California School Dashboard

To help parents and educators identify strengths and areas for improvement, California reports how districts, schools (including alternative schools serving high-risk students), and student groups are performing across state and local measures. They do this through the California School Dashboard.

How does the Dashboard Work?

According to the California Department of Education, "The California School Dashboard (Dashboard) is an online tool designed to help communities across the state access important information about kindergarten through grade twelve schools and districts. The Dashboard features easy-to-read reports on multiple measures of school success. The Dashboard is just one step in a series of changes in the past decade that have raised the bar for student learning, increased the focus on equity, and expanded the review of performance data to a specific set of state and local indicators."

Six state measures allow for comparisons across schools and districts.

Academic Performance
Chronic Absenteeism
College/Career Readiness*
English Learner Progress
High School Graduation Rate
Suspension Rate

Want more details, please visit the Dashboard website at https://www.caschooldashboard.org/.

Accountability Background

Based on the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), which was passed in 2013, California's accountability system is based on multiple measures. These measures are used to determine progress made by schools, districts, and county offices of education ("Local Education Agencies" -- LEAs) toward meeting the needs of their students. The measures are based on factors that contribute to quality education, including high school graduation rates, college/career readiness, student test scores, English learner (EL) progress, suspension rates, and parent engagement.

The sweeping overhaul of California's Accountability and Continuous Improvement System ushered in with the LCFF, not only gives California a chance to address historical inequities but provides the California Department of Education an opportunity to better support California's schools and its students.

Performance on these multiple measures is reported through the California School Dashboard. This accountability system reflects a clear expectation that all LEAs and schools can and should improve, and emphasizes equity by focusing on student group performance. This multiple measures system replaces the former Academic Performance Index (API), which was based solely on testing results, and the federal requirement to calculate Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).

LEA and school performance in the ten LCFF priority areas are measured using a combination of state and local indicators.