Giancarlo Mercado

A 4th / 5th split teacher at Westminster Avenue Elementary in 2007

These graphs show a teacher's "value-added" rating based on his or her students' progress on the California Standards Tests in math and English. The Times’ analysis used all valid student scores available for this teacher from the 2002-03 through 2008-09 academic years. The value-added scores reflect a teacher's effectiveness at raising standardized test scores and, as such, capture only one aspect of a teacher's work.

Overall value-added effectiveness

Math effectiveness

English effectiveness

This chart shows where teachers in this effectiveness category fall on a distribution of all teachers’ scores.

Compared with other Los Angeles Unified teachers on the value-added measure of test score improvement, Mercado ranked:

Average overall.
More effective than average in math. Students of teachers in this category, on average, gained about 4 percentile points on the California Standards Test compared with other students at their grade level.
Less effective than average in English. Students of teachers in this category, on average, lost about 3 percentile points on the California Standards Test compared with other students at their grade level.

Mercado's LAUSD teaching history

2002-03 through 2008-09 academic years

Westminster Avenue Elementary, 2007 - 2003

Giancarlo Mercado's Response:

Teachers of split grade levels realize that there are too many variables beyond their control such as sending one grade level out to another teacher for Open Court Reading (English) for over two hours a day. This, and other factors such as emphasizing reading and writing for a purpose and not necessarily for test preparation and making sure that all students receive a well rounded education in all areas such as Science, Art, Social Science, PE, Health, Technology, etc. skew data. I guess I should have given up on programs and such as:
•Los Angeles County Office Of Education's 5 Day Outdoor Science School in the San Bernardino Mountains which for many was their first trip outside our urban city and home and fomented an appreciation for nature and a love for Science
•Santa Monica's Heal-the-Bay program which taught my students the effects of pollution and how all of us can make a difference
•Trips to LA’s diverse museums such as MOCA, LACMA and the Getty which instilled in them an appreciation for different mediums of art and possibly planted a seed for a future artist who may not be drawn into school by the other standard curriculum
•Our model school garden which taught my students about healthy eating choices and how being good to “Mother Earth” could reap you many benefits
•Inviting volunteer fitness trainers to exercise with my students to help combat childhood obesity
All of these programs and many others I thought were exposing my students to areas that would help them obtain life skills that will assist them in being contributing members of tomorrow’s world. Does this have any added value? If I had taught Math and English all day to the exclusion of all other academic subjects and had my students scored higher on standardized tests, I would have been deemed a better teacher according to your standards.
Mr. Mercado, NBCT-score “Average”

The Times gave LAUSD elementary school teachers rated in this database the opportunity to preview their value-added evaluations and publicly respond. Some issues raised by teachers may be addressed in the FAQ. Teachers who have not commented may do so by contacting The Times.