April 2015 Message from the Superintendent

State Testing Around the Corner

Later this month, students in Carlsbad Unified School District and across California will be taking the new state exams that you have, no doubt, been hearing about.

Referred to as “Smarter Balanced,” these computer-based assessments set out to measure student knowledge in two core subject areas: English language arts/literacy and mathematics. The exams will be taken by students in Grades 3-8 and 11. The “Smarter Balanced” assessments replace the former paper and pencil California Standards Test (CSTs) that were administered in our schools from 1998 to 2013.

Although the California Board of Education voted to suspend the state’s Academic Performance Index (API) for a second year, these new Smarter Balanced tests will be used to chart academic progress as California’s public school students move through

Last year, CUSD students in grades 3-8 and 11 took field tests to prepare for this new testing format.

Results from the Smarter Balanced Assessments will help tell us how CUSD students are performing in  relation to other students around the state and nation. Because exams are taken on a computer, they can be scored more quickly. In turn, teachers and principals can use these results to fine-tune curriculum. Interim assessments can also be used by teachers throughout the year to monitor student progress and identify specific learning needs. This allows parents to receive more timely information about their student’s performance.

One noticeable change with the new state assessment is fewer multiple-choice questions and more short answers and open responses that will require a deeper understanding of key concepts. The computer-based testing will include supports that give students the opportunity to fully demonstrate their knowledge and mastery of the state standards.

The new assessments were created by the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, a collaborative, state-led group comprised of educators, researchers, policymakers and community groups. These tests are aligned with the California state standards, which emphasize critical thinking, analytical writing, and real-world problem solving. These are skills students will need to be successful in school, in careers, and in life.

The new assessments are part of a larger plan for ensuring high-quality teaching and learning in every school. The plan also includes higher academic standards, more decision-making in the hands of schools and communities, and more resources dedicated to schools and to students with the greatest needs.

For more information about the assessments, visit http://cusd.ca.schoolloop.com/core  or the California Department of Education’s CAASPP website.

March 2015 Message from the Superintendent

CUSD’s Local Control Accountability Plan

It’s almost spring, when school districts across the state begin talking about their Local Control Accountability Plans (LCAP).

How are we doing? Are we making progress towards meeting the goals that we set for ourselves last spring? What do our students, parents, and community think about CUSD’s direction and progress? What do we need to accomplish next year?

The Board is currently developing the timelines, procedures, and outcomes for our 2015-16 LCAP document. The Board is asking two key questions--Where do we want to go? (goals) and How do we know whether we get there? (metrics-what do we measure?).

A key element of the LCAP is community engagement. It is vitally important that  all stakeholders--from students, employees and parents, to business, civic leaders, and residents without children in our schools--participate in the LCAP process, so their perspectives can be heard when the Board considers and adopts CUSD’s 2015-16 LCAP goals.

Here are some of the ways that CUSD intends to gather perspectives from stakeholders:

1. Administer an online survey, based on CUSD’s new Vision and Graduate Profile, measuring stakeholder perceptions, to parents, employees, students, community members, and business representatives;

2. Hold a Town Hall Forum for Spanish speaking parents on Wednesday, March 18, at 6:30 p.m;

3. Hold meetings with existing stakeholder groups such as the Parent Superintendent Advisory Council (PSAC), the Teacher Superintendent Advisory Council (TSAC), the Student Superintendent Advisory Council (SSAC), K-12 Administrators, the CUTA consultation committee, and LIUNA, using the Vision and Graduate Profile as the guide;

4. Principals will meet with middle and high school ASB students to broaden the base of student feedback;

5. Principals will engage their PTAs and School Site Councils through regularly scheduled meetings; and

6. The Board will meet in a Special LCAP Board Study Session to review stakeholder input and discuss, identify, and clarify goals and metrics for 2015-16.

Additionally, the Board is currently developing a one-page mid-year progress update on the 2014-15 LCAP that will be shared with our key stakeholder groups over the next few weeks. 

We hope that you will share your thoughts and perspectives with us, and look forward to hearing from you as we develop CUSD’s Local Accountability Plan for 2015-16.