Ed-Data

   Almost all California schools have an Academic Performance Index (API) score, a single number on a scale of 200 to 1,000 that indicates how well students in a school or district performed on the previous spring’s tests. Based on their API, the three types of schools -- elementary, middle, and high -- are each divided into 10 equal groups, or deciles, with the 10% of schools receiving the lowest API scores placed into group (or rank) 1, the next lowest API scores placed into group 2, and so on until the 10% of schools with the highest API scores are placed into group 10. The group (1 through 10) into which a school is placed is the statewide rank for that school.

   Schools that do not receive a statewide rank include special education schools and Alternative Schools Accountability Model (ASAM) schools. School districts and county offices of education also do not receive ranks.

   The 2005-06 adoption of higher API Growth targets marked a significantly greater challenge to schools. Schools and all significant subgroups are expected to make 5% growth toward the statewide target of 800 or a minimum of 5 points, whichever is higher. Each significant subgroup, including English learners and students with disabilities, must also make the same 5 points growth as the state as a whole; previously, subgroup targets were 80% of the school or district target.

   The following charts show the API score ranges associated with the 2011 decile ranks. For each type of school, the lowest (1) and highest (10) deciles have wider ranges of scores than the deciles in the middle.