API results Calif. schools drop two points, LA Unified improves

Produced by Emmanuel Martinez, Evelyn Larrubia and Chris Keller | Updated Aug. 29, 2013

Results released Thursday show California schools dropped two points over 2012, but the Los Angeles Unified School District bucked the trend, according to the state Department of Education. L.A. Unified - the state's largest district - jumped three points from 746 to 749. The state's Academic Performance Index ranks schools largely based on test scores and high school exit exams, giving grades of between 200 and 1,000. Overall, California schools dropped from 791 to 789. The state goal for all schools is 800. Taken together, districts in both Los Angeles and Orange counties dropped six points. In the Inland Empire, districts in Riverside county overall dropped three points and San Bernardino dropped five. Ventura was a bright spot. Districts there, on average, jumped seven points.

About this database: Search the database below to see how schools in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties performed according to state API numbers.Growth represents the change in a school's API Score over its API Base. Target shows the mark a school was expected to achieve. An A in the Target column means a school met Interim Performance Target of 800. A B means a school did not have a valid 2012 API Base and there is no growth or target information. C means a school had significant demographic changes and there is no growth or target information. D means there is no growth target for districts or special education schools. Growth shows the difference between the 2013 API Score and the 2012 base score. Met Target shows whether a school met its growth target and all of its student group targets.