Banning, Beaumont Student Test Scores Dip Following COVID Shutdowns

SAN GORGONIO PASS AREA, CA — The pandemic took a toll on student learning in California and nationwide, including in both the Banning and Beaumont school districts, according to a report released this week by California’s Education Department.

Only about a third of the state’s students are meeting math standards and less than half are meeting English language standards, according to the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress test results released Monday. Golden State students meeting math standards was 33%, a drop of 7% compared to pre-pandemic test results. Those meeting English language standards dropped 4% to 47%, according to state data.

In the Banning Unified School District, 21.17% of district students met or exceeded state standards for English language arts while 9.83% met or exceeded mathematics standards, according to the data released for the 2021-22 school year. The figures represent a decline of 4% and 5%, respectively, over the 2018-19 testing year.

In the Beaumont Unified School District, 45.16% of district students met or exceeded state standards for English language arts while 31.45% met or exceeded mathematics standards, according to the 2021-22 school-year data. The figures represent the same decline rates — 4% and 5%, respectively — over the 2018-19 testing year.

The 2021-22 test results show that both Banning and Beaumont school districts did not experience steeper learning shortfalls, as some other Riverside County districts did.

The data were available statewide and locally for grades three through eight, as well as 11th graders.

Both Banning USD and Beaumont USD offered statements about the test results.

"We anticipated that CAASPP tests taken immediately following the COVID-19 Pandemic learning disruption could reflect academic achievement loss due the pandemic," said Banning USD Superintendent Terrence Davis. "While the Banning Unified School District saw declines in the percentage of students meeting or exceeding standards on the 2022 Smarter Balanced summative assessments compared to students who took the test in 2018-19, the differences are comparable to that of the State and our local County."

Davis said the district is addressing the decline.

"To address this learning loss, we have added Banning Common Assessments which are interim and provide feedback based on short cycles of instruction where teachers can monitor and adjust teaching and learning as it relates to content standards," he said. "We have also used our LCAP [Local Control and Accountability Plan] revenues to add Instructional Coaches, Intervention Teachers, and Assistant Principals at the Elementary level. In addition, forthcoming is a College and Career Specialist, Homeless/Foster Youth staff member, and Parent/Community Liaisons as additional supports to our instructional program and to the well-being of our students to increase engagement and attendance.

"Finally, the Banning Unified School District experienced growth on our local formative assessments which students take three times a year," Davis added.

In a released statement Friday, the Beaumont USD said student performance, based on the latest test results, was on par with the rest of the state, but, like most districts, there is "much work to do to ensure our students achieve their full potential."

"Like all school districts in California and across the country, the Beaumont USD community continues to recover from the impacts of COVID-19. While our scores are not where we want them to be at the moment, we know that student achievement is on a growth trajectory coming out of the pandemic," according to the Beaumont USD.

"Our focus now is on accelerated learning across our schools. Our teachers and staff are ready and driven to ensure our students have the resources and support they need to truly thrive. We appreciate the engagement of our families, staff, and community as we work together to obtain academic success for all our students," the Beaumont USD statement said.

Results from the statewide data as well as federal data released Monday by the National Assessment of Educational Progress — known as the “The Nation’s Report Card” — show California's school children suffered less learning loss than in other states.

Gov. Gavin Newsom's office released a statement Monday, touting California as one of the only states to outperform others in "minimizing learning loss."

“California focused on keeping kids safe during the pandemic,” Newsom said, “while making record investments to mitigate learning loss and transforming our education system.”

Along with California’s own dashboard, the federal data provide the first comprehensive analysis of the pandemic’s academic toll on America’s school children.

Nationally, nearly four in 10 eighth graders failed to grasp basic math concepts in the biggest decline in math scores in decades, according to the NAEP data that assesses reading and math proficiency for students in grades four and eight.

Reading scores among fourth graders also slid to the lowest level since 1990. The national declines in fourth and eighth graders’ scores in mathematics were the largest ever recorded.

The national test indicated that the achievement gap among some of California's students of color widened, which is contradictory to the state test.

“While California’s students experienced less learning loss than those in most other states during the pandemic, these results are not a celebration but a call to action — students are struggling academically and we need to keep getting them the resources they need to thrive," Newsom said.

A national spokesperson released similar comments.

“It is a serious wake-up call for us all,” Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, a branch of the United States Education Department, told The Associated Press.

Some of California's Republican leaders weighed in after the results were released.

"Democrat policies get an F," Senate GOP leader Scott Wilk of Lancaster said in a statement. The data "are a clear referendum on the failed policies advocated by the governor, legislative leaders, and the state superintendent of public instruction for years — not just during the pandemic. After shuttering schools for the better part of two years, student failure is on steroids."

U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said the national test results are a sign that schools need to redouble their efforts, using billions of dollars Congress gave schools to help students recover.

“Let me be very clear: these results are not acceptable,” Cardona said.

Carr said recovery isn’t as simple as a reset to pre-pandemic normalcy.

“Academic recovery cannot simply be about returning to what was ‘normal’ before the pandemic, as the pandemic laid bare an ‘opportunity gap’ that has long existed,” Carr said in the news release. “It also showed how every student was vulnerable to the pandemic’s disruptions. We do not have a moment to waste.”

The results make clear that schools must address the “long-standing and systemic shortcomings of our education system,” said Alberto Carvalho, superintendent of Los Angeles schools and a member of the National Assessment Governing Board, which sets the policies for state testing.

“While the pandemic was a blow to schools and communities, we cannot use it as an excuse,” he told the AP. “We have to stay committed to high standards and expectations and help every child succeed.”

Other recent studies have found that students who spent longer periods learning online suffered greater setbacks. But the NAEP results show no clear connection. Areas that returned to the classroom quickly still saw significant declines, and cities — which were more likely to stay remote longer — actually saw milder decreases than suburban districts, according to the results.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.