Kathy M. Pullman

A 3rd grade teacher at Fernangeles Elementary in 2009

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, Pullman ranked:

Most effective overall.
Most effective in math. Students of teachers in this category, on average, gained about 11 percentile points on the California Standards Test compared with other students at their grade level.
Most effective in English. Students of teachers in this category, on average, gained about 7 percentile points on the California Standards Test compared with other students at their grade level.

Pullman's LAUSD teaching history

2002-03 through 2008-09 academic years

Fernangeles Elementary, 2009 - 2003

Kathy Pullman's Response:

I didn't need your analysis of something as meaningless as mere test scores to tell me I'm effective. I got that from the 5 teachers with whom I've worked who were my former students, or from the girl who was raised to be a wife and mother but went to medical school because I made her believe she could be more and passed that on to her younger sister, now a lawyer, or maybe the myriad of other successful adults who have come back to see me or "friend" me on Facebook. They tell me I touched their lives. That's value-added!

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.