Sacramento students lag behind state in English and math, test results say
Sacramento students are underperforming in English language arts and mathematics assessments compared to their peers across the state, according to new data released by the California Department of Education.
More than half of California K-12 students are not meeting state standards — they met or exceeded state standards at a rate of 48% in English language arts (ELA) and just 37% in math. While this represents an improvement over the previous school year, students statewide are still lagging behind pre-pandemic achievement levels.
As Gov. Gavin Newsom boasts “significant gains” in California test scores, students in the capital region trail behind. Only 45% and 34% of students in Sacramento County are meeting standards in ELA and math, respectively.
Which Sacramento County districts performed the best
The data show that only two of Sacramento County’s six major school districts are outperforming the state average in terms of students meeting California ELA and math standards — Folsom Cordova Unified and Elk Grove Unified. Folsom Cordova Unified soared above the state average by about 11 percentage points in each category, and Elk Grove Unified around 6 percentage points.
Elk Grove Unified also saw a rate of improvement higher than the state average, which administrators owed in part to data-sharing. In analyzing the 2023-24 data, they saw that many students were not attempting the written portion of the test, which heavily impacts their scores. By connecting with site administrators and teachers, they were able to decrease the number of zeroes on that portion of the test by 29%, district spokesperson Lisa Levasseur said.
Levasseur also mentioned professional development aiding in both ELA and math and the implementation of new textbooks that align with state math framework.
The other four districts — Natomas Unified, Sacramento City Unified, San Juan Unified and Twin Rivers Unified — all trailed the state average by at least 7 percentage points in ELA and about 8 in math. The worst performing district was Twin Rivers, with only 37% and 26% of its students meeting standards in ELA and math.
Twin Rivers, however, saw the most improvement in scores among the major Sacramento districts, with a 3.5 percentage point boost in ELA scores and 2.5 in math since 2024.
“It shows what’s possible when our entire community comes together to support learning and growth,” Twin Rivers Superintendent Steve Martinez said. “Thanks to the hard work of our educators, families, and students, we’re seeing real progress and building a stronger foundation for the future.”
Martinez noted that there is still more work to do and that every student deserves the chance to reach their full potential.
Natomas Unified seemed to struggle this year, seeing a slight backslide in the number of students meeting standards in ELA and only a slight increase in math. District spokesperson Deidra Powell said that despite this decrease in overall ELA proficiency, they saw increases across several grade levels and in math.
“While we are proud of those schools and students who made impressive gains on the CAASPP, we want this for all students at each of our schools,” Powell said. “This is one of the reasons why we have a focus on early literacy and intervention support tools — to raise the achievement level of students in this area.”
Powell also noted that this assessment is only one measure to determine a student’s understanding and growth, and that they track their development in other ways more frequently than the once-a-year state test.
Two counties in the greater Sacramento region outperformed the state, Placer and El Dorado. Roseville Joint Union High School District in Placer County was highlighted by the California Department of Education as one district that saw notable gains in student achievement — with students meeting or exceeding the proficiency a rate of 3 percentage points over the prior in ELA and 5.5 in math.
These results come from the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress. Students in grades three through eight and grade 11 take the assessment for English language arts and math while students in just three grades (in fifth, eighth and once in high school) are assessed for science. Students with significant cognitive disabilities take alternate assessments and English language learners take an English Language Proficiency Assessment which measures their initial proficiency or their progress toward English proficiency.
