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California School Dashboard Launched

New website provides multiple measures of school performance and progress

The California Department of Education (CDE) launched the California School Dashboard , a new website designed to help communities across the state access important accountability information about K-12 districts and schools.

The Dashboard is part of the state’s new accountability system, based on the Local Control Funding Formula. It is the next step in a series of major shifts in public education that has created more rigorous academic standards for students, changed how students are assessed, and placed the focus on equity for all students.

“The California School Dashboard replaces an accountability system based solely on test scores and provides a powerful tool that gives the community more information about local schools than they ever had before,” SJCOE Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services Jane Steinkamp said.  “The Dashboard is still being field tested, and it will likely change and improve as users provide feedback and more data is available. It is a strong beginning to a new system that allows schools, parents, and the community to work together to celebrate what is working in local schools while making improvements as needed.”  

The Dashboard features easy-to-read reports on multiple measures of school success, including test scores, graduation rates, English-learner progress, and suspension rates.  Information about chronic absenteeism and college-career readiness will be added when data becomes available. Four local indicators, including school climate, will be added to the Dashboard at a later date.

The SJCOE’s Center for Educational Development and Research (CEDR) contracted with the CDE to design the Dashboard.

The Dashboard uses color-coded pie pieces to measure how well schools and students are doing (status) and whether or not the status is moving in the right direction (growth).  Both status and growth are used to determine performance levels.

The SJCOE has a webpage with more information about the Dashboard that includes a helpful video and links to other resources.

Posted: 3/16/2017