McGraw-Hill Education Congratulates California School Districts Using California Treasures for Outstanding Reading Achievement

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- After implementing McGraw-Hill's California Treasures program in the 2009-2010 school year, elementary school students (grades 2-5) across 15 California school districts have shown measurable growth on their 2010 Academic Performance Index (API) and STAR results, outperforming students across the state on their California Standards Tests in the subject of English Language Arts.

The average increase of English Learners using California Treasures testing as "proficient or advanced" outperformed the state average by approximately five-to-one during year 1 of implementation as indicated on STAR results. Additionally, English Learners using California Treasures experienced significant gains, demonstrating an average API Growth increase of 27 points, versus the state's average growth improvement of 15 points.  

Continuing to make substantial progress with their reading and language arts initiatives, districts that adopted California Treasures surpassed the state-wide Growth API by two-to-one for all learners, boasting a 26 point average increase as compared to the state's 13 point average increase.

"We applaud the continued improvements in school districts across the state of California using California Treasures, a Common Core California Standards Curriculum," said Tom DeWitt, regional vice president of McGraw-Hill's School Education Group. "Noticeable gains on test scores and Academic Performance Index results that surpass those of the entire state confirm our commitment to preparing students for future reading and academic success through a rigorous and comprehensive curriculum. We continue to look forward to providing a tool to districts that supports their overall Annual Measureable Achievement Objectives."

California Treasures, a research-based K-6 comprehensive reading language arts program, couples high-quality literature with guided instruction, ample practice, writing support and classroom management resources. The program was developed to meet California state standards, and reflects extensive input from California teachers.

About McGraw-Hill School Education Group

The McGraw-Hill School Education Group, a unit of McGraw-Hill Education, is a leading innovator in the development of 21st century teaching and learning solutions for K-12 education markets, offering traditional and digital instructional, assessment, and reference content and tools for teachers and students. The School Education Group addresses critical areas in primary and secondary education through Learning Solutions Centers focused on improving student learning outcomes and promoting digital innovation in literacy, STEM, college and career readiness, and intervention and special needs education. All of McGraw-Hill's content for elementary schools and secondary schools is available in digital form. McGraw-Hill Education, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP), has offices in 33 countries and publishes in more than 65 languages. Additional information is available at http://www.mheducation.com.

SOURCE McGraw-Hill Education