LAUSD test scores improve again, exceeding pre-pandemic performance. Here’s what parents should know

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What the scores say: California students take the reading and math Smarter Balanced assessment in grades 3 through 8 and as high school juniors. The science test occurs in grades 5 through 8 and once in high school. In the last school year, here are the percentages of LAUSD students who met or exceeded the standard for:

• English language arts: 46.5%
• Math: 36.8%
• Science: 27.3%

The district’s scores show improvements at every grade level between this year and the prior year and when compared to before the pandemic.

Why it matters: Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said the gains marked a “historic moment” for the district. “We have never seen the rate of improvement outpacing the state the way we're seeing,” Carvalho said. “But we certainly have never been in a position where we caught up to a pre-pandemic level and exceeded it.”

The bigger picture: One big caveat is that while scores have increased for a second consecutive year, more than half of students, both at LAUSD and across the state, still do not meet the standards for reading, math or science.

What parents should know: Morgan Polikoff, a professor at the USC’s Rossier School of Education, said a child’s individual test scores are one piece of data that parents can use to advocate for more support at the school but that it’s not the “end all, be all.” “What you want is you want a school where your child is cared for, where your child is learning, where your child, you know, feels safe,” Polikoff said.

This is a developing story. LAist will add more context as it is available.