La Cañada Math

For current 6th graders who are planning on taking the middle school math placement exam, LCHS 7/8 principal Gold confirmed this morning (05/26/20) at the 7/8 PTA meeting that the first test opportunity will be in late July at the earliest, and also that they still plan to offer two test opportunities. That means the second test opportunity will probably stay at the previously announced date of August 7, 2020. That’s not much time between testing opportunities. Also…Gold reiterated that the exam will be given in person at LCHS, probably in small groups to adhere to social distancing guidelines.

Gold also revealed that 85 students had signed up for the exam so far. For comparison, over the past four years, the average number of students who take the first exam, which until this year has always been held in May, was about 100.

If for some reason you failed to sign up your rising 7th grader for the middle school math placement exam, the registration link sent on Mar. 03, 2020 by LCHS 7/8 principal Jarrett Gold is here and appears to still be active:

https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSdd3DNm3wihln…/viewform

 

This is a reminder that the La Canada Math Parents will host an information night tomorrow night on the Middle School Math Placement:

What: Middle School Math Placement Test Information Night
When: Wed. Mar. 11, 2020, 6:30PM
Where: La Canada Public Library – Community Meeting Room
4545 N. Oakwood Ave.
La Canada, CA 91011

The purpose of the talk is to provide background information to district parents about the Middle School Math Placement Test, which will be administered by LCHS 7/8 staff on Thursday, May 21st and again on August 7th. The purpose of the middle school math placement test is to identify 6th grade students who are above grade level in math and place them appropriately in math courses upon arrival at the middle school. We will provide an overview of the test, its purpose in the context of the middle school and LCHS math pathways, show historical performance on the exam in the recent past, possible material that will be covered on the exam, and recommendations on how to prepare. We will describe the 7th grade California math standards, which broadly speaking bound what might be covered on the placement exam.

The event will also be helpful for parents of students in earlier elementary grades since most LCUSD families don’t find out about the placement exam until March of their student’s 6th grade year, when it is too late to begin preparation and have a reasonable chance of passing the placement test.

We understand there are concerns about Coronavirus and some are avoiding public meetings altogether. The California Department of Public Health issued an updated bulletin yesterday stating that they do not recommend cancellation of community events at this time if no COVID-19 cases exist in the community. After consulting with the guidelines and bulletins issued by the LA County Department of Public Health, California Department of Public Health, and the CDC, we have decided to continue with this event given there are no reported COVID-19 cases in La Canada or surrounding communities.

NOTE: that this is not a district sponsored event — it is an informational evening hosted by parents for other parents.

On November 19, 2019 La Canada Math Parents published a special report on the district’s performance last Spring on the California Annual Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) — the state’s annual standardized test in the subjects of Mathematics and English Language Arts administered in grades 3-8 and 11. The article, “LCUSD Continues to Overstate Its Rankings,” is available to read here:

https://lcfmathparents.wordpress.com/district-continues-to-overstate-its-state-test-score-rankings/

The story examines the claim in recent LCUSD email announcements and press stories that “La Cañada Unified scored in first, second or third place statewide in all grade levels tested (in CAASPP), both in English Language Arts and Math.” The district has repeatedly made the claim for several years, even though the claim is inaccurate and misleading.

La Canada Math Parents (LCMP) will repeat an information night for parents on the middle school math placement exam:

When? Wed. May 15, 2019, 7:00PM-8:00PM
Where? JEI Learning Center – Montrose
3600 Ocean View Blvd #3
Montrose, CA 91208

LCMP originally gave this talk on Apr. 09, 2019, and the event was heavily attended with standing room only. The information is being repeated since several parents could not attend the first event and asked to hold it again. We will discuss the Middle School Math Placement Test, which will be administered by LCHS 7/8 staff on Friday, May 24th and again on August 9th. The purpose of the middle school math placement test is to identify students who place above grade level and place them appropriately in math courses upon arrival at the middle school.

The exam, its purpose, historical performance by students who have taken it in the recent past, and possible topics covered will be discussed on May 15th. In addition, LCMP will explain the math pathways in LCHS 7/8 and LCHS, as well as what benefits are conferred to students who pass one or both parts of the middle school placement exam. We will describe the 7th grade California math standards, which broadly speaking bound what might be covered on the placement exam. Lastly, at least one student who have successfully passed the exam last year will be available to answer questions.

Parents of current 6th grade students who are considering taking the exam will benefit from the information presented at his talk. In addition, parents of students in earlier grades will learn that the best way to succeed on the middle school math placement test and accelerate in math in middle and high school is to start well BEFORE 6th grade.

If you plan on coming, please RSVP here:

http://bit.ly/lchs78mathinfo

 

 

La Canada Math Parents (LCMP) will host an information night for parents on the middle school math placement exam:

When? Tue. Apr. 09, 2019, 6:30PM-8:00PM
Where? IRC (upstairs in classroom 1), La Cañada High School
4463 Oak Grove Drive
La Cañada, CA 91011

Discussed will be the Middle School Math Placement Test, which will be administered by LCHS 7/8 staff on Friday, May 24th and again on August 9th. The purpose of the middle school math placement test is to identify students who place above grade level and place them appropriately in math courses upon arrival at the middle school.

