Principal’s Message Spring 2004
 
Starting on May 6, 2004, Alamitos will again be taking part in the California State Testing Program to assess how our students and school are doing. This year our school has been identified as a Program Improvement School because we did not meet our AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) score in one sub-group area this past year. Our overall 2003 state and national scores showed significant growth over the 2002 scores. We are proud of what we are doing at Alamitos and our students and staff have been working very hard to continue this improvement.

The state testing is composed of two parts: the first is the CAT 6 test (California Achievement Test) and the second is the CST (California Standards Test). The CAT 6 test will be worth 20% of the school’s final API score and the CST will comprise 80% of our final score. Both tests will emphasize Math and Language Arts, with U.S. History also having part in the overall scoring.

The testing will be held over a 6 day period, starting May 6th through the 13th. Alamitos will be on a special schedule for the entire testing program. We are encouraging all parents to make a special attempt to see that their students are in school for this time period. Those students who have 100% attendance for the testing will be treated to an In “N” Out Burger party to be held on June 4th. We feel strongly that students will do much better in a regular testing environment rather than having to participate in a make-up testing situation. We are also asking parents to see that their children get proper rest the nights before each test and to ensure that they eat a proper breakfast.

The staff at Alamitos would appreciate anything that you, as parents, can do to help us with encouraging and enlightening our student population to the seriousness of taking these tests. This test is extremely important for the individual student, as well as, to the school’s statewide ranking. We are hoping that through a coordinated effort from the staff, students, and parents, Alamitos will again show significant growth in this year’s California State Tests.
 
**See Testing Schedule