TEST RESULTS UNEVEN SCHOOLS' IMPROVEMENTS IN SOME AREAS BALANCED BY DROPS IN OTHERS.

Byline: Karen Maeshiro Staff Writer

LANCASTER - Antelope Valley students showed improvement in some areas and dropped in others on the state standardized achievement test, but for the most part local scores remained below the national average.

In the fourth year of results from California's Standardized Testing and Reporting exam, Edwards Air Force Base schools and those in the Acton-Agua Dulce Unified and Westside Union school districts posted top scores, with figures above the national average in most grades.

Results of the 2001 test were released Wednesday by the state Department of Education. The test was given in the spring to 4.5 million public school students in second through 11th grades.

The test scores are used to calculate the state rankings of schools, called the Academic Performance Index. Schools that improve their scores, and their teachers, could be eligible for extra money; those that don't could face sanctions.

The test is a multiple-choice standardized exam. A 50 percentile-point score is the national average.

In the Lancaster School District, the majority of scores were up, especially in math, with all grades showing increases except for the third grade, where the score stayed the same at 50.

Third- and sixth-graders in math, with scores of 50 and 51, respectively, were the only Lancaster district scores at or above the national average.

``Overall, I think we have seen improvement. There are some subgroup areas that don't show improvement. Overall, we are pleased with the scores,'' said Barbara Walkington, Lancaster's director of curriculum, instruction and assessment. ``Doing a four-year comparison, over the last four years, we show significant improvement in all areas.''

In the Palmdale School District, the majority of scores went down in reading math and language, with scores in 11 grades decreasing, seven going up and three remaining unchanged.

Math scores of second- and third-graders, 52 and 54, respectively, were the only district scores above the national average.

Scores generally decreased in the Antelope Valley Union High School District from the year before, but over a four-year period show gains in most areas, district officials said.

This year, districtwide scores were down in all grade levels in reading, math and language, except for ninth- and 10th-graders in language. Scores by 10th-graders in math and 11th-graders in language remained the same.

``Looking at the test scores year-to-year is not as accurate an indication of student performance as long-term trends,'' Deputy Superintendent Ray Monti said in a written statement. ``Even with the significant gains last year, our analysis centered on the three-year trends.''

Ninth-grade scores in language were the only high school district scores above the national average at 51, which was a one-point increase over last year.

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