Kern County Students' Scores Dip in Statewide Testing…but not the WKC!

Yvette Gamino speaks with her incoming kindergarten student, Scarlett Garcia, as she introduces Scarlett to the classroom the day before the school year began in August at Myra A. Noble Elementary School. The school reported 16.5 percent met or exceeded the state standard in English language arts and 7.51 percent met or exceeded the standard in math in recently released test scores.

The latest release of standardized test scores from the state’s Department of Education reveal "learning loss," a commonly used term to describe the challenges faced by students due to disruptions in their classroom instruction, has been felt widely by Kern districts across all levels. 

“The pandemic has been extremely challenging on so many levels, and it was anticipated there would be a direct correlation to academic progress,” said Mary Barlow, Kern County superintendent of schools. “Our collective education community — educators, parents, and students — has worked diligently and collaboratively since the onset of the pandemic on numerous strategies to help mitigate learning gaps and we will continue to do so moving forward.”