SFUSD reports five-year gains on state tests but says achievement gaps remain

San Francisco Unified School District on Sept. 25 reported measurable gains in student achievement over the last five years but underscored that persistent racial and subgroup gaps remain. Superintendent Carranza and staff presented California Standards Test and related assessment results showing districtwide improvement and identified strategies the district plans to scale.

"As you are deciding on candidates and ballot measures to vote for, I would like to draw your attention to 2 educational ballot initiatives in particular, proposition 30 and proposition 38," Superintendent Carranza said, warning that failure of those measures would reduce funding and could force the district to shorten the school year. Dr. Khanna, who guided the data presentation, said the district’s percent of students at ‘‘proficient and above’’ in English language arts rose to about 60.5% from roughly 50% five years earlier, and math proficiency moved to about 57.2%.

The presentation used three lenses — trend (five-year change), movement (cohort changes year-to-year), and acceleration (school-level gains compared with similar schools) — and identified 27 "top performing" schools and multiple schools showing double-digit, year-to-year acceleration. Dr. Khanna said 7 out of 10 matched students either remained proficient, advanced, or moved up a proficiency level in the last reported year.

Deputy Superintendent Guadalupe Gadell and other staff disaggregated results by subgroup and program. They reported notable upward trends for many ethnic subgroups and program categories but said the achievement gap remains large: "In 2012, the achievement gap still looks for African American students [to be] 38.2%," the superintendent said, adding that the district has narrowed the gap but not closed it.

Board members pressed staff on how to replicate successful practices outside schools that received extra federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) funds. Commissioner Marazzi said the results are "remarkable" given recent state budget cuts and flagged the drop in suspension rates as an important complementary outcome. Several commissioners asked for clearer information about which practices can be sustained when supplemental funds end.

Staff described high‑leverage strategies they plan to spread across schools: job‑embedded professional learning and common planning time, instructional coaches in literacy and math, balanced interim assessments to inform instruction, extended learning opportunities (aligned after‑school and summer programs), and community partnerships that offer student supports. The presentation also noted efforts to align pre‑K through elementary curricula and to implement a consistent district core so teachers can focus on rigorous instruction districtwide.

The district emphasized both celebration and caution: administrators portrayed the results as evidence that current strategies are working in many schools but said accelerating learning for African American and Latino students will require sustained focus and resources. "We know what to do. Now we need the resources to be able to do that districtwide," the superintendent said.

Next steps identified by staff include continuing to implement the district’s new core instructional materials in English language arts and math, expanding use of balanced assessments, and supporting teacher teams to analyze student work and adapt instruction over the school year. The board requested future updates that further explain classroom-level changes, replication strategies, and contingency plans for when one-time SIG funds sunset.