Flat test scores leave California far behind pre-Covid levels of achievement

by: JOHN FENSTERWALD AND DANIEL J. WILLIS
2023-10-18
Source: EdSource
10/18/2023

In the second year fully back in school after remote learning, California school districts made negligible progress overall in reversing the steep declines in test scores that have lingered since Covid struck in 2020.

There was a slight improvement in math while English language arts declined a smidgeon, and the wide proficiency gap between Black and Latino students and whites and Asians showed little change.

Only 34.6% of students met or exceeded standards on the Smarter Balanced math test in 2023, which is 1.2% above a year ago. In 2019, the year before the pandemic, 39.8% of all students were at grade level. Only 16.9% of Black students, 22.7% of Hispanic students, and 9.9% of English learners were at grade level in 2023.

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