LCHS 7/8 principal Gold sent an email to current LCUSD 6th grade families on Mar. 13, 2019 explaining that:

“To clarify, this exam is not required for every 6th-grade student. Only those who are performing above grade level should sign up to take this assessment. No preparation should be needed for a child who has been performing above grade level and is ready for an above grade level placement.”

Unfortunately, this statement is misleading. Students who take the placement exam who have not prepared or studied above grade-level math in the past have almost no chance of passing the exam. For example, 83% of students who took the exam last May failed it.

The exam, its purpose, historical performance by students who have taken it in the recent past, and possible topics covered will be discussed on April 9th. In addition, LCMP will explain the math pathways in LCHS 7/8 and LCHS, as well as what benefits are conferred to students who pass one or both parts of the middle school placement exam. We will describe the 7th grade California math standards, which broadly speaking bound what might be covered on the placement exam. Lastly, several students who have successfully passed the exam in the past will be available to answer questions.

Parents of current 6th grade students who are considering taking the exam will benefit from the information presented at his talk. In addition, parents of students in earlier grades will learn that the best way to succeed on the middle school math placement test and accelerate in math in middle and high school is to start well BEFORE 6th grade.

If you plan on coming, please RSVP here:

http://bit.ly/lchs78math

Your response will help us plan for enough room and we will send you a reminder on April 08th.

This is a reminder that La Cañada Math Parents will be hosting Math Fest tomorrow evening. See below for details: 

When? 6:00 – 7:45pm, Thu. 09/26/2018
Where? La Cañada Public Library – Community Meeting Room
4545 N. Oakwood Ave
La Cañada, CA 91011

Does your child need a little extra help in math? Do they want to soar higher? Come to this informational meeting at the LCF Public Library community meeting room. We will let parents of K-12 students know about the math textbooks in use, official support resources and enrichment opportunities offered by the schools, free and paid online resources parents can access for support, and outside resources offered by local tutors and tutoring centers. Representatives from local tutoring centers will be on hand to describe their offerings and answer any questions parents have.

Representatives from the following tutoring centers will be on hand to answer questions and talk with parents one-on-one: C2 Education, JEI Learning, Learning Ladder, Mathnasium, Revolution Test Prep, Stepping Stones Learning Center, and Young Scholar Institute.

 

In August 2017, LCUSD Wendy Sinnette announced that one of her five Superintendent’s goals for the 2017-18 school year was to review best practices in TK-12 mathematics instruction and delivery within the district. The Superintendent worked very hard throughout the year on the goal, concentrating on elementary grades after she determined early in the school year that everything was fine in the middle and high schools. The Superintendent met with teachers and administrators in the Fall, and then convened two elementary math parent forums in December and January. After that, she convened an Elementary Math Committee to continue researching issues brought up in her review and at the two parent forums. The committee met three times in April and May of 2018. Read about the Superintendent’s goal, her research, the parent forums, and the Elementary Math Committee on the following new pages at LCMP:

• Superintendent’s Review 2017-18
  • Superintendent’s Review 2017-18 – First Discussion Forum
  • Superintendent’s Review 2017-18 – Second Discussion Forum
  • Superintendent’s Review 2017-18 – Proposed Solutions
  • Superintendent’s Elementary Math Advisory Committee
    • First Elementary Math Committee Meeting – April 12, 2018
    • Second Elementary Math Committee Meeting – April 26, 2018
    • Report on Elementary Math Committee (Gottheim)
    • Summary of Elementary Math Committee (Perumbeti)

In addition, two of the major issues that came up during the Superintendent’s Review were acceleration and the practice of homogeneous grouping. LCMP background pages on these topics have also been published:

• Issues – Acceleration
• Issues – Homogeneous vs Heterogeneous Grouping

This is a reminder that the Superintendent’s Elementary Math Discussion Forum will be held tomorrow at 6:30pm. See below for details: 

When? 6:30 – 8:00pm, Tue. 01/23/2018
Where? LCUSD District Office – Governing Board Room
4490 Cornishon Ave
La Cañada, CA 91011

Having a good turnout of parents interested in math intervention, differentiation, and acceleration will be absolutely critical to improving elementary math instruction in our district. 85.6% of district students are performing at or above grade level standards in mathematics according to the annual CAASPP state results.† Yet few opportunities are currently afforded for meaningful differentiation or advancement in the classroom. At the same time, there are no intervention opportunities afforded elementary students who struggle in math like there are for reading intervention. As a result, a recent survey found that 57% of LCUSD parents supplement or tutor their children in mathematics outside of school in grades K-6.

We are pleased that the Superintendent and the Governing Board are now pledging support and attention to this matter, which some parents have been advocating for the past several years. Please make a point to show up tomorrow at the forum, or e-mail your thoughts to Wendy Sinnette if you cannot attend. 

And please forward this to others you think might have an interest.

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† Average of 3rd through 6th grade CASSPP mathematics scores for LCE, PCR, and PCY for the latest Spring 2017 test.