Ronald Mcnair Academy: 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 6 bar

The state's English test uses one scale for every grade, so a score means the same thing in grade 3 as in grade 8.

7th The average 7th grader scores 20 points under the grade 6 bar. 2511 vs. 2531. The 7th-grade bar is 2552.
8th The average 8th grader scores 27 points under the grade 6 bar. 2504 vs. 2531. The 8th-grade bar is 2567.

2018 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
6	83,358	2469.8	− 2531	−61.2	× 77 / 222	−21.2
7	83,361	2468.4	− 2552	−83.6	× 55 / 222	−20.7
8	83,362	2484.2	− 2567	−82.8	× 90 / 222	−33.6
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−76

2016 from sb_ca2016_1_csv_v3.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
6	77,290	2449.0	− 2531	−82	× 65 / 191	−27.9
7	77,293	2476.5	− 2552	−75.5	× 70 / 191	−27.7
8	77,295	2474.7	− 2567	−92.3	× 56 / 191	−27.1
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−83

2017 from sb_ca2017_1_csv_v2.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
6	79,425	2514.2	− 2531	−16.8	× 62 / 177	−5.9
7	79,427	2485.1	− 2552	−66.9	× 56 / 177	−21.2
8	79,430	2486.8	− 2567	−80.2	× 59 / 177	−26.7
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−54

2018 from sb_ca2018_1_csv_v3.zip

Grade	Line in file	Average score	Standard Met	Distance	Students	Weighted
7	79,574	2511.2	− 2552	−40.8	× 59 / 112	−21.5
8	79,577	2504.3	− 2567	−62.7	× 53 / 112	−29.7
Sum, rounded to a whole point						−51

Step 2 · The average and the normal range

Average: add the yearly results and divide by how many there are. −76, −83, −54, −51 → −66
Typical year-to-year change: how far the result moved from each year to the next, ignoring up or down. 2015→2016: 7 · 2016→2017: 29 · 2017→2018: 3 → average 13
Normal range: multiply the typical change by 2.66, then add it to the average and subtract it. 13 × 2.66 = 34.6. Upper limit −31.4, lower limit −100.6.

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".

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.