Indicator of Performance
A school's score or placement on the API is designed to be an indicator of a school's performance level and is calculated annually by the California Department of Education, primarily based on CST and CAHSEE tests.
Due to the API's heavy reliance on standardized testing (although some factors such as attendance and graduation rates are considered), many criticisms of standardized testing can also be leveled at the reliability and accuracy of API scores as an indicator of a school's level of "academic achievement."
One criticism until recently was that a school's API score took no account of a school's student dropout rate. This created the incentive to let poorly performing students drop out, since this would increase a school's average test scores. SB 219 (Senator Darrell Steinberg, 2007) addressed this concern, however, by requiring schools' API scores to incorporate student dropout rates. These changes are expected to be implemented in 2011.
Read more about this topic: Academic Performance Index (California Public Schools)
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