: 8 · 2024→2025: 14 · 2025→2026: 32 → average 13.3
Normal range: multiply the typical change by 2.66, then add it to the average and subtract it. 13.3 × 2.66 = 35.4. Upper limit −26, lower limit −96.8.

Why 2.66? It is the standard factor from quality control, the work of Walter Shewhart and W. Edwards Deming. It turns "how much the result typically changes in a year" into "how far it can wander by chance alone".

Years with no result (no state tests were given in spring 2020) are skipped: the year-to-year change runs from the last year with a result to the next one.

Step 3 · Free or reduced-price meals

The share of enrolled students eligible for free or reduced-price meals. From 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, 2024–25, 2025–26.