The Los Angeles school district is falling short of meeting school board-approved academic goals set four years ago, but students continue to improve faster on key academic measurements than the state as a whole, based on data released Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The presentation to the Board of Education during a five-hour meeting kicks off a deeper evaluation as leaders prepare the district\u2019s next strategic plan, which would take affect in July. <\/p>\n
The data served as a reality check amid acclaim that L.A. Unified has heaped on itself and also has received from state officials applauding the district\u2019s positive education news.<\/p>\n
By the yardstick of its own goals, the nation\u2019s second-largest school system is likely to fall short by nearly every parameter \u2014 taking in sample measures of literacy, math and social emotional learning. <\/p>\n
\u201cHave we reached everything we promised we would reach?\u201d Supt. Alberto Carvalho said in opening remarks. \u201cAbsolutely not. And what you will see, whether it\u2019s in a private sector or public sector, no one ever reaches all of the goals that are designed.\u201d <\/p>\n
Otherwise, he said, the goals are not ambitious enough.<\/p>\n
Several options for lowering targets in the next strategic plan were presented to the board by senior staff and consultants. <\/p>\n
In terms of test scores, Los Angeles Unified recovered from pandemic setbacks in five years \u2014 which many state school districts have yet to do. In the 2025 tests, the L.A. school system surpassed its achievement levels<\/a> of 2018-19, L.A.\u2019s previous high-water mark under the current testing system. <\/p>\n Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom singled out L.A. Unifed for praise in his State of the State address<\/a>, noting he had invited Carvalho to attend in person.<\/p>\n \u201cI just want to say this to the teachers, the classified employees and to the parents of L.A. Unified school kids, you should be very proud of [the] progress you\u2019re making,\u201d he said. Carvalho, he added, \u201chas just been doing a remarkable job.\u201d <\/p>\n Literacy for third-graders<\/p>\n The district goals single out third-grade reading because by third grade, students should be reading to learn rather than learning to read. Those not reading well by third grade will have significant difficulty in every subject.<\/p>\n