The Top-Performing Large Urban School District in California
For six consecutive years, SFUSD has outperformed the seven largest California school districts on the California Standards Tests (CST). As State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell recently stated, “SFUSD continues a record of steady improvement in student performance. San Francisco has brought a greater percentage of students to proficiency than any other urban district in California.”
32 Schools with Above State Targets in Academic Performance
Approximately 1/3 of SFUSD schools are in the top 25% of schools statewide who have achieved an Academic Performance Index (API) score above 800, the state’s target score for all schools.
The Only Large Urban District in California to Meet Proficiency Targets for Special Education Students
This year, San Francisco Unified School District was the only large urban district in California to meet the federal proficiency targets for students with disabilities who took the state tests in English Language Arts and Mathematics.
7 High Schools are Among Newsweek’s Best
Newsweek Magazine’s national ranking of “America’s Best High Schools” (2007) named seven SFUSD High Schools among the top 5% in the country. Schools that ranked among the 1,200* were: Lowell, School of the Arts, Galileo, Washington, Mission, Balboa, and Wallenberg.
*Newsweek ranks schools according to the “Challenge Index,” which is determined by several factors, including the number of Advanced Placement (AP) scores (with 3 or better, out of 5) divided by the number of graduating seniors at a school.
17 Language Immersion Programs
SFUSD has offered immersion programs for 23 years. The District currently provides immersion education at 17 schools with Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese and Korean programs. Studies show students in language immersion programs do as well -- if not better -- than their peers in English-only classes in all aspects of academic performance. Among the highest-performing elementary schools in SFUSD are West Portal Elementary and Alice Fong Yu Alternative, both with Cantonese Immersion Programs.
Experienced Teachers
Across the District, the average teaching experience of our Kindergarten -12th grade instructors is 11.3 years, which is higher than the California average of 10.4 years.
National Blue Ribbon Schools
In 2005, two SFUSD schools were recognized by the federal government as No Child Left Behind Blue-Ribbon Schools. John Yehall Chin Elementary and Yick Wo Elementary were among only 41 schools across the state to receive the honor. Blue Ribbon schools are singled out for scores in the top 10% for math and reading statewide, or for dramatic gains in test scores.
Yearly Gains on California Standards Test
SFUSD students improved their California Standards Test scores for the fifth consecutive year in 2006. More SFUSD students have now earned a score of Proficient or Advanced (at every grade level and in both English Language Arts and Mathematics) than students in similar districts across California.
Forty-eight percent (48%) of students tested in 2005 earned a score of Proficient or Advanced in English Language Arts, up from 35% in 2002. Fifty-seven percent (57%) of students tested in 2005 achieved Proficient and Advanced scores in Math, up from 37% in 2002.
SFUSD takes great care to ensure that school staffs understand their achievement data and that they use strategies to raise achievement each year. All schools teach a standards-based curriculum in the core subject areas (reading/language arts, mathematics, science, and history/social studies). Additionally, teachers and principals receive professional development to focus on the implementation of that curriculum.
National Title 1 Achieving Schools
SFUSD has 65 schools named as national No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Title 1 schools. Twenty of those schools were recipients of the national Title 1 Academic Achievement Award for the 2006-2007 school year. Criteria to qualify for the award becomes more rigorous each year; Title I schools must double their Academic Performance Index (API) growth targets - both school-wide and within socio-economically disadvantaged students groups at the school - for two consecutive years. Schools also must have made Adequately Yearly Progress (AYP) for two years in a row, and at least 40 percent of the enrolled students in each school must meet the poverty index.
(for more information on NCLB Title I schools, visit http://www.ed.gov/programs/titleiparta/index.html)
Extensive Educational Partnerships
In addition to the recent signing of the “Partnership for Achievement” with the Mayor’s Office (formalizing collaboration between the city of San Francisco and the District), SFUSD has over 1,200 community-based organizations, businesses, and agencies that have active educational partnerships with our schools.
National Board Certified Teachers
SFUSD has 104 Nationally Board-Certified Teachers. These teachers have at least three years certificated teaching experience and must undergo rigorous qualification by presenting an exceptional portfolio of classroom practices and passing tests to show deep knowledge of the subjects they teach. Further, they must demonstrate exceptional commitment to students and highly effective classroom management skills. Finally, they must prove an ongoing ability to improve their teaching and share their expertise. Certification is renewed every ten years with a similar qualification process.
College-Ready Students
Fifty-six percent (56%) of SFUSD graduating seniors in 2006 completed all courses required for admission to University of California and California State University schools. Out of 57 school districts reporting, SFUSD ranks third in the State after Mono and Sierra Counties.
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