Students in the Turlock Unified School District continue to fall short of state academic standards in English and math, according to new state testing data.
The 2024 California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress, or CAASPP, showed that 37.45% of Turlock Unified students met or exceeded the state standard in English, while 62.54% did not, a decrease of -1.18% from 2023. In math, 25.81% of students met or exceeded the state standard, with 74.19% not meeting it: an increase of 0.89% from 2023.
Performance was especially low in the lower grades for English. In Grade 3, 45.14% of students did not meet the English standards, and 46.08% of fourth-graders did not meet the standard. In math, however, the scores were higher in grades 3 and 4 — with 34.11% of third-graders meeting or exceeding the standard and 26.67% of fourth-graders meeting or exceeding — compared to just 20.3% of 11th graders meeting or exceeding the standard.
Among ethnic groups, 69.09% of Hispanic students did not meet the English standard compared to 50.29% of white students. The pattern held in math, where only 18.64% of Hispanic students met or exceeded the standard versus 38.51% of white students.
Economically disadvantaged students in Turlock were also less likely to succeed. Just 18.55% met or exceeded the standard in math, compared to 42.38% of their more affluent peers. In English, 30.71% of economically disadvantaged students met or exceeded the standard, compared to 52.91% of those not disadvantaged.
Across California, some districts have made measurable gains by investing in targeted academic supports and whole-child strategies.
In Compton Unified, test scores rose by nearly 3 percentage points in both English and math after the district expanded in-class tutoring, after-school programs, and professional development for teachers. The district used a combination of state grants and federal pandemic relief funds to support these efforts.
Benicia Unified saw a 7.7-point increase in math proficiency after hiring a districtwide instructional coach and aligning teaching strategies across classrooms. The district also used Educator Effectiveness funds to support teacher training and student engagement initiatives.
At San Andreas High School, a continuation school in Marin County, English scores jumped from 7.7% to 62.5% in one year. Staff credited the gains to trauma-informed practices, student feedback, and a focus on building trust and comfort during testing.
Heber Elementary in Imperial County improved math scores by nearly 5 points by using frequent assessments aligned to state standards and providing coaching support to teachers.
Statewide, student performance inched up in 2024. English scores rose to 47% of students meeting or exceeding proficiency, up from 46.7% in 2023. Math increased slightly to 30.7% from 30.2% the previous year. However, these remain well below pre-pandemic levels.
In 2019, more than half of California students—51.7%—were proficient in English, and 37.1% met math standards. Scores fell sharply following the shift to remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, and many students have yet to recover fully.
Linda Darling-Hammond, president of the State Board of Education, said she sees reason for optimism in the statewide numbers.
“California’s public schools are making encouraging gains in all of the key subject areas, and these gains are largest for our most vulnerable groups of students,” she said in a statement. “Our governor and the Legislature have, in recent years, prioritized … accelerating learning and equity: community schools, expanded learning time, transitional kindergarten, and investments in literacy and math. Those efforts are paying dividends.”
The CAASPP exams, including Smarter Balanced assessments in English and math, are given annually to students in grades 3 through 8 and grade 11.
