The Fremont Unified School District (FUSD) shared preliminary results of the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress, also known as CAASPP, at the Oct. 14 school board meeting.
Formerly the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) test, the test measures student achievement and growth. The subjects they’re tested on are English Language Arts (ELA), math and science. Students in grades three to eighth and 11th grade are required to take the test.
FUSD director of assessment and accountability Elie Wasser said the district is doing well overall, performing well above Alameda County average in all three subjects. One challenge is the low scores from third-grade students for ELA. He said this grade is crucial, since students go from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.”
Wasser said students seem to struggle with math in fifth grade, which is a pivotal year for students. “Much like the important transition we discussed for third grade literacy, fifth grade represents an important stage in mathematical development. Students are increasingly expected to move beyond concrete mathematical reasoning towards more abstract concepts.”
The growing economic crisis may be affecting the current student population. Wasser said the socioeconomically disadvantaged student population increased by 65%. Since 2022, the number of students in that category has increased from about 3,200 students to more than 5,300 today.
Families and students that want to know more about the test can go to the CAASPP website to see official scores.
