Ask an Expert: Jim Cox and Pat Puleo
Measuring Up: A Parent's Guide to Testing, Grades, and Assessments

How much "weight" should I put into the API test scores? My son attended school in Virginia where their Standard Of Learning test scores averaged in the low 90's. The school I'm thinking about sending my son to in California has an API score of 725. The school's SAT-9 scores are 76% in reading and 82% in math. Should I be concerned about the large difference in scores?

The API score is a compilation of points assigned to students, which is then weighted based on the subject area tested. It is unique to California, and can't be compared to anything.

You may be trying to compare the Virgina Standards of Learning (SOL) with the SAT-9. These two tests are not really comparable. The SAT-9 scores (from which the API is computed) is norm-referenced, which means it compares the students in a school to a national group of students picked by the test company called the "norming group." The Virginia test has its own norming group. In effect, the two tests use different yardsticks.

But the SAT-9 norming group is also not well matched with the California population at large. For example, almost every school in California has some youngsters learning English as a second language. The average is about 30 percent. But the test company's norming group had almost no students (less than 2 percent) learning English. Therefore, schools scoring in the rankings you named have done exceptionally well on this test.

Please consider many aspects of school life when choosing a school such as special programs that match your child's needs and interests, school focus, parental involvement opportunities, etc. A single test score, in and of itself, does not tell the full story of a school.

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