California K-12 students' test scores from last school year paint a sobering picture of the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on learning, particularly for elementary and middle schoolers.
The California Department of Education on Friday released statewide test results from the 2020-21 school year, much of which was conducted remotely due to the pandemic. Fewer than 25% of California students completed assessments in English, math and science. Prior to the pandemic, more than 95% of students were assessed in the former two subjects.
Of the students who took the tests last year, fewer than half (49.1%) met or exceeded the standard in English, and about one third reached or surpassed it in math (33.8%). In 2018-19, the last year California issued statewide tests and with a much bigger sample of students, those percentages were 51.1% and 39.7%.
California elementary and middle school students' test scores last year were also, on average, lower than test-takers in 2019. The 2021 students' scores also improved less from two years prior than their predecessors, with the biggest differences among younger students.
For instance, fifth-graders in 2021 improved their math scores from third grade by 33 fewer points, on average than fifth graders did two years prior. Eleventh-graders in 2021, on the other hand, improved on their last scores by just four fewer points than 11th-graders in 2019.
"The statewide performance data from last year confirm what we heard from school districts and county offices throughout the year," California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond said in a statement on Friday. "Namely, the challenges that students and educators faced during the pandemic were multi-dimensional and disruptive to learning and mental health. Our goal now is to move all students forward."
Officials released the date on Friday alongside plenty of caveats.
An education department report said that, because of the participation disparities, it's impossible to know if the differences in scores "are a function of differences in the population of test takers or differences in the teaching and learning that have occurred." The pandemic also presented challenges for how the tests were administered, according to state officials.
State and local officials have said, amid the omicron variant's surge, they remain committed to holding classes in person, pointing to the mental and emotional toll on students.
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